Editor: Katerine G., Editor & Data Researcher · Research & publishing: Electric Consumer Editorial Team · Data retrieved · Sources named on this page: EIA-861, EIA retail sales · How we got these numbers · Report an error
Roughly 415,323 Montana accounts belong to NorthWestern Energy LLC, classed by EIA as investor owned; the residential count is 328,127. Businesses and industry take 70% of the 9,394,835 MWh it sells; homes take 30%.
At 711 kWh a month a NorthWestern Energy LLC home pays about $101 in energy: 14.23 ¢/kWh, 12.4% above the Montana average of 12.66 ¢.
Businesses and industry take 70% of the 9,394,835 MWh it sells; homes take 30%.
The customer mix of NorthWestern Energy LLC is its own: 328,127 home accounts buy 29.8% of 9,394,835 MWh, 84,921 commercial accounts buy 34.1%, and the remaining 36.1% goes to 2,275 industrial and other accounts. A typical NorthWestern Energy LLC home uses 8,535 kWh a year, a typical business account 37,733.
| NorthWestern Energy LLC, 2024 | Home | Business | Bill | SAIDI |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| NorthWestern Energy LLC | 14.23 ¢/kWh | 13.08 ¢/kWh | $101at 711 kWh | 118 minSAIDI |
| Montana average against this company, which is 3 of 3 on price | -1.57 ¢/kWhcompany 12.4% above | -1.21 ¢/kWhcompany 10.2% above | -$11a month at 711 kWh | +117 mincompany 117 below |
| Flathead Electric Coop IncLowest in this table | 9.67 ¢/kWhcompany 47.2% above | 7.62 ¢/kWhcompany 71.6% above | $6932 less than company | 235 mincompany 117 below |
No 2025 early-release row for NorthWestern Energy LLC; 2024 stays the latest year.
NorthWestern Energy LLC has no 2025 early-release row; for its 328,127 home accounts the latest year is 2024, at 14.23 ¢/kWh and 118 SAIDI minutes.
NorthWestern Energy LLC serves 328,127 homes in Montana. At 711 kWh a month that is about 341 kg of CO₂, or 4,089 kg a year, at the Montana plant rate, state generation and not this utility: Montana generation mix.
11.81 ¢ in 2015, 14.23 ¢ in 2024 (+20.4%); Montana 10.88 to 12.66 ¢.
| Year | NorthWestern Energy LLC | Gap to Montana residential | Gap to U.S. residential |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 11.81 | +0.93 | -0.84 |
| 2016 | 11.77 | +0.83 | -0.78 |
| 2017 | 11.76 | +0.81 | -1.13 |
| 2018 | 11.73 | +0.77 | -1.14 |
| 2019 | 12.01 | +0.88 | -1.00 |
| 2020 | 12.16 | +0.92 | -0.99 |
| 2021 | 12.14 | +0.92 | -1.52 |
| 2022 | 12.43 | +1.10 | -2.61 |
| 2023 | 14.61 | +2.07 | -1.39 |
| 2024 | 14.23 | +1.57 | -2.25 |
10 rows from EIA retail sales.
CSV114 min in 2015, 118 in 2024.
| Year | NorthWestern Energy LL, no major events | NorthWestern Energy LL, all events |
|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 114 | 260 |
| 2016 | 111 | 142 |
| 2017 | 141 | 157 |
| 2018 | 103 | 103 |
| 2019 | 114 | 114 |
| 2020 | 120 | 166 |
| 2021 | 128 | 151 |
| 2022 | 119 | 132 |
| 2023 | 103 | 103 |
| 2024 | 118 | 233 |
10 rows from EIA-861 survey.
CSV117.9 min, 1.19x the median reporter, rank 395 of 673.
NorthWestern Energy LLC, Reliability: EIA-861 survey.
CSVNorthWestern Energy LLC billed homes 11.81 ¢/kWh in 2015 and 14.23 ¢ in 2024, +20.4% in all, and outpaced the Montana average (+16.4%) by 4.1 points. NorthWestern Energy LLC's sharpest move came in 2023, +17.5%. The high is 14.61 ¢ (2023) and the low 11.73 ¢ (2018). 2024: -2.6% here, +1.0% for the Montana average. SAIDI at NorthWestern Energy LLC (major events excluded) went from 114 minutes in 2015 to 118 in 2024, +4%, between 103 (2023) and 141 (2017). NorthWestern Energy LLC filed SAIDI under the national median in 0 of 10 years; its 2024 figure was 118 minutes, +18 from that year's median. 2015: 260 minutes with major events, 114 without, the widest gap of any year. NorthWestern Energy LLC has 2 cheaper and 0 higher-priced Montana peers among 3 with 20,000+ homes. Next cheaper, Yellowstone Valley Elec Co-op, bills 13.35 ¢ (-0.88).
A 12.4% premium over Montana, with outage minutes at 1.19x the national median.
Home accounts at NorthWestern Energy LLC went from 287,204 in 2015 to 328,127 in 2024, +14.2%. Business customers paid 0.92 times the home price in 2024 (13.08 against 14.23 ¢); the ratio was 0.94 in 2015. SAIFI went from 1.32 in 2015 to 0.95 in 2024, between 0.93 and 1.32.
NorthWestern Energy LLC customers lost power for 118 minutes in 2024, down from 133 in 2013 (−11%). The low came in 2023 at 103, the high in 2017 at 141; 12 years were filed. The Montana median in 2024 was 148 minutes, so NorthWestern Energy LLC ran below it.
Home rates at NorthWestern Energy LLC went from 11.20 ¢ in 2013 to 14.23 ¢ in 2024 (+27.1%), which is 15.47 ¢ to 14.60 ¢ in 2025 dollars (−5.6%). Over 12,000 kWh a year the real price meant $1,857 in 2013 and $1,752 in 2024. Of 11 Montana utilities with 1,000+ home accounts in 2024, NorthWestern Energy LLC stood 10th cheapest (16th of 25 in 2013).
NorthWestern Energy LLC at 118 min in 2024 and the Montana median at 148.
NorthWestern Energy LLC: 14.60 ¢ in 2025 dollars (solid) and 14.23 ¢ as billed (dashed) in 2024.
| Year, NorthWestern Energ | ¢ billed | ¢ in 2025 $ | Price place, NorthWestern E | SAIDI min | SAIFI | SAIDI place, NorthWestern E | Montana median SAIDI |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | 11.20 | 15.47 | 16 of 25 | 133 | 1.24 | 1 of 5 | 222 |
| 2014 | 10.73 | 14.59 | 15 of 25 | 113 | 1.08 | 1 of 4 | 142 |
| 2015 | 11.81 | 16.05 | 15 of 25 | 114 | 1.32 | 2 of 6 | 225 |
| 2016 | 11.77 | 15.78 | 15 of 25 | 111 | 1.07 | 2 of 5 | 121 |
| 2017 | 11.76 | 15.45 | 15 of 25 | 141 | 1.30 | 2 of 6 | 181 |
| 2018 | 11.73 | 15.04 | 14 of 25 | 103 | 1.08 | 1 of 7 | 171 |
| 2019 | 12.01 | 15.13 | 15 of 27 | 114 | 1.16 | 1 of 7 | 143 |
| 2020 | 12.16 | 15.13 | 8 of 11 | 120 | 1.02 | 3 of 5 | 120 |
| 2021 | 12.14 | 14.43 | 8 of 11 | 128 | 1.18 | 3 of 5 | 128 |
| 2022 | 12.43 | 13.67 | 10 of 11 | 119 | 1.09 | 2 of 5 | 217 |
| 2023 | 14.61 | 15.44 | 10 of 11 | 103 | 0.93 | 2 of 5 | 143 |
| 2024 | 14.23 | 14.60 | 10 of 11 | 118 | 0.95 | 3 of 6 | 148 |
NorthWestern Energy LLC, EIA utility 12825: EIA-861, CPI-U.
CSV| NorthWestern Energy LLC sector | Accounts | Rate ¢/kWh | Gap to Montana ¢/kWh |
|---|---|---|---|
| Residential | 328,127 | 14.23 | +1.57 |
| Commercial | 84,921 | 13.08 | +1.21 |
| Year | Home accounts, NorthWestern Energy LL | Home ¢ | Business ¢ | Ratio | SAIDI | SAIFI |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 287,204 | 11.81 | 11.11 | 0.94 | 114 | 1.32 |
| 2016 | 291,168 | 11.77 | 11.01 | 0.94 | 111 | 1.07 |
| 2017 | 295,246 | 11.76 | 10.98 | 0.93 | 141 | 1.30 |
| 2018 | 299,257 | 11.73 | 10.92 | 0.93 | 103 | 1.08 |
| 2019 | 303,041 | 12.01 | 11.26 | 0.94 | 114 | 1.16 |
| 2020 | 307,239 | 12.16 | 11.39 | 0.94 | 120 | 1.02 |
| 2021 | 311,771 | 12.14 | 11.42 | 0.94 | 128 | 1.18 |
| 2022 | 316,801 | 12.43 | 11.56 | 0.93 | 119 | 1.09 |
| 2023 | 322,254 | 14.61 | 13.68 | 0.94 | 103 | 0.93 |
| 2024 | 328,127 | 14.23 | 13.08 | 0.92 | 118 | 0.95 |
| Utility near NorthWestern Energy LLC on price | SAIDI min, gap to NorthWestern Energy LLC | Home ¢, gap to NorthWestern Energy LLC | Gap % to NorthWestern Energy LLC | Accounts, NorthWestern Energy LLC = 1 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Flathead Electric Coop Inc | +117 | -4.56 | -32.1% | 0.18 |
| 2. Yellowstone Valley Elec Co-op | No data | -0.88 | -6.2% | 0.06 |
| 3. NorthWestern Energy LLC (this utility) | 118 | 14.23 | - | 1.00 |
| Class at NorthWestern Energy LLC | Accounts | Of NorthWestern Energy LLC accounts | Of NorthWestern Energy LLC MWh sold | kWh a year per NorthWestern Energy LLC account |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residential | 328,127 | 79.0% | 29.8% | 8,535 |
| Commercial | 84,921 | 20.4% | 34.1% | 37,733 |
| Industrial and other | 2,275 | 0.55% | 36.1% | 1,490,109 |
| Measure | NorthWestern Energy LLC | Montana context | NorthWestern Energy LLC detail |
|---|---|---|---|
| Time-of-use rate for NorthWestern Energy LLC homes | Not on file | 2 of 5 Montana utilities offer one | no dynamic-pricing count filed by NorthWestern Energy LLC |
| Net-metered installations | 9,001 | 92% residential | 25.1 homes per 1,000 accounts, 7.9 kW average |
| kWh | Share of a 711 kWh month | Cost a month at 14.23 ¢ | vs U.S. | Cost a year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 250 | 35% | $35.57 | -$5.63 | $427 |
| 500 | 70% | $71.14 | -$11.26 | $854 |
| 750 | 105% | $106.71 | -$16.89 | $1,281 |
| 1,000 | 141% | $142.28 | -$22.52 | $1,707 |
| 1,500 | 211% | $213.42 | -$33.78 | $2,561 |
| 2,000 | 281% | $284.56 | -$45.04 | $3,415 |
| Measure, NorthWestern Energy | No events | All events | Converted |
|---|---|---|---|
| SAIDI minutes | 117.9 | 233.4 | 1.97 h |
| SAIFI interruptions | 0.952 | 1.296 | 1.05 yr apart |
| CAIDI minutes | 123.9 | 180.1 | 2.06 h |
36 Montana counties plus 1 other state, region WECC:
Montana other states: 38 of 38 counties of NorthWestern Energy LLC drawn
NorthWestern Energy LLC: 38 counties listed by EIA-861, Census 2023 outlines.
CSV415,323 accounts in 2024: residential 328,127, commercial 84,921, industrial 2,275.
In 2024 homes paid 14.23 cents; against the Montana average that is +12.4%.
SAIDI 117.9 min and SAIFI 0.95 a year, major events excluded; ratio to the national median 1.19, CAIDI 124 min.
9,001 installations with 71.4 MW, of which residential installations number 8,238.
711 kWh at 14.23 cents comes to about $101, energy only.
Rank 3 of 3 in Montana on price, +12.4% against the state average; 2 charge less than 14.23 ¢.
Homes take 29.8% of 9,394,835 MWh, commercial accounts 34.1%, industrial and other 36.1%; the 84,921 commercial accounts use 37,733 kWh each, 4.4 times a home.
2nd cheapest of 2 in 2015, 3rd of 3 in 2024; its price rose 20.4% while Montana rose 16.4%.
Not yet: 14.23 cents and 118 SAIDI minutes (2024) remain the newest NorthWestern Energy LLC record.
Home prices nearest to NorthWestern Energy LLC at 14.23 ¢/kWh in 2024, among companies with a page here, any state.
4 home plan records, energy charges: 3.1 to 11.6 ¢/kWh.
Who offers time-of-use and tiered rates (17 Apr 2026 snapshot).