Electric Consumer

Editor: Katerine G., Editor & Data Researcher · Research & publishing: Electric Consumer Editorial Team · Data retrieved · Sources named on this page: EIA retail sales, Census ACS · How we got these numbers · Report an error

The electric bill takes 3.6% of median household income in Mississippi, 1.3% in Utah

2.8xburden in Mississippi against Utah

A typical household in Mississippi spends about $1,992 a year on electricity, 3.6% of the median income of $54,915. In Utah it is $1,188, or 1.3% of $91,750.

What we found

The middle value across the 51 places is 2.2%. 4 places are above 3%. The gap between top and bottom is 2.8 to one.

The share is high where bills are high and where incomes are low. Neither number alone gives it.

Map

The electric bill takes 3.6% of median household income in Mississippi, 1.3% in UtahNew Mexico: 1.8%Texas: 2.7%Kentucky: 2.8%Ohio: 2.5%Georgia: 2.6%Arkansas: 2.8%Oregon: 2.0%Pennsylvania: 2.6%Missouri: 2.4%North Carolina: 2.5%Utah: 1.3%Virginia: 2.2%Wyoming: 1.8%West Virginia: 3.4%New York: 2.2%Indiana: 2.6%Kansas: 2.1%Idaho: 1.8%Nevada: 1.8%Illinois: 1.9%Vermont: 2.1%New Jersey: 1.8%Minnesota: 1.6%Maryland: 2.2%Iowa: 1.9%Hawaii: 2.5%New Hampshire: 2.0%Rhode Island: 2.3%Connecticut: 2.6%Montana: 1.9%Arizona: 2.5%Nebraska: 1.9%Washington: 1.6%South Dakota: 2.2%California: 1.9%Alabama: 3.6%Wisconsin: 1.9%Mississippi: 3.6%Colorado: 1.3%Oklahoma: 2.7%Tennessee: 2.8%Louisiana: 3.1%Michigan: 2.1%Massachusetts: 2.1%Florida: 2.8%Alaska: 2.0%North Dakota: 2.0%South Carolina: 2.9%Maine: 2.5%Delaware: 2.3%District of Columbia: 1.6%
  • 1.3% to 1.9%
  • 1.9% to 2.1%
  • 2.1% to 2.5%
  • 2.5% to 2.7%
  • 2.7% to 3.6%

Highest and lowest

Ten heaviest burdens

typical yearly electric bill as % of median household income

  1. 1Mississippi3.63%
  2. 2Alabama3.57%
  3. 3West Virginia3.42%
  4. 4Louisiana3.06%
  5. 5South Carolina2.90%
  6. 6Arkansas2.83%
  7. 7Florida2.81%
  8. 8Tennessee2.79%
  9. 9Kentucky2.76%
  10. 10Texas2.69%

Ten lightest burdens

typical yearly electric bill as % of median household income

  1. 42New Mexico1.83%
  2. 43Nevada1.83%
  3. 44Wyoming1.79%
  4. 45New Jersey1.79%
  5. 46Idaho1.77%
  6. 47Minnesota1.61%
  7. 48District of Columbia1.58%
  8. 49Washington1.57%
  9. 50Colorado1.34%
  10. 51Utah1.30%

How we computed it

  1. Take the typical monthly bill (2025, energy only) and multiply by 12. Mississippi: $166.03 × 12 = $1,992.
  2. Take the Census ACS 5-year median household income. Mississippi: $54,915.
  3. Divide: 1,992 ÷ 54,915 = 0.0363, or 3.63%.
  4. Sort all 51 places by the share.

Formula: share = (monthly bill x 12) / median household income x 100

All 51 places

The electric bill takes 3.6% of median household income in Mississippi, 1.3% in Utah: every place
Mississippi1166.0354,9153.63%
Alabama2184.3062,0273.57%
West Virginia3165.0857,9173.42%
Louisiana4153.2660,0233.06%
South Carolina5161.2566,8182.90%
Arkansas6138.4258,7732.83%
Florida7167.8571,7112.81%
Tennessee8156.0767,0972.79%
Kentucky9143.7462,4172.76%
Texas10170.8676,2922.69%
Oklahoma11140.5263,6032.65%
Connecticut12206.6393,7602.64%
Indiana13149.7270,0512.56%
Pennsylvania14161.9276,0812.55%
Georgia15158.6774,6642.55%
Ohio16147.7569,6802.54%
Hawaii17207.8798,3172.54%
North Carolina18146.1569,9042.51%
Maine19147.7771,7732.47%
Arizona20157.2176,8722.45%
Missouri21137.9868,9202.40%
Rhode Island22165.6586,3722.30%
Delaware23157.8182,8552.29%
New York24154.7684,5782.20%
Maryland25184.43101,6522.18%
South Dakota26131.1472,4212.17%
Virginia27163.0590,9742.15%
Michigan28127.1771,1492.14%
Massachusetts29180.94101,3412.14%
Kansas30126.4272,6392.09%
Vermont31134.8178,0242.07%
Oregon32133.8880,4262.00%
North Dakota33126.4075,9492.00%
Alaska34147.2089,3361.98%
New Hampshire35156.9895,6281.97%
California36154.6496,3341.93%
Iowa37117.3473,1471.92%
Wisconsin38120.6075,6701.91%
Montana39110.8169,9221.90%
Nebraska40117.2374,9851.88%
Illinois41126.5681,7021.86%
New Mexico4294.6662,1251.83%
Nevada43115.0575,5611.83%
Wyoming44111.6074,8151.79%
New Jersey45150.63101,0501.79%
Idaho46110.3774,6361.77%
Minnesota47117.6687,5561.61%
District of Columbia48140.04106,2871.58%
Washington49124.4094,9521.57%
Colorado50103.3092,4701.34%
Utah5199.0391,7501.30%

51 rows. Also as a plain file: facts/data/bill-share-of-income.csv.

CSV

What this does not show

This pairs an average bill with a median income, so it describes a typical household and not any family. Lower-income homes face a higher share than the median does.

Sources, dates and licences

Sources
SourceData periodRetrievedLicence
EIA electricity retail sales, annual and monthly (API v2)annual 2010 to 2025, monthly to Aug 202626 Oct 2026U.S. government data, public domain; cite EIA
U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-year, 20232019 to 20231 Oct 2026U.S. government data, public domain; cite Census Bureau

All source data are U.S. government publications. The tables and charts on this page are our own computations from them; how the sources are joined.

Related

Highest electricity burden by state · Citing this page · Facts feed

Previous: Cheap rates big bills · Next: Outage minutes · All facts

Questions

Where is the electric bill the biggest share of income?

Mississippi, at 3.6%.

Where is it the smallest?

Utah, at 1.3%.

Which income is used?

Median household income from the Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2023.

Is this the same as energy burden?

No. Energy burden usually includes gas and other fuels. This is electricity only.

Where can a household get help with a bill?

The help pages list assistance programs and shutoff rules for each state.

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2.8x burden in Mississippi against Utah