Last updated: October 28, 2026 · By Oren Tamir, Founder & CEO, NRG Clean Power
Quick answer: PG&E’s most common plan, E-TOU-C, costs 39.9 cents per kWh off-peak and 52.2 cents at the 4 p.m. to 9 p.m. peak in summer. In winter it is 36.8 and 39.8 cents. Most customers also pay a Base Services Charge of about $24 a month. Prices are from PG&E’s tariffs effective June 1, 2026. PG&E’s residential average rate is 33.7 cents per kWh.
PG&E has a reputation for raising rates every year. 2026 broke that pattern. Rates went down in March, and PG&E’s residential average has held at about 33.7 cents per kWh since then, according to the CPUC Public Advocates Office. But many of our San Jose and East Bay customers saw their bills go up anyway. The reason is a new fixed charge and a lot of people sitting on the wrong rate plan. This page tracks every PG&E rate change, shows every residential plan side by side, and tells you which plan is cheapest for your home.
Key takeaways
- PG&E cut its residential average rate about 3.7% on March 1, 2026 and added a daily Base Services Charge (about $24 a month for most homes).
- E-TOU-C peak is 4 p.m. to 9 p.m. every day. Peak power costs 52.2 cents per kWh in summer.
- For homes with an EV, EV2-A is usually the cheapest plan. Its 22.6 cent off-peak price is the lowest on PG&E.
- Electrified homes (heat pump, EV or battery) usually save on E-ELEC, which is also the required plan for new solar customers under NEM 3.0.
- PG&E’s 2027 rate case could raise rates again next year. A decision is pending at the CPUC.
PG&E rate changes in 2026 (change log)
PG&E changed residential rates once in 2026 so far, on March 1, with a tariff update on June 1. We update this log within a week of every PG&E change.
| Date | What changed | Effect on homes | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pending (2027) | 2027 to 2030 General Rate Case | PG&E says it would raise combined gas and electric bills by up to 3.6% in 2027 on its own. A CPUC decision is pending. | PG&E, CPUC fact sheet |
| June 1, 2026 | Tariff sheets updated under Advice 7921-E (Decision D.26-04-036) | Current per-kWh prices on this page. Cal Advocates reports no change to the residential average rate in Q2. | PG&E E-TOU-C tariff |
| March 1, 2026 | Advice Letter 7846-E: wildfire cost recovery ended, Base Services Charge started | Residential average rate down about 3.7%. Per-kWh prices dropped, and a daily fixed charge was added. | Cal Advocates Q2 2026 report |
The Public Advocates Office projects PG&E’s residential average rate at about 33.9 cents per kWh by the end of 2026. That projection includes only the rate requests already filed.
What is the current PG&E rate per kWh?
PG&E’s residential average rate is 33.7 cents per kWh. What you actually pay depends on your plan and the hour. It ranges from 22.6 cents on EV2-A off-peak to 55.2 cents on E-ELEC at the summer peak.
- E-TOU-C (the default plan): 36.8 to 52.2 cents, minus an 8.1 cent baseline credit on your baseline usage.
- E-1 tiered: 32.6 cents up to your baseline allowance, 40.7 cents above it.
- E-TOU-D: 34.2 to 47.7 cents, with a shorter 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. weekday peak.
- E-ELEC: 28.5 to 55.2 cents.
- EV2-A: 22.6 to 53.8 cents.
PG&E’s average residential price was about 19.9 cents per kWh in January 2016. That means rates are up 69% in 10 years and 39% since January 2021, per Cal Advocates.
PG&E’s average rate rose about 69% in a decade, even after the 2026 cut.
PG&E residential rate plans compared
Every PG&E time-of-use plan except E-TOU-D puts its peak at 4 p.m. to 9 p.m. every day. The difference between plans is how big the gap is between peak and off-peak.
PG&E residential rate plans, price per kWh (effective June 1, 2026)
| Plan | Peak hours | Summer peak | Summer off-peak | Winter peak | Winter off-peak | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| E-1 (tiered) | No peak | 32.6 cents (Tier 1) / 40.7 cents (Tier 2) | same | same | same | Low users who use most power in late afternoon |
| E-TOU-C | 4 to 9 p.m. daily | 52.2 cents | 39.9 cents | 39.8 cents | 36.8 cents | Most homes without an EV or solar |
| E-TOU-D | 5 to 8 p.m. weekdays | 47.7 cents | 34.2 cents | 38.7 cents | 34.9 cents | Homes that can avoid weekday evenings only |
| E-ELEC | 4 to 9 p.m. daily | 55.2 cents | 33.4 cents | 32.1 cents | 28.5 cents | Heat pump, EV or battery homes, solar under NEM 3.0 |
| EV2-A | 4 to 9 p.m. daily | 53.8 cents | 22.6 cents | 41.1 cents | 22.6 cents | Homes that charge an EV overnight |
Source: PG&E tariffs E-1, E-TOU-C, E-TOU-D, E-ELEC and EV2, total bundled rates effective June 1, 2026. Summer is June 1 to September 30. E-ELEC and EV2-A also have a part-peak period from 3 to 4 p.m. and 9 p.m. to midnight (E-ELEC: 39.0 cents summer, 29.9 cents winter; EV2-A: 42.8 and 39.4 cents). E-TOU-C subtracts an $0.0814 baseline credit per kWh on usage within your baseline.
If you buy power through a community choice provider such as San Jose Clean Energy or Peninsula Clean Energy, your generation price differs from these bundled rates. Your CCA publishes a joint rate comparison with PG&E. For city-level numbers, see our guides to San Jose electricity rates and Sacramento electricity rates (most of Sacramento is served by SMUD, not PG&E).
What is the cheapest PG&E rate plan for your home?
For a typical home without an EV, E-TOU-C is usually the cheapest plan you can get. With an EV, EV2-A usually wins by $40 to $100 a month. Here is what three common households would pay on each plan.
Estimated monthly energy cost by PG&E plan and household (2026 prices, averaged over the year)
| Household | E-1 | E-TOU-C | E-TOU-D | E-ELEC | EV2-A |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No EV, 500 kWh a month | $179 | $172 | $179 | Not eligible | Not eligible |
| EV charged overnight, 900 kWh | $342 | $324 | $317 | $285 | $245 |
| Heat pump plus EV, 1,200 kWh | $464 | $442 | $424 | $384 | $338 |
Our estimates. They assume 25% of household use falls in the 4 to 9 p.m. peak (15% in E-TOU-D’s shorter peak), EV charging after midnight, a 300 kWh monthly baseline, and 4 summer and 8 winter months. They cover energy charges only. Add the Base Services Charge (about $24 a month for most homes) on any plan. “Not eligible” assumes no EV, heat pump or battery. Source: PG&E tariffs above.
Three patterns we see across our PG&E installs:
- EV2-A is the low-cost plan for EV owners because its 22.6 cent off-peak price covers the whole house, not just the car. Run the dishwasher and laundry after midnight and they get the same price. See what that means for driving costs in our guide to the cost to charge an EV.
- E-ELEC wins in winter for electrified homes. At 28.5 cents off-peak, it is usually the cheapest winter plan for a heat-pump home that is not on EV2-A. Its summer peak is the most expensive on the list, though, so it works best with solar or a battery.
- E-1 only makes sense for small users who cannot shift any use out of the late afternoon.
PG&E’s online rate comparison tool runs these numbers on your actual 12 months of usage. Do that before you switch.
What is the PG&E Base Services Charge?
The Base Services Charge is a daily fixed charge PG&E added to every residential plan on March 1, 2026. Most homes pay $0.79343 a day, about $24 a month. In exchange, PG&E lowered its per-kWh prices.
| Customer type | Daily charge | About per month |
|---|---|---|
| Most customers (Income Tier 3) | $0.79343 | $24 |
| FERA customers (Income Tier 2) | $0.39688 | $12 |
| CARE customers (Income Tier 1) | $0.19713 | $6 |
Source: PG&E E-ELEC and E-1 tariffs. Monthly figures assume 30.4 days.
Who comes out ahead: the charge is fixed, while the per-kWh cut grows with use. A home using a lot of power saves more from the lower per-kWh prices than it pays in the fixed charge. A small apartment using 250 kWh a month usually pays a little more than before. Our explainer on California’s new fixed charge has the full break-even math.
PG&E E-ELEC rate: who it is for
E-ELEC is PG&E’s plan for homes that run on electricity: a heat pump for heating or hot water, an EV, or a home battery. You need at least one of those to enroll, unless you are a new solar customer under the Net Billing Tariff, who must be on E-ELEC. Its winter prices are the lowest of any PG&E plan except EV2-A off-peak, at 28.5 to 32.1 cents per kWh.
E-ELEC beats E-TOU-C when most of your use is in winter or off-peak hours. A Bay Area home that heats with a heat pump is the classic case. It loses in summer if you run air conditioning from 4 to 9 p.m., because its 55.2 cent summer peak is the highest on PG&E. Solar and a battery fix that: the battery covers the evening peak.
Why is my PG&E bill so high?
Most high PG&E bills come from one of four things: summer peak usage, going over your baseline, generation charges from a community choice provider, or the new fixed charge on a low-usage home.
- Summer peaks. On E-TOU-C, power from 4 to 9 p.m. costs 52.2 cents in summer versus 39.8 in winter. Air conditioning in the evening is the most common driver we see in inland PG&E territory (Fresno, Bakersfield, Sacramento suburbs).
- Going over baseline. Your baseline allowance is set by PG&E for your climate zone and season. Use above it loses the 8.1 cent baseline credit on E-TOU-C and moves to the 40.7 cent Tier 2 on E-1.
- Your CCA. If you buy power from a community choice provider, generation charges show up on a separate line. They are not always cheaper.
- Wildfire and grid costs. PG&E’s rates are up 69% in 10 years, much of it from wildfire mitigation and grid spending, per Cal Advocates.
How does your bill compare? Our guide to the average California electric bill shows typical bills by utility and home size.
How do solar and batteries change your PG&E bill under NEM 3.0?
Under NEM 3.0, PG&E pays you far less for the solar you export than you pay for power you buy. The money now comes from using your own solar, not selling it. Under the CPUC’s net billing tariff, exported solar earns credits based on avoided-cost rates that change by hour and month. New solar customers are billed on E-ELEC, per PG&E’s E-ELEC tariff. See our summary of the NEM 3.0 rules.
What that means in practice:
- Solar alone cuts the daytime portion of your bill, but midday exports earn little.
- Solar plus a battery stores midday solar and runs the house through the 4 to 9 p.m. peak, when E-ELEC power costs up to 55.2 cents. That is where most of the savings come from now. See our battery storage options.
- Sizing matters more than before. A system sized to your actual load, not the largest roof fit, usually pays back faster under NEM 3.0.
If you live in the South Bay, see how this works for solar in San Jose.
Frequently asked questions
PG&E’s residential average rate is 33.7 cents per kWh. On the default E-TOU-C plan, you pay 36.8 to 52.2 cents depending on season and hour, minus an 8.1 cent credit on baseline usage. Prices are from PG&E’s tariffs effective June 1, 2026.
It depends on your home. EV2-A has the lowest price on PG&E (22.6 cents off-peak). It is open to EV owners and homes with an electric heat pump, and on a pilot basis to homes with battery storage. Without any of those, E-TOU-C is usually cheapest. E-ELEC is usually cheapest for electrified homes in winter. PG&E’s rate comparison tool checks your own usage.
On E-TOU-C, 2026 prices are 52.2 cents peak and 39.9 cents off-peak in summer, and 39.8 and 36.8 cents in winter. E-1 tiered is 32.6 cents up to baseline and 40.7 cents above it. E-ELEC runs 28.5 to 55.2 cents.
PG&E’s rates are up 69% in 10 years, largely from wildfire mitigation, wildfire costs and grid upgrades, per the CPUC Public Advocates Office.
On most plans, PG&E rates are lowest from midnight to 3 p.m. On E-TOU-C and E-ELEC, everything outside 4 to 9 p.m. (and 3 to 4 p.m. and 9 p.m. to midnight on E-ELEC) is off-peak. On EV2-A, midnight to 3 p.m. costs 22.6 cents.
It is a new line on every bill since March 1, 2026: about $24 a month for most homes, $12 for FERA and $6 for CARE customers. PG&E says it is not new revenue: it moved costs out of per-kWh prices, which PG&E lowered at the same time.
Want a PG&E bill that stops going up?
Rate plans can save you $30 to $100 a month. Solar and a battery can take most of the bill off the table, and they lock in your cost against the next rate case. Get a quote in 2 minutes and we will model your savings on your actual PG&E plan.