Compare Electricity & Natural Gas Rates in Pennsylvania

Finding the right energy supplier shouldn’t be overwhelming. Consumer Energy Solutions can help you get a great rate online in just a few minutes!

Compare Electricity & Natural Gas Rates in Pennsylvania

Finding the right energy supplier shouldn’t be overwhelming. Consumer Energy Solutions can help you get a great rate online in just a few minutes!

What to Consider When Shopping for an Electricity or Natural Gas Plan in Pennsylvania

Your Price to Compare

Utilities post their electric and natural gas rates so consumers like you know if you are getting a good rate or not. This is called your “price to compare”. 

If you are comparing residential pricing on our site, plans that are below your utility’s rate will clearly show it like this:

Fixed Rate or Variable Rate?

A fixed-rate plan, as the name suggests, will have a firm and unchanging price that will last the length of the contract. No matter the weather–hot or cold–severe storms, or even market volatility, the fixed rate will not change for the length of the contract. These contracts are typically for 6, 12, 24, or 36 months, but can go up to 5 years. Fixed-rate energy plans in Pennsylvania are the most commonly used plans, and the plan that we recommend using for most homes and businesses.

Variable-rate plans change month-to-month based on the fluctuations in the market. Because of this, there is a chance for the rate to drop and you will pay less for a period, but there’s also a chance that the rate could go much higher. Factors that can cause this include hotter/colder than expected weather, storms, government regulation/tax changes, or an infrastructure problem. We don’t recommend variable rates for most customers.

Some variable plans offer “introductory rates” which are often much lower than the competition. These plans are never worth it. They are typically low for the first couple months and then skyrocket in price.

Here are 2 examples (1 home and 1 business) of actual customers bills who didn’t know and unfortunately, enrolled with unscrupulous suppliers and were grossly overcharged:

Monthly Recurring Charges

As the name suggests monthly recurring charges (MRC) are fixed monthly charges often between $4.99 and $9.99, but can be as high as $30. Plans with these charges often come with a lower rate, however, the lower rate doesn’t always offset the monthly charge.

Below is an example using real plans from 2 reputable suppliers in Pennsylvania and the average residential kWh used per month:

As you can see Supplier B’s plan is actually cheaper than Supplier A’s even though Supplier A has a “lower” rate.

Cancellation Fees

Some plans will have a cancellation fee or early termination fee. This is totally normal and generally isn’t a problem, especially with shorter plans (6-18 months), but as the plans get longer (24-36 months) it becomes more relevant.

Pricing can change drastically year to year and having the ability to cancel your plan without incurring a large cancellation fee can be important. 

How to Switch Electric or Natural Gas Suppliers in Pennsylvania

Residential

Switching electric or natural gas suppliers for your home can be done in 3 simple steps:

1. Compare energy pricing online
   Today, brokers like us give you the option to see pricing from top suppliers in your area for free. Simply enter your zip code, choose your electric or natural gas utility to find the energy plans and providers in your area.
2. Enroll
   Once you’ve found the plan that best suits your needs, simply fill out the form and submit and you’re done!
3. Set a reminder to renew your contract
   Most contracts will auto-renew onto a variable rate once the term is done. So don’t forget to set a reminder to enter a new contract or notify your current supplier that you want to go back to the utility at the end of your term.

Commercial

While comparing pricing online is the best way to secure the best rate for your home, it is not the most effective method for your business.

The reason for this is that the following factors have a very large effect on pricing:

• • Your load factor and load profile. Not sure what these are? This article explains them in depth.
  • Your rate class e.g. commercial or industrial.
  • Total annual usage.
  • How your business is zoned.
  • Transportation costs (specifically for natural gas)

This is why you will almost always get better pricing by reaching out to suppliers individually and giving them a copy of your bill. The only downside is that there are many suppliers in Texas that have great pricing, and getting quotes from each is time consuming.

This is where brokers like us at Consumer Energy Solutions come in. With a copy of your most recent bill we will:

• • Analyze your historical usage, rate class, zone, load factor and profile, etc. and use that information to determine what type of contract is best for your business. For most businesses a standard fixed rate is the best option, however, if you have multiple locations, very high usage, are a manufacturer with multiple shifts, etc. there are specialized contracts that can be very beneficial.
  • Take this information to get quotes from the top suppliers in your area, leveraging the relationships we’ve built enrolling over 1MM residential and 519k commercial accounts over the past 25 years to get preferential pricing.

Getting a quote from us requires no obligation and is free.

Energy Deregulation in Pennsylvania 

The deregulation of electricity started in Pennsylvania in 1994 when the Public Utilities Commission investigated the energy market and published a report called “The Report and Recommendation on Electric Competition.” This report convinced the state assembly to deregulate PA’s energy market.

In 1996 the Electricity Generation Customer Choice and Competition Act started the process of deregulating the market. This transition was implemented on a schedule which slowly gave customers energy choice starting with 1/3rd of the market in 1999 and the rest in 2000 and 2001.

Natural gas was deregulated in 1999 when the Natural Gas Choice and Competition Act passed allowing customers the freedom to choose their natural gas supplier.

Utility vs Supplier

Utilities are the companies in charge of operating and maintaining the energy infrastructure, such as the wires and pipes used to deliver electricity and natural gas. You cannot change your utility company. Where your house or business is located dictates what utility is responsible for delivering energy to you and maintaining the grid.

Major utilities in Pennsylvania include:

Electric Utilities:
Duquesne Light
Met-Ed
PECO
PPL Electric
Penelec
Penn Power
UGI Utilities
West Penn Power

Gas Utilities:
Columbia Gas
National Fuel
PECO
Peoples Gas
UGI Utilities

Renewable Energy in Pennsylvania

The Climate action plan of 2021 lays out an aggressive strategy to reduce greenhouse gasses by 80% by 2050 from 2005 levels. Because of this the availability of renewable only electric plans have become commonplace.

If you are looking for renewable options, we can help! Click here, enter your zip code, choose your utility, and see what options are available to you.