Your electric bill is soaring—don’t blame clean energy

If your electric bill is noticeably higher than last year, you’re not alone. Electricity rates are spiking nationwide, straining household budgets and business operations alike.  According to EnergySage data, electricity rates increased in 67% of states between the first quarters of 2024 and 2025.

Many utility companies would have you believe that solar panels and the cost of generating energy hike up electricity rates to deflect blame away from themselves. But according to a recent report from the California Solar + Storage Association (CALSSA), homeowners installing solar panels have nothing to do with rising energy costs. CALSSA says the true culprit is our aging grid infrastructure. 

“The biggest factor driving electricity prices in recent years is investments in the transmission and distribution system,” said Jesse Buchsbaum, an economist and fellow at Resources for the Future (RFF). “These are the wires that transport electricity from generators to where it’s eventually used. In many cases, these are necessary investments.”

America’s grid is old. As it exists today, it’s not equipped to keep up with modern technology's growing energy demands. New grid resources are needed to avoid power failures. Unfortunately, many utility companies prioritize profit over the long-term reliability, safety, and affordability of their systems. 

Infrastructure investments are vital to maintaining a safe and reliable grid, but for decades, big utility companies have chosen to band-aid existing equipment instead of investing in sustainable solutions that could cut costs for everyone. Now, these same companies are using their customers’ money to lobby against ratepayers’ interests, smear clean energy initiatives, and even fund luxury expenses for utility executives, board members, and employees, according to an Energy and Policy Institute report. 

Brad Heavner, Policy Director at CALSSA, said to EnergySage, “It’s frustrating to see how the numbers are cooked by utilities. Even though generating power isn’t the most expensive part of the equation, the cost of maintaining an aging grid is driving up our bills.” 

States with the steepest electricity rate increases in 2025

Electricity price data from EnergySage

Electricity prices have steadily risen for decades, but the pace has rapidly accelerated recently. Of the 42 states tracked by EnergySage between the first quarters of 2024 and 2025, 28 saw utility rate increases. Idaho experienced the sharpest spike, with rates rising 6.34% in just one year.

That increase isn't surprising considering Idaho Power, the state’s largest utility, received approval for its second consecutive rate hike from the Idaho Public Utilities Commission this year. The company initially proposed a 7.31% base revenue increase in May 2024 but was granted 3.73%, which took effect in January.

Idaho Power has attributed the hike to infrastructure investments and growing customer demand. Locals pushed back, citing inflation, taxes, fixed incomes, and the company's previous rate increase as reasons to deny the request altogether. Ultimately, regulators approved about half of what the utility sought.

EnergySage reached out to Idaho Power about its price increases but didn’t hear back.

New Yorkers also faced some of the steepest electricity price increases. Scarsdale resident Virginia Trunkes saw her electric bill jump 12.63% between February 2024 and February 2025—even more than the state's 5.57% average increase reported by EnergySage.

Looking closely at her bills, Trunkes noticed delivery charges—not supply costs—drove up her expenses. Con Edison, her electricity provider, confirmed this trend, crediting its latest rate hike to system expansion, asset replacement, risk mitigation, and environmental compliance—all infrastructure costs unrelated to electricity supply and solar power use.

It’s not just the energy you use, it’s the cost to deliver it

Electric bills consist of two main charges: supply and delivery. Supply covers the actual electricity generated—whether from natural gas, coal, or renewables—while delivery accounts for the infrastructure that transports it to homes and businesses.

For Trunkes, delivery charges made up 60.7% of her February electric bill, a growing trend nationwide as utilities invest heavily in grid improvements.

“Many of these investments are necessary to ensure the grid is hardened against climate and natural disaster risk, as well as accommodating new sources of load,” Buchsbaum explained. “That said, there’s a lot that policy and innovation can do to slow the rise of electricity prices.”

Grid expansion is expensive, but modern technology and policy can help redistribute electricity costs. Rooftop solar reduces the need for costly transmission lines and grid infrastructure by generating electricity near where it's used. As more households and businesses install solar panels, the cost of energy will decrease for all, not just those who have installed them.

Innovations like solar batteries and smart appliances can also reduce peak demand and ease grid strain, while time-of-use rates and demand-response programs incentivize consumers to shift energy use to off-peak hours—ultimately helping to balance the grid and control costs.

However, the industry will struggle to thrive without policies protecting current and future solar owners. Given utility companies’ efforts to undermine rooftop solar and the federal government’s recent attempts to cut clean energy funding, lawmakers and regulators should stand firm in supporting renewable energy. 

States with the highest electricity rates in 2025

Electricity price data from EnergySage

The electric grid is a vast network of transmission lines, power generators, and substations that power homes and businesses around the clock. But much of this infrastructure is aging and wasn’t built to handle today’s increasing energy demands, resulting in significant safety risks. For example, utility equipment has caused some of the most devastating wildfires in the country—most of which could have been prevented had these utility companies prioritized safety over profit. 

At the same time, modern electricity use is evolving. From data centers powering AI to electrification efforts replacing fossil fuel-based systems, demand on the grid is skyrocketing. To keep up, utilities must invest in upgrading and expanding the grid. Unfortunately, most utility companies' infrastructure investments aren’t made in the best interest of ratepayers, yet the cost of those investments is passed on to customers anyway. 

Power-hungry tech is reshaping the grid

One of the biggest culprits of grid strain is power-hungry data centers running generative AI models. They require staggering amounts of electricity to process and store information—and they’re only just getting started. Data centers can overwhelm the grid at baseline, but when combined with weather-dependent electricity use during heatwaves and cold spells, they can push grid demand to dangerous levels.

Whether or not you use AI, the financial and environmental implications associated with data center demand affect all ratepayers. Today, homes and businesses pay for the infrastructure investments needed to meet the system-stressing demands.

Utilities aren’t making the right investments

Despite the demand-shifting benefits of rooftop solar and storage during a time when the grid is already overwhelmed, utility companies continue to use their resources to patch up old systems and unduly deflect blame toward renewables. 

Big utilities have long pushed a narrative designed to cast rooftop solar in a negative light. According to a recent Los Angeles Times article, these companies have employed public relations firms to spread the “cost shift” myth, a campaign designed to undermine solar by arguing that rooftop solar users aren’t paying their fair share for the grid and leave non-solar customers to foot the bill.

Heavner tells EnergySage that the real reason energy companies have pushed the cost shift narrative is for their own financial gain. “Don’t believe the hype from the utilities that are trying to paint solar in a negative light,” he says. “Utilities don’t like reducing their costs, they prefer increasing them because that means more profit. That’s why they concoct this elaborate story about how rooftop solar customers aren’t paying their fair share.”

He adds that a closer examination of their data reveals a different story. “Once you really dig into it, it’s not true,” he notes. “Even on the hottest days when demand peaks, solar generation is at its maximum, which directly reduces the need for additional grid infrastructure.”

Energy demand is growing, and utility companies need to invest in new grid resources, particularly clean energy, to keep up. Building new electricity infrastructure is expensive regardless of the energy source, but renewable energy can help stabilize prices over time. 

Solar and onshore wind are already some of the cheapest sources of electricity, and unlike fossil fuels, they aren’t vulnerable to market fluctuations. They offer greater energy independence and long-term affordability.

At the individual level, installing a home solar panel system can insulate you from rate hikes while the grid ramps up its resources—just ask Washington D.C. resident Edward Greenberg. 

After seeing his electric bills increase by 40% in a single year, Greenberg installed solar panels on his home. He now saves hundreds of dollars per month.

“I’ve spoken with a number of neighbors and friends, all of whom are concerned about the price of electricity,” Greenberg recalled. “I’m delighted with how solar has worked for us. Between lower electric bills and SREC payments, our system will pay for itself in about four years. It was an excellent investment.”

Despite what some utility companies claim, clean energy isn’t the problem. Higher electricity prices are the result of aging infrastructure and utility mismanagement. As more homeowners like Edward Greenberg turn to solar to protect themselves from rising rates, it’s clear that utilities need to work with, rather than against, distributed energy resources like rooftop solar to support the grid. Renewable energy isn’t just cleaner—it’s smarter and more cost-effective, too.