Who runs the utilities in Ohio?
Ohio has 4,962,447 residential customers, EIA-861 2024 sales file (97% of EIA's count). Investor-owned 89.2%. Cooperative 6.1%. Municipal 4.8%. Ohio ranks 13th of 51 states, investor-owned.
Ohio homes by utility type
Ohio: customers by type, %
- 89.2Investor-owned
- 4.8Municipal
- 6.1Cooperative
| Ohio type | Utilities | Customers | Share | Price ¢/kWh | Gap ¢ (%) | kWh/mo | Nonmetro |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Investor-owned | 16 | 4,424,100 | 89.2% | 17.18 | not shown | 844 | 45% |
| Municipal | 85 | 236,464 | 4.8% | 13.20 | -3.98 (-23%) | 668 | 8% |
| Cooperative | 25 | 301,883 | 6.1% | 16.22 | -0.97 (-6%) | 1,112 | 57% |
In Ohio, 3,005,826 customers (61%) are energy-only accounts with a competitive supplier.
Ohio prices by utility type
municipal utilities average 13.2 cents, 4.0 cents (23%) below investor-owned at 17.2; cooperatives average 16.2 cents, 1.0 cents (6%) below investor-owned at 17.2.
Ohio gaps mix cost and customer mix; method.
Ohio: which utilities set the averages
Investor-owned at 17.2 cents and municipal utilities at 13.2 are the widest pair in Ohio, 4.0 cents (30%).
Investor-owned: Ohio Power Co holds 38% of priced customers at 19.3 cents, group average 17.2. Among 6 with 5,000+ customers, Duke Energy Ohio Inc charges 15.0 and Ohio Power Co 19.3, 4.3 cents apart.
Municipal: City of Cleveland holds 27% of priced customers at 14.9 cents, group average 13.2. Among 14 with 5,000+ customers, City of Celina charges 9.1 and City of Hamilton 15.4, 6.3 cents apart.
Cooperative: South Central Power Company holds 39% of priced customers at 14.9 cents, group average 16.2. Among 14 with 5,000+ customers, South Central Power Company charges 14.9 and Buckeye Rural Elec Coop, Inc 19.9, 5.0 cents apart.
Ohio territory, rural or urban
Ohio has 88 counties, 53% of them nonmetro in USDA's 2023 codes. Customer-weighted: investor-owned territory is 45% nonmetro; municipal territory is 8% nonmetro; cooperative territory is 57% nonmetro.
Ohio: largest utilities
| Ohio Power Co | Investor-owned | 1,339,232 | 19.33 | 898 | 69% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ohio Edison Co | Investor-owned | 957,780 | 16.18 | 786 | 39% |
| Duke Energy Ohio Inc | Investor-owned | 693,435 | 15.00 | 888 | 39% |
| Cleveland Electric Illum Co | Investor-owned | 676,098 | 16.76 | 616 | 0% |
| Dayton Power & Light Co | Investor-owned | 478,741 | 15.32 | 915 | 54% |
| The Toledo Edison Co | Investor-owned | 278,814 | 16.64 | 740 | 60% |
| South Central Power Company | Cooperative | 117,469 | 14.87 | 1,074 | 50% |
| City of Cleveland | Municipal | 64,914 | 14.87 | 493 | 0% |
| City of Hamilton | Municipal | 26,964 | 15.44 | 776 | 0% |
| Licking Rural Electric Inc | Cooperative | 25,820 | 16.88 | 1,053 | 44% |
| City of Cuyahoga Falls | Municipal | 24,349 | 13.02 | 612 | 0% |
| Consolidated Cooperative | Cooperative | 16,897 | 16.11 | 1,270 | 25% |
| Buckeye Rural Elec Coop, Inc | Cooperative | 16,349 | 19.90 | 1,045 | 89% |
| Pioneer Rural Elec Coop, Inc | Cooperative | 16,310 | 16.18 | 1,284 | 55% |
| City of Westerville | Municipal | 15,713 | 13.19 | 923 | 0% |
| City of Columbus | Municipal | 15,510 | 11.32 | 551 | 0% |
| Guernsey-Muskingum El Coop Inc | Cooperative | 15,289 | 18.00 | 919 | 78% |
| Lorain-Medina R E C, Inc | Cooperative | 15,234 | 17.26 | 1,162 | 50% |
| Holmes-Wayne Electric Coop Inc | Cooperative | 14,714 | 16.52 | 1,007 | 86% |
| City of Bowling Green | Municipal | 13,068 | 15.36 | 630 | 0% |
| City of Wadsworth | Municipal | 12,180 | 11.99 | 776 | 0% |
| City of Niles | Municipal | 11,882 | 9.31 | 553 | 0% |
| Union Rural Electric Coop, Inc | Cooperative | 11,812 | 15.67 | 1,165 | 67% |
| Butler Rural Electric Coop Inc | Cooperative | 11,374 | 18.16 | 1,327 | 25% |
| Hancock-Wood Electric Coop Inc | Cooperative | 11,307 | 17.05 | 1,083 | 64% |
| Midwest Electric, Inc | Cooperative | 10,836 | 15.28 | 1,316 | 86% |
| City of Painesville | Municipal | 10,832 | 12.75 | 661 | 0% |
| City of Piqua | Municipal | 9,829 | 12.85 | 744 | 0% |
| Paulding-Putman Elec Coop, Inc | Cooperative | 9,176 | 17.67 | 1,081 | 80% |
| City of Lebanon | Municipal | 8,707 | 11.14 | 833 | 0% |
Compare your Ohio utility
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Ohio next to its neighbors
Ohio: municipal -23%, cooperative -6% against investor-owned. Gaps are within each state.
| State | Investor-owned | Municipal | Cooperative | Muni gap | Coop gap |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ohio | 89% | 5% | 6% | -23% | -6% |
| Indiana | 78% | 5% | 17% | -18% | +2% |
| Kentucky | 54% | 7% | 39% | -1% | +4% |
| Michigan | 89% | 5% | 6% | -16% | -6% |
| Pennsylvania | 97% | 0% | 3% | not shown | -10% |
| West Virginia | 100% | 0% | 0% | not shown | not shown |
More
Similar investor-owned share: Massachusetts 91%, Maryland 90%, Michigan 89%, New Hampshire 88%
Sources
Ohio: EIA-861 (2024), USDA RUCC (2023); retrieval dates, checksums.
Questions
Which utility type serves most Ohio homes?
Investor-owned utilities, 89.2% of 4,962,447 customers.
Do Ohio co-ops or municipal utilities charge less?
Municipal utilities averaged 13.2 cents per kWh against 17.2 for investor-owned (-23%). Cooperatives averaged 16.2 cents per kWh against 17.2 for investor-owned (-6%).
How many utilities does Ohio have?
EIA-861 (2024) lists 126; residential sales are reported by 36.
Can Ohio customers pick their utility?
Not the wires: 61% of Ohio customers choose an energy supplier, and the local utility still delivers.