Texas Electricity Providers: How to Compare and Switch Today

In the competitive areas, you pick a retail electric provider for the energy and the transmission and distribution utility delivers it. Municipal utilities and most electric cooperatives are not in the competitive market, and El Paso and parts of the Panhandle and East Texas sit outside the ERCOT grid.

Customers who do not choose a provider, and customers whose provider leaves the market, are served by the provider of last resort at a price set under commission rules.

• What a supplier changes: the price and terms of the energy you buy, and often the company that sends the bill.
• What it does not change: your delivery utility, your meter, outage service and the poles and wires.

In 2025, 55.1% of Texas homes bought from a retail supplier. Among the 15 choice markets on this site, that ranks 2nd of 15 for the share of homes with a supplier. The average price was 15.40 cents per kWh, 11% below the US average, and the average bill was $170.95.

Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration, Form EIA-861 (final 2025 data), residential. A higher share of homes with a supplier does not mean lower prices.

Texas calls the delivery companies transmission and distribution utilities. Which one serves you depends on where you live, not on your provider. In 2025, the largest delivery companies and their average delivery prices were:

Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration, Form EIA-861 (final 2025 data), delivery-only residential service. These are 2025 averages, not tariff rates.

Not sure who serves you? Use the find my electric company tool or check the top of your bill.

Competition applies to customers of investor-owned delivery companies in the main Texas grid area. Customers of municipal utilities and most electric cooperatives, and customers in areas outside that grid, such as El Paso and parts of the Panhandle and East Texas, buy power from their local utility. Check your bill. If you pay a city or a cooperative, you probably have no provider choice.

EIA data show retail providers serving about 7.05 million Texas homes in 2025. See the largest providers by customers, or find your city on the Texas city guide.

Compare plans by the price at the usage level closest to yours, and look at the term, the fees and the early termination fee.

The official comparison site is Power to Choose. Start there, because it is run for consumers.

1. Find your current default price and the date it will next change.
2. Ask each supplier for the price, the type, the term, every fee and the early termination fee in writing.
3. Compare over a full year, not one month.
4. Check what happens when the term ends.

The Public Utility Commission of Texas runs Power to Choose, which lists plans from competitive providers with each plan’s Electricity Facts Label. Start there, and read the label and the Terms of Service for any plan you consider.

A retail electric provider replaces only the energy part of your bill. Your delivery company, such as Oncor, CenterPoint, AEP Texas or Texas-New Mexico Power, still delivers the power, reads the meter and restores service after an outage.

These pages go deeper on the Texas market. Each checks its rules against the state's own text, and rule text was checked on October 9, 2026.

• Texas guidePlansTypes, labels and traps.Open
• Texas guideCheapestFind the lowest bill for you.Open
• Texas guideBest providersHow to judge providers.Open
• Texas guidePower to ChooseThe official plan site.Open
• Texas guidePrepaidNo deposit, with limits.Open
• Texas guideFixed vs variableHow price types work.Open
• Texas guide12 month plansTerms, fees and renewals.Open
• Texas guideGreen energyWhat renewable means.Open
• Texas guideBusinessSmall commercial plans.Open
• Texas guideBy cityWho delivers power in each city.Open

Also see no deposit electricity in Texas, the national page on avoiding electric deposits and where to find your ESI ID.

1. What is the price per kWh, and is it fixed or variable?
2. How long is the term, and what is the fee for leaving early?
3. Are there monthly charges, minimum usage fees or conditions on credits?
4. What happens when the term ends, and how will I be told?
5. How long do I have to cancel after signing?

Suppliers are licensed or registered with the state, and the Public Utility Commission of Texas handles complaints. Keep a copy of your contract and any call or email confirmation. If you think you were switched without permission, tell your utility and your regulator right away.