Compare Dallas Electricity Rates and Providers

Navigating electricity rates in Dallas can be a bit overwhelming, but we’re here to simplify the process. As of February 2025, the average residential electricity rate in Texas is about 14.89 cents per kilowatt-hour (kWh), according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA). However, rates can vary depending on your location, provider and energy plan.

In Dallas, thanks to the deregulated energy market, you have the power to choose from a variety of retail electricity providers (REPs) and plans. This competition often leads to more favorable rates and plan options. As of May 2025, electricity rates in The Big D start as low as 11 cents per kWh and go well above 24 cents per kWh.

You may unlock savings for your Dallas home by comparing electricity rates and providers and selecting an energy plan that aligns with your energy needs. Our comprehensive guide can help you navigate the choices, understand the fine print and select a plan that fits your energy needs and budget.

Current Dallas Electricity Rates

Start your Dallas energy shopping journey by checking out the rates in the table below. Note that this table includes both ultra-cheap energy plans and straightforward electricity plans.

Plans with the cheapest rates typically include bill credits, or discounts you earn when your home’s energy usage meets specific kilowatt-hour levels, typically 1,000 or 2,000 kWh. Meet these requirements, and you may enjoy low rates. Fall below or exceed the required usage threshold, and your effective energy rate can skyrocket.

We recommend fixed-rate plans for most Dallas residents. These plans have the same price regardless of usage, providing predictable monthly bills. Before signing up for any energy plan, determine if your usage aligns with the plan’s rate structure.

Rates updated as of May 2025, based on the Oncor Electric Delivery service area for zip code 75217. Average rates are for a home with an average monthly usage of 1,000 kWh.

Average Electricity Rates in Dallas

As of May 2025, the average electricity rate in Dallas is 15.6 cents per kWh. We calculated this figure with pricing data from 139 electricity plans listed by the Public Utility Commission of Texas (PUCT), considering three consumption levels: 500, 1,000 and 2,000 kWh per month.

Dallas electricity costs are slightly higher than the Texas state average of 14.89 cents per kWh, but still below the U.S. average of 16.44 cents per kWh, as reported by the EIA.

In the table below, you can compare average electricity rates for different home sizes and consumption levels in Dallas, and the estimated monthly bill you can expect in each case.

Texas has a competitive electricity market driven by supply and demand. As such, electric rates tend to rise in summer and winter, due to the increased usage of air conditioners and space heaters. On the other hand, spring and fall usually offer lower rates, thanks to the mild weather and reduced HVAC usage compared to summer and winter.

What Makes a Good Rate in Dallas?

The best type of electricity plan for your home can vary depending on your usage habits. However, at This Old House, we consider that a “good” electricity plan has three main features:

• Affordable rates compared with other plans in the market
• Transparent pricing with no hidden fees, deceptive rates or other “gimmicks”
• Predictable electricity costs over time

When focusing only on fixed-rate plans that offer these features, the lowest electricity rates in Dallas as of May 2025 range from 15 to 17 cents per kWh.

Some bill credit plans advertise rates as low as 11 cents per kWh in Dallas, but these depend on meeting a usage threshold, often 1,000 kWh per month. If your usage falls short, your rate can more than double, often going over 24 cents per kWh.

We don’t recommend plans with pricing that varies based on the time of use or monthly consumption, since they often result in unpredictable bills.

Seasonal demand and natural gas prices influence Dallas electricity rates. And because Texas generates around 50% of its electricity with gas-fired turbines, local energy costs often rise when the gas market is volatile. For this reason, wrangling the best electricity rates in Dallas can feel challenging. It can help to compare electricity companies in the Dallas area.

Top Recommended Electricity Companies in Dallas

Based on our review of nearly 100 energy providers in Texas, the top-rated light companies for Dallas include TXU Energy, Reliant Energy and Green Mountain Energy. However, you may have over 50 electric companies in Dallas to choose from.

Note that Oncor Electric Delivery manages the power grid in Dallas. While you can choose your energy company, you can’t change your utility.

In the table below, you can compare fixed-rate plans from top-rated Dallas electricity companies. All these plans offer rates below 17 cents per kWh as of May 2025, with no hidden fees or pricing tricks. These plans also feature 12-month contract terms, but longer plan options such as 24 or 36 months are also available.

Understanding Dallas’s Energy Market

Before 2002, Texas operated with vertically integrated utility companies. That’s a fancy way of saying that a single utility monopolized all stages of the electricity supply: Generation, transmission and distribution, and retail sales to end customers.

For most of the 20th century, Dallas received its electricity service mainly from Dallas Power & Light (DP&L), which merged with other power companies in the region to form TXU.

When Texas deregulated its electricity market in 2002, it split up traditional power monopolies like TXU into separate companies with different roles:

• Power generators: Responsible for producing electricity from various fuel sources, including solar, wind, nuclear, coal and natural gas
• Transmission and distribution utilities (TDUs): Responsible for operating and maintaining the power grid
• Retail electricity providers (REPs): Responsible for selling electricity to you

With deregulation, TXU Energy continued operating as an electricity provider, while its utility division became Oncor Electric Delivery and its generation assets became Luminant.

The Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) ensures reliable electricity supply, coordinating with generators, utilities and light companies to manage the flow of power in the Texas grid.

Thanks to deregulation, Dallas home and business owners can save on power bills by securing electricity plans with affordable rates. You can also find plans with additional perks such as autopay discounts, 100% green energy content, discounted EV charging schedules and solar buyback rates.

How To Choose the Right Electricity Plan

When comparing Dallas energy plans, you might be drawn to the lowest advertised rates, especially if you’re new to the deregulated electricity market. However, these plans often have unfavorable terms hidden in the fine print, such as high base charges or conditional bill credits. We recommend fixed-rate plans with transparent pricing, even if they don’t advertise the lowest rates upfront.

Here are some buying tips from our energy experts, which can help you when comparing Dallas electricity companies:

• Always read the electricity facts label (EFL): Advertised rates can be misleading. However, Texas requires all energy providers to publish an EFL for every plan, which breaks down the fees and rate structure. By checking the EFLs, you can rule out plans with hidden fees or pricing tricks.
• Review your electricity usage before comparing plans: Texas electricity providers publish rates at 500, 1,000 and 2,000 kWh. To make an accurate comparison, we recommend reviewing your latest bills and checking the pricing tier closest to your monthly usage.
• Understand contract terms and cancellation fees: Most electricity plans in Dallas have contract terms from 12 to 36 months. Fixed-rate plans come with early termination fees (ETFs) if you end your contract early. Some plans charge an ETF per month left in your term, but others apply a flat fee ranging from $99 to $395.
• When a plan offers perks, read the fine print: Many energy plans offer transparent benefits such as autopay discounts or electric vehicle (EV) charging rates. However, perks that sound too good to be true often are. Watch out for things, such as “free electricity” or extra-large discounts, such as $100-plus bill credits.
• Check customer ratings when comparing electricity providers: You can check provider scores on the PUCT website and browse customer reviews on platforms like Google. We’ve also reviewed dozens of light companies, rating them across key categories, such as customer service, online experience and retention.

Types of Electricity Plans

With dozens of light companies in Texas, you’ll find hundreds of electricity plans in Dallas. Don’t let the variety overwhelm you. Most Dallas energy plans fall into the six categories below.

• Fixed-rate plans: Your electricity price is fixed during the entire contract term, offering predictable bills, but there is a cancellation fee if you switch early.
• Variable-rate plans: There is no cancellation fee or minimum contract term, but your rates will change every month.
• Bill credit plans: These plans advertise bill credits and low rates if your monthly usage stays within a specified range. However, your rate can double if you miss the minimum usage threshold.
• Time-of-use plans: Electricity rates vary depending on the hour. Typically, these plans charge high rates during peak-usage hours, while offering discounted rates or even free electricity during off-peak periods.
• Green energy plans: These plans source 100% of the electricity from renewable sources like solar panels and wind turbines, while most options in Dallas contain less than 30% green energy.
• No-deposit or prepaid plans: These plans require no credit check or deposit. Instead, you prepay for electricity, and your provider subtracts your usage from your balance.

We recommend fixed-rate plans for their transparent pricing and predictable bills. However, you can find many green energy plans with fixed rates if you want to reduce your home’s carbon footprint. Prepaid plans can also be a good fit if you prefer to pay for electricity upfront, but keep in mind they have higher rates than traditional postpaid plans.

We don’t usually recommend variable-rate, time-of-use or bill credit plans because their rate structures can lead to unpredictable bills. Time-of-use plans offer potential savings if you have a flexible schedule and are willing to adjust your energy usage, but this can require major lifestyle changes.

Similarly, bill credit plans offer savings if your electricity usage stays within a narrow range. However, this is difficult to achieve in Texas, where home energy usage tends to vary with the seasons.

Green Energy Options in Dallas

Most electricity plans in Dallas have less than 30% renewable energy content, and some fall below 10%. However, many electricity providers offer 100% green energy plans for residents who want to reduce their carbon footprint.

Some providers offer 100% green energy by default in all their plans. These include:

• Green Mountain Energy
• Gexa Energy
• Rhythm Energy
• Energy Texas

Other providers offer mostly traditional plans, but also offer 100% clean energy options, allowing customers to choose based on their preferences. These include:

• TriEagle Energy
• Reliant
• TXU Energy

Other light companies let you upgrade any traditional plan to 100% renewable energy for a small monthly fee. Providers with this option include:

• Just Energy
• 4Change Energy
• Veteran Energy

Contrary to popular belief, green energy isn’t more expensive than fossil fuel-based electricity. For example, Rhythm Energy and Energy Texas consistently offer affordable rates on 100% renewable energy by default.

Business Electricity Rates in Dallas

Commercial electricity plans in Dallas generally offer lower rates than residential plans. According to February data from the EIA, the average commercial electricity rate in Texas is 8.64 cents per kWh.

If your business uses less than $2,500 in electricity per month and fewer than five power meters, you can choose an electricity plan online, just like a residential customer. You’ll need to request a quote from an energy provider if your company has monthly bills over $2,500 or your business has five power meters or more.

Making the Switch: How To Change Providers

Thanks to the widespread adoption of smart meters in Texas, switching electricity plans is simple and hassle-free. To enroll with a new electricity company in Dallas, you just need to provide your contact details and service address. Most providers offer same-day service, but note that cutoff times for these requests vary by company.

If you switch electricity plans while under an active contract, you may owe an ETF, but there are two common exceptions.

If you switch plans while moving to a new address, Texas law exempts you from paying cancellation fees.

Some providers offer a 30 to 60-day trial period for new customers, where you’re allowed to switch plans without penalties.

The best time of the year to start a new electricity plan is usually during spring or fall. During these seasons, market rates tend to be lower thanks to the milder weather and reduced HVAC usage.

Steps To Switch Providers

If you plan to switch electricity providers, here is a quick and simple process:

1. Search for electricity plans in your ZIP code: You can use an online marketplace like Home Energy Club to compare electricity rates in your neighborhood.
2. Filter plans based on your preferences: You can narrow down options based on features like rate type, green energy content and contract length.
3. Check for ETFs: Review the cancellation policy before enrolling in any plan to avoid surprises in case you switch early.
4. Read the EFL: Check the fine print in this state-mandated document to make sure the rate structure aligns with your energy usage. This will help you avoid hidden fees and gimmicks.
5. Complete your enrollment: Most providers only need your contact details, service address and preferred start date to activate your plan.

Dallas Power Infrastructure and Outages

When you choose an electricity provider in Dallas, that company is only responsible for your energy supply, not delivering that power to your home. Regardless of your chosen provider and plan, Oncor Electric Delivery is the utility company that operates and maintains the lower grid, delivering electricity to homes and businesses in Dallas.

All electricity plans in Oncor’s service area include the following regulated delivery fees:

• Base charge: $4.23 per month
• Delivery charge: 5.1248 cents per kWh

In case of a power outage, downed lines or other grid-related issues, you must contact Oncor directly, not your chosen electricity provider. Since Winter Storm Uri in February 2021, which caused widespread blackouts across Texas, Oncor has been weatherizing the grid in the Dallas-Fort Worth area to improve reliability and protect against future extreme weather events.

Frequently Asked Questions

Our Rating Methodology

The This Old House Reviews Team supports our energy provider ratings and recommendations with a transparent, research-backed provider review methodology. Our process includes surveying electricity customers in deregulated markets like Texas, analyzing customer review trends, conducting mystery shopping, and consulting with energy experts. Each provider is scored based on performance in customer satisfaction, loyalty, digital experience, and service quality to produce a final rating on a 5-point scale.