Why Is My Light Bill So High? 7 Reasons Texans Overpay

You opened your light bill and the number doesn’t make sense. $220. $280. Maybe $340. You haven’t changed anything. You’re not running the AC at 65 degrees. You’re not mining Bitcoin in the spare bedroom. But somehow the bill keeps climbing.

You’re not imagining it. Texas light bills have been rising, and there are specific, fixable reasons yours might be higher than it should be. Some of these you can change today. Others take a phone call and 15 minutes.

Here are the 7 most common reasons your light bill is too high, and what to actually do about each one.

1. Your AC Is Working Harder Than You Think

This is the biggest one. In Texas, air conditioning accounts for 60-70% of your light bill from June through September. That’s not a typo. Most of your money goes to cooling your home.

The average Texas home uses about 1,000 units per month in spring and fall. In summer, that jumps to 1,500-2,200 units. At 14 cents per unit, that’s the difference between a $140 bill and a $308 bill. Same rate, same house, same habits. Just hotter outside.

But it gets worse if your AC system is working overtime:

• Old or undersized unit. An AC unit that’s 10+ years old or too small for your square footage runs constantly and never fully cools the house. It’s burning power the entire time.
• Dirty air filter. A clogged filter makes your AC work 15% harder. That’s an extra $20-$30/month for something a $5 filter change fixes in 30 seconds.
• Refrigerant leak. If your AC blows cool but not cold, it might be low on refrigerant. The system runs longer cycles trying to hit your thermostat setting. Every extra hour of runtime adds to your bill.

What to do: Change your air filter right now. Set your thermostat to 78 when you’re home, 82-85 when you’re gone. If your AC runs constantly and the house stays warm, call for a service check. A $100 repair can save you $50+/month.

2. You’re on a Variable Rate (and Don’t Know It)

This one catches a lot of people. You signed up for a great rate. 10 cents per unit. But that was a 12-month contract. When it expired, your light company didn’t cancel your service. They switched you to a month-to-month variable rate.

Variable rates in Texas can swing from 10 cents to 22+ cents per unit depending on the season and wholesale market. In summer, when demand peaks, variable rates spike. You could be paying double what you signed up for without any notice beyond fine print in your bill.

How to check: Look at your bill for “price per kWh” or “energy charge per unit.” If it’s above 15 cents on a traditional plan, you’re probably on a variable rate or an expired contract. Compare that to what you originally signed. If you want to understand the difference in detail, read our breakdown of fixed vs variable rate plans.

What to do: Switch. You’re month-to-month, which means no cancellation fee. You can move to a new fixed-rate plan today. If a light company wants a deposit because of your credit, we can help with that (more on this below).

3. TDU Delivery Charges Are Higher Than You Realize

Every Texas light bill has two parts: the energy charge (what you pay your light company) and the delivery charge (what you pay the local utility that owns the wires, poles, and meters). You can’t choose your delivery company. It’s based on where you live. Oncor, CenterPoint, AEP, TNMP.

These delivery charges typically run $40-$60/month for an average home, and they’ve been rising. In 2025, CenterPoint customers saw delivery charges increase significantly. For some households, delivery charges now make up 30-40% of the total bill.

Here’s the thing: Every light company in your area pays the same delivery charges. You can’t avoid them by switching. But understanding this split matters because it affects how you evaluate rates.

A plan advertising “8 cents per unit” is only showing you the energy portion. After delivery charges, your all-in cost is more like 13-16 cents per unit. When you’re comparing plans, look at the total estimated bill for 1,000 units of usage, not just the advertised rate. Our guide to understanding Texas lights breaks down how the whole system works.

What to do: Check your bill for the delivery charge line item. Know what it is so you can accurately compare what different light companies actually charge.

4. Phantom Loads Are Draining Power 24/7

Everything plugged into your wall uses power, even when it’s “off.” Your TV, cable box, game console, microwave, coffee maker, phone chargers, smart speakers. They all sip power around the clock. The industry calls it “standby power” or “phantom load.”

For an average home, phantom loads add up to $10-$25/month. That’s $120-$300 a year for stuff that’s not even turned on.

The worst offenders:

Device	Annual Phantom Cost
Cable/satellite box	$25-$45
Game console (rest mode)	$10-$25
Desktop computer (sleep)	$15-$30
Microwave (clock display)	$3-$5
Phone charger (no phone)	$1-$2
Smart TV (standby)	$5-$15

What to do: Get a $10 power strip. Plug your entertainment center into it. Flip it off when you leave or go to bed. Same for your desk setup. You won’t eliminate phantom loads entirely, but cutting them by half saves $5-$12/month with zero effort once the strip is in place.

5. Bad Insulation and Air Leaks

Your home might be hemorrhaging cooled air. Especially in older Texas homes and apartments, insulation is often thin or missing, and gaps around doors and windows let conditioned air escape while hot air pours in.

Signs your insulation is the problem:

• Rooms that stay hot no matter what. If one room never cools down, it’s usually a wall or attic insulation issue.
• AC runs constantly but barely keeps up. Your thermostat says 78, but the AC never actually stops.
• You can feel warm air near windows or exterior doors. Hold your hand near the edges. If you feel air moving, you’re paying to cool the outdoors.

The Department of Energy estimates that air leaks and poor insulation can increase your cooling costs by 20-30%. On a $200 summer light bill, that’s $40-$60 you’re losing to the Texas heat through your walls.

What to do if you own your home: Get a free energy audit from your local utility (CenterPoint and Oncor both offer them). Add weatherstripping ($5-$8 per door). Consider attic insulation if yours is thin. These upgrades pay for themselves within one summer.

What to do if you rent: Roll up towels against door gaps. Close blinds on south and west-facing windows by noon. Use blackout curtains ($20-$30) on the hottest windows. Ask your landlord about weatherstripping. They have an incentive to keep the unit energy-efficient for future tenants.

6. Your Water Heater Is a Silent Budget Killer

If you have an electric water heater (most Texas apartments do), it’s the second-biggest power draw after your AC. An electric water heater uses 4,000-5,500 watts and runs multiple times per day to keep 40-50 gallons of water hot. Even when nobody’s using hot water.

For an average household, the water heater accounts for $30-$50/month. In a home with long showers, frequent laundry, or an older water heater with sediment buildup, it can run even higher.

What to do:

• Lower the temperature. Most water heaters ship set to 140 degrees. The Department of Energy recommends 120 degrees. That single adjustment cuts water heating costs by 6-10%. That’s $2-$5/month for turning a dial.
• Shorter showers. Cutting from 15 minutes to 8 minutes saves roughly $5-$10/month on water heating alone.
• Insulate the tank. A $25 water heater blanket from a hardware store reduces standby heat loss, especially if the heater is in an unconditioned space like a garage.

7. You’re on the Wrong Plan for Your Usage

This is the one most people don’t check, and it might be the most expensive mistake on this list.

Light plans in Texas are priced around usage tiers. Many plans have a sweet spot between 1,000-2,000 units per month. Use significantly less or more, and the effective rate changes. Some plans add a base charge that makes them expensive for low-usage households. Others have “bill credit” structures that reward hitting exactly 1,000 or 2,000 units but penalize everything in between.

You might be on a plan designed for a 2,000 square foot house when you live in a 700 square foot apartment. Or you might be on a plan with a bill credit at 1,000 units, but you’re consistently using 800 and missing the credit entirely.

How to check: Look at your past 3-6 months of usage. Most light companies show this on your bill or online account. Then look at your plan’s Electricity Facts Label (EFL) for the pricing at your actual usage level.

What to do: If your plan doesn’t match your usage pattern, switch. In Texas, you have dozens of light companies competing for your business. The right plan for your usage can save $30-$80/month compared to the wrong one.

How to Read Your Texas Light Bill

Before you can fix the problem, you need to understand what you’re looking at. Here’s what matters on your bill:

Energy Charge: This is what your light company charges for the power itself. It’s the part you can change by switching companies. Look for the per-unit rate.

Delivery Charge (TDU): This is what the local utility charges to deliver power to your home. Same regardless of your light company. Typically $40-$60/month.

Usage (kWh): How many units of power you used. This is the number you control through efficiency. 1,000 units is average for Texas. Summer pushes most homes to 1,500-2,200.

Total Amount Due: Energy charge + delivery charge + taxes and fees. This is the number that makes you flinch.

If your per-unit energy rate is above 15 cents on a traditional plan, you’re probably overpaying. If your usage is above 2,000 units in a non-summer month, something in your home is eating power.

Texas-Specific Factors That Drive Bills Up

Texas runs its own power grid through ERCOT (the Electric Reliability Council of Texas). This creates some dynamics you won’t find in other states:

Seasonal rate swings. Because Texas relies heavily on natural gas and renewable energy, wholesale power prices swing with the seasons. Summer demand pushes prices up. Mild spring and fall bring them down. If you’re on a variable rate, you feel every swing directly. Our seasonal rate patterns guide explains the full cycle.

No rate cap on variable plans. Unlike some states, Texas doesn’t cap what light companies can charge on variable-rate plans. During extreme heat events or grid stress, variable rates can spike dramatically. This is why a fixed-rate plan is almost always the better call.

Deregulation means you have options. The upside of the Texas market: you can switch light companies anytime your contract is month-to-month or expired. You’re not stuck with whoever you signed up with three years ago.

The Real Savings: What Switching Actually Looks Like

Let’s put real numbers on this. Say you’re on an expired variable rate paying 18 cents per unit for energy, and you use 1,500 units in a summer month.

Current situation:

• Energy: 1,500 units x 18 cents = $270
• Delivery: $55
• Total: $325/month

After switching to a competitive 12-cent fixed rate:

• Energy: 1,500 units x 12 cents = $180
• Delivery: $55
• Total: $235/month

Monthly savings: $90. Annual savings: $720-$1,080 (more in summer, less in winter).

That’s not a hypothetical. That’s what happens when you move from an expired contract to a competitive rate. Multiply it over a year and it’s real money.

”But I Can’t Switch Because of My Credit”

Here’s where most guides stop. They say “shop around and switch” like that’s easy for everyone. But if your credit isn’t great, switching light companies usually means facing a deposit. $150. $300. Sometimes $400+. Money you don’t have sitting around.

This is the problem we exist to solve.

Here’s what actually happens when you try to switch through us:

1. You pick a plan you want.
2. If that light company needs a deposit based on your credit, we don’t just stop there.
3. We check with multiple other light companies to see which ones will take you with $0 deposit. Every company has different credit rules. One might want $300 from you while another says zero.
4. Many people find a no-deposit traditional plan this way. Not everyone, but many.

If no traditional company approves you without a deposit, you still have options. Pay-as-you-go (prepaid) plans need no credit check and no deposit. The rates are higher (typically 15-18 cents per unit vs 10-14 cents for traditional), but you avoid that $300+ deposit entirely.

The startup cost for prepaid ($40-$75) isn’t a deposit or fee. It goes directly toward your power usage. You’re prepaying for lights you’ll actually use.

If you want to understand how the pay-as-you-go system works, our guide to prepaid lights covers everything.

Your Action Plan: Cut Your Light Bill This Week

Here’s exactly what to do, in order:

Today (free, 15 minutes):

• Change your AC filter
• Set thermostat to 78 (home) / 82 (away)
• Plug entertainment center into a power strip, flip off when not in use
• Close blinds on south and west windows

This week (free, 30 minutes):

• Check your current per-unit rate on your bill
• Look up when your contract expires
• If you’re on a variable rate or expired contract, compare new plans

Potential monthly savings from efficiency alone: $40-$85/month Potential savings from switching plans: $30-$90/month Combined: $70-$175/month

You don’t have to do everything at once. Start with the filter and the thermostat. Then look at your rate. The filter alone pays for itself in a week.

Get a Better Rate on Your Lights

If your bill is high because of your rate and you want to switch, we check multiple light companies to find you the best option. Many people qualify for traditional plans with $0 deposit. You always have pay-as-you-go as a guaranteed fallback.

Find Light Companies

---

Related reading:

• Fixed vs Variable Rate Plans: Which One Won’t Surprise You
• 12 Ways to Lower Your Pay-As-You-Go Light Bill
• Summer Survival Guide: Managing Prepaid Lights in Texas Heat
• How Prepaid Lights Work in Texas
• Understanding Texas Lights: The Complete Guide

---

This guide is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal or financial advice. For official rules, visit the Public Utility Commission of Texas. NoDepositLights.com is powered by Compare Power (PUCT License BR190020).