Delivery only
5.41¢
per kWh, 2025 average revenue
$60.74 / month at 1,124 kWh
Price +9.7% from 2024
Investor Owned · 2,529,039 residential customers · Texas
Why is the delivery charge on my CenterPoint Energy bill so high?
EIA respondent: CenterPoint Energy. Reviewed October 14, 2026.
CenterPoint Energy is filed with EIA as delivery service, not a full-service retail rate. In 2025 it reported 2,529,039 residential delivery customers, average delivery revenue of 5.41¢ per kWh, and about $60.74 a month at 1,124 kWh. The energy charge is extra unless your retail plan already includes delivery. Whether a quoted plan rate includes this wires charge needs verification.
Do not line that delivery average up against Texas's all-in residential price. The state average for 2025 was 15.40¢. In July 2026 it was 15.88¢, versus 15.36¢ in July 2025 (+3.4%). Most of the gap is energy supply, not a verdict on the delivery charge.
From 2024 to 2025, the average monthly bill for delivery only changed +12.2%. Average use changed +2.3% and average price changed +9.7%. Holding the 2024 price fixed, the usage change accounts for $1.23 a month. The price change, applied to 2025 usage, accounts for $5.34.
EIA Form 861, 2025 final · Reviewed October 14, 2026
EIA Electric Power Monthly, Table 5.6.A · Reviewed October 14, 2026
The rate on the record
Investor-owned base rates are usually set in a state docket. Riders can change outside a full rate case. Average revenue per kilowatt-hour is total residential revenue divided by residential sales. It is not a tariff schedule.
| Service | Customers | Price | Monthly use | Monthly bill | Vs 2024 price |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Delivery only | 2,529,039 | 5.41¢ | 1,124 kWh | $60.74 | +9.7% |
EIA-861 sales to ultimate customers, 2025 final, compared with 2024 · Reviewed October 14, 2026
Audit the delivery only average
Revenue 1,843,346.5 thousand dollars. Sales 34,101,189 MWh. Customers 2,529,039. Cents per kWh = revenue ÷ megawatt-hours × 100. Monthly bill = revenue × 1,000 ÷ customers ÷ 12.
Why a CenterPoint Energy bill moved
The price change was the larger piece
From 2024 to 2025 the average delivery only bill at CenterPoint Energy moved +12.2%, from $54.16 to $60.74. Holding the 2024 price fixed, the usage change of +2.3% is worth $1.23 a month. The price change of +9.7%, from 4.93¢ to 5.41¢, is worth $5.34 on 2025 usage.
Texas all-in price is a different bill
CenterPoint Energy delivery revenue averaged 5.41¢ per kWh in 2025, about $60.74 a month at 1,124 kWh. Texas's all-in residential price was 15.40¢ for 2025 and 15.88¢ in July 2026 (+3.4% from July 2025). Most of that gap is energy you buy from a retail provider or the utility's own supply offer. Do not subtract the two cents figures and call the difference an overcharge.
Delivery only
CenterPoint Energy shows up here as wires revenue. 2,529,039 residential delivery customers, 5.41¢ per kWh, about $60.74 a month. Shopping for a cheaper energy plan does not remove this charge.
Base delivery revenue was reduced, not raised
Public Utility Commission of Texas, Docket 56211. The PUCT order in Docket 56211 approves an unopposed agreement filed January 29, 2025. The agreement reduces CenterPoint Houston's wholesale and retail revenues by $44,153,511.40 from about $2.305 billion, plus $2,424,013 of chief executive officer compensation, a total reduction of $46,577,524.40. New rates were to… The rate-case section has the full citation.
Season
CenterPoint Energy customers in Texas average 1,124 kWh a month across the whole year, against a statewide residential average of 1,110 kWh. Summer afternoons do not look like that average. An air conditioner, a pool pump, or a hotter month can move the bill before any rider does.
Data-center load is not a line on this bill
National electricity demand is rising, and EIA points to large computing facilities. No retrieved order isolates a data-center dollar on a CenterPoint Energy residential account. That pass-through needs verification.
Needs verification
EIA-861 2025 and 2024 residential sales · Reviewed October 14, 2026
Rate cases and hikes
decided · Docket 56211
Base delivery revenue was reduced, not raised
The PUCT order in Docket 56211 approves an unopposed agreement filed January 29, 2025. The agreement reduces CenterPoint Houston's wholesale and retail revenues by $44,153,511.40 from about $2.305 billion, plus $2,424,013 of chief executive officer compensation, a total reduction of $46,577,524.40. New rates were to take effect no earlier than the 46th day after the order. The signature date on the scanned order did not read cleanly, so it is not restated here. This is delivery revenue only.
PUCT order, Docket 56211 (Public Utility Commission of Texas) · Reviewed October 14, 2026
decided · Docket 59424
Distribution cost recovery factor, 0.4944 cents per kWh
The PUCT approved the DCRF rates in the April 21, 2026 agreement, effective for meters read on and after June 1, 2026. The application had asked for a residential factor of $0.005053 per kWh on an annual revenue requirement of $286,168,846. Exhibit A of the approved agreement sets residential service at $0.004944 per kWh. Retail providers pass this delivery factor through to the extent their contracts allow. A later Docket 59981 proposal for decision, dated September 14, 2026, recommended a higher residential factor of $0.006137 per kWh. That document is an ALJ recommendation, not a final commission order.
PUCT order, Docket 59424 (Public Utility Commission of Texas) · Reviewed October 14, 2026
Assistance
LIHEAP is the federal bill program, and the state contact list is the place to start. A CenterPoint Energy income discount, medical baseline, or budget-billing rule was not retrieved from Public Utility Commission of Texas. That offer needs verification.
LIHEAP program · State and territory contacts · CenterPoint Energy site
The company homepage is linked for navigation. Program rules on that site were not reviewed. Needs verification.
LIHEAP · Reviewed October 14, 2026
How to lower the bill
- Read the kilowatt-hours against this filing's average of 1,124 kWh a month. If your use is the thing that moved, the dollar total can rise on an unchanged rate.
- The figure on this page is delivery. Compare retail energy plans separately, then add the delivery charge back. A plan that looks cheaper per kilowatt-hour can lose the comparison once the wires charge is included.
- In Texas, the expensive hours are late afternoon and early evening in summer. Raise the cooling setpoint when you are out, and run the dryer, the dishwasher, and any pool pump outside those hours if your tariff charges more then.
- Start with LIHEAP for Texas (https://www.acf.hhs.gov/ocs/map/liheap-map-state-and-territory-contact-listing). A CenterPoint Energy discount beyond that program needs verification.
- If the read is marked estimated, the next actual read can true the account up or down. The tariff rule for that true-up needs verification.
Delivery only at the 2025 average price
| Monthly use | Estimated bill |
|---|---|
| 500 kWh | $27.05 |
| 750 kWh | $40.58 |
| 1,000 kWh | $54.10 |
| 1,500 kWh | $81.15 |
| 2,000 kWh | $108.20 |
Usage times the average price. At very low use, a real bill is often higher because a fixed customer charge does not shrink. The tariff needs verification.
Questions people ask
Why is my CenterPoint Energy electric bill so high?
CenterPoint Energy is filed with EIA as delivery service, not a full-service retail rate. In 2025 it reported 2,529,039 residential delivery customers, average delivery revenue of 5.41¢ per kWh, and about $60.74 a month at 1,124 kWh. The energy charge is extra unless your retail plan already includes delivery. Whether a quoted plan rate includes this wires charge needs verification. Do not line that delivery average up against Texas's all-in residential price. The state average for 2025 was 15.40¢. In July 2026 it was 15.88¢, versus 15.36¢ in July 2025 (+3.4%). Most of the gap is energy supply, not a verdict on the delivery charge. From 2024 to 2025, the average monthly bill for delivery only changed +12.2%. Average use changed +2.3% and average price changed +9.7%. Holding the 2024 price fixed, the usage change accounts for $1.23 a month. The price change, applied to 2025 usage, accounts for $5.34.
What was CenterPoint Energy's average residential rate?
Using 2025 EIA-861 revenue and sales, the delivery only average was 5.41¢ per kWh. Average use was 1,124 kWh a month and the average bill was $60.74. This folds in whatever customer charges and riders the utility reported. It is not the marginal rate on your tariff.
Did CenterPoint Energy raise rates?
Public Utility Commission of Texas Docket 56211 (decided): Base delivery revenue was reduced, not raised. Public Utility Commission of Texas Docket 59424 (decided): Distribution cost recovery factor, 0.4944 cents per kWh. Separately, the EIA average price moved +9.7% from 2024 to 2025. The annual average and the docket are not the same document.
What bill assistance can CenterPoint Energy customers ask about?
LIHEAP is the federal program for home energy bills (https://www.acf.hhs.gov/ocs/programs/liheap). CenterPoint Energy may also offer an income-qualified discount, budget billing, or a medical baseline. The current offer, income cutoff, and how to apply need verification on the utility site and with the state LIHEAP office and Public Utility Commission of Texas.
Are data centers why this bill went up?
Large computing load is raising U.S. electricity demand, and regulators can later recover new generation and wires costs from customers. EIA has not published a dollar line that isolates data centers on this utility's residential bill. That pass-through needs verification.