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, DOE LEAD · How we got these numbers · Report an error

States where electricity takes the biggest share of income

3.6%of median household income goes to electricity in Mississippi (U.S. low end: 1.3% in Utah)

A typical Mississippi home pays about $166 a month for energy, $1,992 a year, which is 3.63% of the state's median household income of $54,915. In Utah it is 1.33%. The U.S. Department of Energy calls 6% of income spent on all home energy a high burden; this page counts electricity only, for the median household, so many households sit above these figures.

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States where electricity takes the biggest share of income, mapNew Mexico: 1.90%Texas: 2.72%Kentucky: 2.88%Ohio: 2.58%Georgia: 2.58%Arkansas: 2.82%Oregon: 2.00%Pennsylvania: 2.56%Missouri: 2.50%North Carolina: 2.51%Utah: 1.33%Virginia: 2.15%Wyoming: 1.82%West Virginia: 3.43%New York: 2.19%Indiana: 2.66%Kansas: 2.12%Idaho: 1.77%Nevada: 1.82%Illinois: 1.87%Vermont: 2.09%New Jersey: 1.78%Minnesota: 1.61%Maryland: 2.18%Iowa: 1.93%Hawaii: 2.53%New Hampshire: 1.97%Rhode Island: 2.30%Connecticut: 2.65%Montana: 1.90%Arizona: 2.46%Nebraska: 1.92%Washington: 1.58%South Dakota: 2.23%California: 1.95%Alabama: 3.59%Wisconsin: 1.92%Mississippi: 3.63%Colorado: 1.39%Oklahoma: 2.65%Tennessee: 2.87%Louisiana: 3.08%Michigan: 2.14%Massachusetts: 2.17%Florida: 2.80%Alaska: 1.98%North Dakota: 2.00%South Carolina: 2.89%Maine: 2.47%Delaware: 2.31%District of Columbia: 1.58%
  • 1.33% to 1.90%
  • 1.90% to 2.09%
  • 2.09% to 2.47%
  • 2.47% to 2.72%
  • 2.72% to 3.63%

Mississippi 3.63% first, Utah 1.33% last: the map links to each state.

All 51 ranked places

% of median household income spent on electricity (typical bill x 12)

  1. 1Mississippi3.63%
  2. 2Alabama3.59%
  3. 3West Virginia3.43%
  4. 4Louisiana3.08%
  5. 5South Carolina2.89%
  6. 6Kentucky2.88%
  7. 7Tennessee2.87%
  8. 8Arkansas2.82%
  9. 9Florida2.80%
  10. 10Texas2.72%
  11. 11Indiana2.66%
  12. 12Connecticut2.65%
  13. 13Oklahoma2.65%
  14. 14Georgia2.58%
  15. 15Ohio2.58%
  16. 16Pennsylvania2.56%
  17. 17Hawaii2.53%
  18. 18North Carolina2.51%
  19. 19Missouri2.50%
  20. 20Maine2.47%
  21. 21Arizona2.46%
  22. 22Delaware2.31%
  23. 23Rhode Island2.30%
  24. 24South Dakota2.23%
  25. 25New York2.19%
  26. 26Maryland2.18%
  27. 27Massachusetts2.17%
  28. 28Virginia2.15%
  29. 29Michigan2.14%
  30. 30Kansas2.12%
  31. 31Vermont2.09%
  32. 32North Dakota2.00%
  33. 33Oregon2.00%
  34. 34Alaska1.98%
  35. 35New Hampshire1.97%
  36. 36California1.95%
  37. 37Iowa1.93%
  38. 38Wisconsin1.92%
  39. 39Nebraska1.92%
  40. 40New Mexico1.90%
  41. 41Montana1.90%
  42. 42Illinois1.87%
  43. 43Wyoming1.82%
  44. 44Nevada1.82%
  45. 45New Jersey1.78%
  46. 46Idaho1.77%
  47. 47Minnesota1.61%
  48. 48District of Columbia1.58%
  49. 49Washington1.58%
  50. 50Colorado1.39%
  51. 51Utah1.33%

The table, sortable

Highest electricity burden: first 51 of 51
1Mississippi3.63$16654,9151,18314.03Median household 54,915, -27% vs median; 0.04% ahead of Alabama; Use 1,183, +34% vs median
2Alabama3.59$18562,0271,15216.10Typical bill $185, +25% vs median; 0.04% apart from Mississippi; Use 1,152, +31% vs median
3West Virginia3.43$16557,9171,07315.41Median household 57,917, -23% vs median; 0.16% apart from Alabama; Use 1,073, +22% vs median
4Louisiana3.08$15460,0231,22712.57Cooling degree-days 2,557, +229% vs median; 0.34% apart from West Virginia; Heating degree-days 1,786, -69% vs median
5South Carolina2.89$16166,8181,07614.96Heating degree-days 2,803, -52% vs median; 0.19% apart from Louisiana; Cooling degree-days 1,838, +136% vs median
6Kentucky2.88$15062,4171,13213.24Use 1,132, +29% vs median; 0.01% apart from South Carolina; Median household 62,417, -17% vs median
7Tennessee2.87$16067,0971,21713.18Use 1,217, +38% vs median; 0.01% apart from Kentucky; Median household 67,097, -11% vs median
8Arkansas2.82$13858,7731,07412.84Median household 58,773, -22% vs median; 0.05% apart from Tennessee; Use 1,074, +22% vs median
9Florida2.80$16771,7111,09915.24Cooling degree-days 3,191, +310% vs median; 0.01% apart from Arkansas; Heating degree-days 774, -87% vs median
10Texas2.72$17376,2921,11815.47Cooling degree-days 2,648, +240% vs median; 0.08% apart from Florida; Heating degree-days 2,035, -65% vs median
11Indiana2.66$15570,05195716.230.06% apart from Texas; Median household 70,051, -7% vs median
12Connecticut2.65$20793,76070529.38Typical bill $207, +40% vs median; 0.01% apart from Indiana; Home price 29.38, +91% vs median
13Oklahoma2.65$14063,6031,07113.12Cooling degree-days 1,922, +147% vs median; 0.00% apart from Connecticut; Median household 63,603, -16% vs median
14Georgia2.58$16174,6641,09114.73Heating degree-days 3,015, -48% vs median; 0.07% apart from Oklahoma; Use 1,091, +24% vs median
15Ohio2.58$15069,68088316.960.00% apart from Georgia; Median household 69,680, -8% vs median
16Pennsylvania2.56$16376,08184319.300.02% apart from Ohio; Typical bill $163, +10% vs median
17Hawaii2.53$20798,31751140.59Home price 40.59, +164% vs median; 0.03% apart from Pennsylvania; Typical bill $207, +40% vs median
18North Carolina2.51$14669,9041,04414.02Heating degree-days 3,607, -38% vs median; 0.02% apart from Hawaii; Use 1,044, +19% vs median
19Missouri2.50$14368,9201,06313.49Use 1,063, +21% vs median; 0.02% apart from North Carolina; Median household 68,920, -9% vs median
20Maine2.47$14871,77353227.78Use 532, -40% vs median; 0.02% apart from Missouri; Home price 27.78, +81% vs median
21Arizona2.46$15876,8721,03015.32Cooling degree-days 2,707, +248% vs median; 0.01% apart from Maine; Heating degree-days 2,207, -62% vs median
22Delaware2.31$16082,85593217.130.15% apart from Arizona; Typical bill $160, +8% vs median
23Rhode Island2.30$16686,37256229.46Home price 29.46, +92% vs median; 0.01% apart from Delaware; Use 562, -36% vs median
24South Dakota2.23$13472,4211,00513.38Heating degree-days 7,977, +37% vs median; 0.07% apart from Rhode Island; Home price 13.38, -13% vs median
25New York2.19$15584,57858626.39Use 586, -33% vs median; 0.03% apart from South Dakota; Home price 26.39, +72% vs median
26Maryland2.18$185101,65294819.48Median household 101,652, +35% vs median; 0.01% apart from New York; Typical bill $185, +25% vs median
27Massachusetts2.17$183101,34160030.48Home price 30.48, +98% vs median; 0.02% apart from Maryland; Median household 101,341, +34% vs median
28Virginia2.15$16390,9741,06715.28Median household 90,974, +20% vs median; 0.01% apart from Massachusetts; Use 1,067, +21% vs median
29Michigan2.14$12771,14963420.01Use 634, -28% vs median; 0.01% apart from Virginia; Heating degree-days 7,201, +24% vs median
30Kansas2.12$12872,63988014.560.02% apart from Michigan; Typical bill $128, -13% vs median
31Vermont2.09$13678,02459422.92Heating degree-days 8,577, +47% vs median; 0.02% apart from Kansas; Use 594, -33% vs median
32North Dakota2.00$12775,9491,07311.81Heating degree-days 9,619, +65% vs median; 0.09% apart from Vermont; Home price 11.81, -23% vs median
33Oregon2.00$13480,42687315.370.00% apart from North Dakota; Cooling degree-days 157, -80% vs median
34Alaska1.98$14789,33656426.09Use 564, -36% vs median; 0.03% apart from Oregon; Home price 26.09, +70% vs median
35New Hampshire1.97$15795,62863924.56Median household 95,628, +27% vs median; 0.01% apart from Alaska; Heating degree-days 7,959, +37% vs median
36California1.95$15696,33448032.54Home price 32.54, +112% vs median; 0.02% apart from New Hampshire; Use 480, -45% vs median
37Iowa1.93$11873,14785713.72Typical bill $118, -20% vs median; 0.02% apart from California; Heating degree-days 7,082, +22% vs median
38Wisconsin1.92$12175,67066618.16Heating degree-days 7,934, +36% vs median; 0.01% apart from Iowa; Typical bill $121, -18% vs median
39Nebraska1.92$12074,98597112.34Typical bill $120, -19% vs median; 0.00% apart from Wisconsin; Home price 12.34, -20% vs median
40New Mexico1.90$9962,12565415.08Typical bill $99, -33% vs median; 0.01% apart from Nebraska; Median household 62,125, -18% vs median
41Montana1.90$11169,92285312.98Heating degree-days 8,999, +55% vs median; 0.00% apart from New Mexico; Typical bill $111, -25% vs median
42Illinois1.87$12881,70272217.69Typical bill $128, -14% vs median; 0.02% apart from Montana; Use 722, -18% vs median
43Wyoming1.82$11474,81585013.38Heating degree-days 8,703, +50% vs median; 0.05% apart from Illinois; Typical bill $114, -23% vs median
44Nevada1.82$11475,56187013.15Typical bill $114, -23% vs median; 0.01% apart from Wyoming; Cooling degree-days 1,915, +146% vs median
45New Jersey1.78$150101,05066422.63Median household 101,050, +34% vs median; 0.03% apart from Nevada; Use 664, -25% vs median
46Idaho1.77$11074,63693311.82Typical bill $110, -25% vs median; 0.01% apart from New Jersey; Home price 11.82, -23% vs median
47Minnesota1.61$11787,55674215.82Heating degree-days 9,035, +55% vs median; 0.16% apart from Idaho; Typical bill $117, -21% vs median
48District of Columbia1.58$140106,28763921.94Median household 106,287, +41% vs median; 0.03% apart from Minnesota; Use 639, -27% vs median
49Washington1.58$12594,95295513.11Median household 94,952, +26% vs median; 0.00% apart from District of Columbia; Cooling degree-days 131, -83% vs median
50Colorado1.39$10792,47067815.85Typical bill $107, -27% vs median; 0.19% apart from Washington; Median household 92,470, +22% vs median
51Utah1.33$10291,75077713.07Typical bill $102, -31% vs median; 0.07% apart from Colorado; Median household 91,750, +21% vs median

Mississippi 3.63% to Utah 1.33%; 51 rows in the CSV.

CSV

Why the top and the bottom differ

Highest five: Mississippi, Alabama, West Virginia, Louisiana, South Carolina. Lowest five: Minnesota, District of Columbia, Washington, Colorado, Utah. The burden rises with kWh used (+0.58) and falls with income (-0.63).

Averages of the first and last 10 states
MeasureFirst 10 (Mississippi to Texas)Last 10 (Illinois to Utah)All 51
Share of income, %3.071.662.29
Typical bill a month$162$121$146
Median household income, $63,79988,07878,195
Use, kWh a month1,135783870
Home price 2025, ¢/kWh14.3015.8517.92
Cooling degree-days (normal)1,9285881,002
Heating degree-days (normal)3,0266,8575,568

Across the states, highest electricity burden moves most closely with (r, a pattern and not a cause; glossary):

  • median household income: r = -0.63 across 51 states
  • heating degree-days: r = -0.62 across 48 states
  • cooling degree-days: r = +0.60 across 48 states
  • monthly home use: r = +0.58 across 51 states

Highest electricity burden: regions and residents

By Census division, East South Central comes first on highest electricity burden (mean 3.24%) and Mountain last (1.80%). Between East South Central and Mountain the means are 1.44% apart; Mississippi and Utah are 2.30% apart: much of the spread is regional.

Highest electricity burden by Census division
Census divisionStatesMean, highest electricity burdenRanked highestRanked lowestMedian rank
New England62.28%Connecticut 2.65%New Hampshire 1.97%25
Middle Atlantic32.18%Pennsylvania 2.56%New Jersey 1.78%25
East North Central52.23%Indiana 2.66%Illinois 1.87%29
West North Central72.04%Missouri 2.50%Minnesota 1.61%32
South Atlantic92.49%West Virginia 3.43%District of Columbia 1.58%18
East South Central43.24%Mississippi 3.63%Tennessee 2.87%4
West South Central42.82%Louisiana 3.08%Oklahoma 2.65%9
Mountain81.80%Arizona 2.46%Utah 1.33%44
Pacific52.01%Hawaii 2.53%Washington 1.58%34

One vote per state or one per resident? On highest electricity burden the answers are the median state 2.18%, the plain state mean 2.29%, weighted by residents 2.33%.

Residents by position in the highest electricity burden ranking
GroupResidentsShare of ranked residentsMean of statesMean weighted by residents
First 10: Mississippi to Texas86 million26%3.07%2.89%
Middle 31: Indiana to Montana196 million59%2.24%2.25%
Last 10: Illinois to Utah51 million15%1.66%1.68%

Biggest steps between neighbours in this order:

  • 3rd to 4th: West Virginia to Louisiana, 0.34% apart
  • 4th to 5th: Louisiana to South Carolina, 0.19% apart
  • 49th to 50th: Washington to Colorado, 0.19% apart
  • 46th to 47th: Idaho to Minnesota, 0.16% apart

Within 10% of leader Mississippi (3.63%): 2 other places; within 25%: 8. The tenth place, Texas, is 0.91% from the leader and the last, Utah, 2.30%.

Bill as % of median income against Home use, kWh a month

51 dots, one per state; Mississippi is highest on bill as % of median income and Utah lowest. Fit line r = +0.58.

Bill as % of median income against Home use, kWh a month, 51 states1.01.52.02.53.03.54.0400600800100012001400Mississippi: 1183, 3.6MSAlabama: 1152, 3.6West Virginia: 1073, 3.4Louisiana: 1227, 3.1LASouth Carolina: 1076, 2.9Kentucky: 1132, 2.9Tennessee: 1217, 2.9Arkansas: 1074, 2.8Florida: 1099, 2.8Texas: 1118, 2.7Indiana: 957, 2.7Connecticut: 705, 2.7Oklahoma: 1071, 2.7Georgia: 1091, 2.6Ohio: 883, 2.6Pennsylvania: 843, 2.6Hawaii: 511, 2.5North Carolina: 1044, 2.5Missouri: 1063, 2.5Maine: 532, 2.5Arizona: 1030, 2.5Delaware: 932, 2.3Rhode Island: 562, 2.3South Dakota: 1005, 2.2New York: 586, 2.2Maryland: 948, 2.2Massachusetts: 600, 2.2Virginia: 1067, 2.2Michigan: 634, 2.1Kansas: 880, 2.1Vermont: 594, 2.1North Dakota: 1073, 2.0Oregon: 873, 2.0Alaska: 564, 2.0New Hampshire: 639, 2.0California: 480, 1.9CAIowa: 857, 1.9Wisconsin: 666, 1.9Nebraska: 971, 1.9New Mexico: 654, 1.9Montana: 853, 1.9Illinois: 722, 1.9Wyoming: 850, 1.8Nevada: 870, 1.8New Jersey: 664, 1.8Idaho: 933, 1.8Minnesota: 742, 1.6District of Columbia: 639, 1.6Washington: 955, 1.6Colorado: 678, 1.4Utah: 777, 1.3UTHome use, kWh a monthBill as % of median income
51 states: first 8 of 51 rows
StateHome use, kWh a monthBill as % of median income
Mississippi1183.073.63
Alabama1151.973.59
West Virginia1072.883.43
Louisiana1227.373.08
South Carolina1075.632.89
Kentucky1131.712.88
Tennessee1217.362.87
Arkansas1074.272.82

Mississippi is highest on the vertical axis (3.6), Utah lowest (1.3).

CSV

Try your own numbers

Your own share: your yearly electric bill divided by household income. Nothing leaves your browser.

    Sources

    From EIA retail sales, Census ACS.

    Burden = typical monthly bill (EIA 2025 monthly average kWh per account times price) times 12, divided by ACS 2023 median household income of the state. Electricity energy cost only; the DOE threshold of 6% covers all home energy.

    Periods, retrieval dates and licences: data sources.

    Related to highest electricity burden

    Questions

    Which state has the highest electricity burden?

    Mississippi: 3.63% of median household income, from a typical bill of $166 a month (EIA 2025 monthly sales, ACS 2023 income).

    Which state has the lowest?

    Utah, at 1.33%.

    What is a high energy burden?

    The U.S. Department of Energy's LEAD tool treats spending above 6% of income on home energy as a high burden. That counts all fuels; our figure counts electricity only.

    Is this the burden for poor households?

    No. It uses the median household. Lower-income households use less power but earn far less, so their share is usually higher. State-level medians hide that.

    Why does price alone not decide it?

    Burden depends on price, use and income. Hawaii has the highest price but a burden of 2.53%; Mississippi pays 14.03 ¢ and uses 1,183 kWh a month.

    Are fixed charges and taxes included?

    No. The bill is average kWh times average price. Fixed charges are not in the EIA price, so true bills are higher.

    How do I work out my own?

    Divide your yearly electric bill by your household income. The calculator on this page does it and compares with your state.

    Share this page

    3.6% of median household income goes to electricity in Mississippi (U.S. low end: 1.3% in Utah)

    Cite this page

    Underlying data are U.S. government works (EIA, Census Bureau). Our tables and charts: CC BY 4.0, credit Electric Consumer. The access date fills in when you open this page.

    APA

    Electric Consumer. (2026). Electricity bills as a share of income: highest burden by state, 2025. Data as of 2 October 2026. Retrieved [date accessed], from https://electricconsumer.org/rankings/highest-electricity-burden-by-state.html

    MLA

    Electric Consumer. “Electricity bills as a share of income: highest burden by state, 2025.” Electric Consumer, data as of 2 October 2026, https://electricconsumer.org/rankings/highest-electricity-burden-by-state.html. Accessed [date accessed].

    Chicago

    Electric Consumer. “Electricity bills as a share of income: highest burden by state, 2025.” Data as of 2 October 2026. Accessed [date accessed]. https://electricconsumer.org/rankings/highest-electricity-burden-by-state.html.

    BibTeX

    @misc{usedata_rankings_highest_electricity_burden_by_state,
  author = "Electric Consumer",
  title = {Electricity bills as a share of income: highest burden by state, 2025},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://electricconsumer.org/rankings/highest-electricity-burden-by-state.html},
  note = {Data as of 2 October 2026. Accessed [date accessed]}
}
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