Enter your plan terms to estimate a billing-cycle electricity bill and see how usage credits change costs at each threshold.
Table of contents
How to use our Electricity Bill Credit Plan Cost Calculator
- Copy one billing cycle of kWh from your bill into Monthly usage, then copy the separate provider and TDU charges from your Electricity Facts Label.
- Enter Provider base charge and TDU fixed delivery charge as dollars per billing cycle; enter 0 only when the label lists no charge.
- Choose the Credit usage rule, then enter the Bill credit and the qualifying kWh threshold or usage window exactly as written.
- Click Calculate to see the estimated bill, credit qualification, and each charge that makes up the estimate.
- Check the bills one kWh below, at, and above each threshold. A large jump shows that a small usage change can make the credit start or disappear.
Definitions
kWh: Kilowatt-hour, the unit of electricity use shown on an electric bill.
Energy charge: The electricity provider's usage-based price in cents per kWh.
TDU delivery charge: A per-kWh charge from the local utility delivery company. TDU is commonly used in Texas for the company that maintains poles and wires.
Provider base charge: A provider charge added once per billing cycle, regardless of kWh used.
TDU fixed delivery charge: A delivery-company charge added once per billing cycle, separate from its per-kWh delivery charge.
Bill credit: A fixed dollar amount subtracted from the bill only when the plan's usage rule is met.
Effective price: The estimated bill divided by entered kWh, shown in cents per kWh. It can change sharply near a credit threshold.
Common mistakes and quick fixes
Mistake: Entering an advertised average price in Energy charge.
Fix: Enter only the provider's per-kWh Energy charge, then enter TDU delivery charge separately.
Mistake: Using annual usage or a monthly average for Monthly usage.
Fix: Enter kWh from one actual billing cycle because Bill credit qualification is tested by billing-cycle usage.
Mistake: Treating Bill credit as a cents-per-kWh discount.
Fix: Enter the full dollar amount in Bill credit; the calculator subtracts it only when the usage rule qualifies.
Mistake: Leaving out Provider base charge or TDU fixed delivery charge.
Fix: Copy both fixed charges from the plan label, or enter 0 only if that specific charge is not listed.
Mistake: Entering the first nonqualifying kWh in Credit ends above.
Fix: Enter the highest kWh that still qualifies. The estimated bill at the credit end includes the credit, while 1 kWh above it does not.
Limitations & Key Assumptions / Boundary Conditions
- This estimate covers one billing cycle and one bill credit. It does not combine multiple independent credits.
- Taxes, gross-receipts tax, deposits, late fees, early termination fees, and other one-time charges are excluded.
- Credit thresholds are treated as inclusive: usage at Credit starts at qualifies, and usage at Credit ends above still qualifies for a usage-window rule.
- The calculator does not prorate charges or credits for billing days because plan-specific proration rules are not entered.
- Plan labels can include charges or conditions not modeled here. Compare the entered Energy charge, TDU delivery charge, fixed charges, and credit terms with the current Electricity Facts Label.
- A negative estimated bill is possible when the entered Bill credit is larger than the entered charges; the calculator does not force that result to $0.
Methodology
Bill calculation
The calculator keeps provider charges, TDU delivery charges, and fixed charges separate. Cents-per-kWh charges are converted to dollars before they are added.
provider energy cost = Monthly usage x Energy charge / 100
variable delivery cost = Monthly usage x TDU delivery charge / 100
fixed charges = Provider base charge + TDU fixed delivery charge
estimated bill = provider energy cost + variable delivery cost + fixed charges - Bill credit applied
Credit rule and threshold checks
For a minimum-usage rule, the Bill credit applies when Monthly usage is at least Credit starts at. For a usage-window rule, usage must be at least the starting threshold and no more than Credit ends above. Both boundaries qualify. The calculator recalculates the bill at one kWh below, at, and one kWh above each applicable threshold.
effective price = estimated bill / Monthly usage x 100
For example, at 1,000 kWh with a 10 cent Energy charge, a 5 cent TDU delivery charge, and $8.37 in fixed charges, charges before a credit are $158.37. If a $100 Bill credit starts at 1,000 kWh, the estimate at that threshold is $58.37, while 999 kWh is $158.22. The bill change at the threshold is -$99.85.
Calculation scope
The calculation uses the entered plan terms for one billing cycle. It does not estimate taxes or prorate a credit. If entered charges are lower than an earned credit, the estimated bill can be negative because the formula preserves the entered arithmetic rather than applying a $0 floor.