Compare the Best Pennsylvania Electricity and Natural Gas Rates

Compare The Best Pennsylvania Electricity Rates

We've researched the best providers and plans so you can find a great electricity rate in Pennsylvania

How to Set Up Electric Service in Pennsylvania

When you move into a new home or apartment in Pennsylvania, one of the first things you'll need is electricity. In Pennsylvania, you can choose who supplies your electricity, but your local utility still delivers the power, fixes outages, and sends your monthly bill.

Pennsylvania has seven Investor Owned Utilities, each serving large areas of the state:

• PECO-- serving: City of Philadelphia, Chester, Doylestown, Media, Norristown.
• PPL -- serving: Allentown, Harrisburg, Lancaster, Scranton, Wilkes-Barre.
• Duquesne Light Company (DLC) -- serving Pittsburgh as well as Aliquippa, Beaver, and McKeesport.
• Met-Ed -- for service in Bethlehem, Carlisle, Easton, Reading, and York.
• Penelec (FirstEnergy PA) for service in Altoona, Erie, Huntingdon, Johnstown, and Shippensburg.
• Penn Power (FirstEnergy PA) -- serves Fox Run, Ellwood City, Grove City, New Castle, and Pittsburgh.
• West Penn Power (FirstEnergy PA) -- serves Butler, Canonsburg, Greencastle, Uniontown, and Waynesburg.

Be ready to provide your address, move-in date, and identification details. Service can usually begin within a few business days.

You can also shop for electricity supply rates, Pennsylvania's deregulated energy market allows you to compare electricity suppliers. Choosing a third-party supplier may help you find a better rate than the default utility price.

How to Set Up Natural Gas Service in Pennsylvania

Another utility you'll need when you move into a new home or apartment in Pennsylvania is natural gas. Like electricity, you can shop for your own natural gas supplier. Your local gas utility will still deliver the natural gas safely and reliably to your home as well as send you the monthly bill.

There are six major natural gas utilities in Pennsylvania, all of which provider natural gas to specific areas of the state:

• Columbia Gas PA -- supplies natural gas to Allegheny, Beaver, Canonsburg, Greene, Washington, and York.
• National Fuel -- supplies gas to Crawford, Erie, Forest, Mercer, and Union City.
• PECO -- Chester, Doylestown, King of Prussia, Norristown, and Phoenixville.
• Peoples Natural Gas -- serves numerous townships and boroughs in West PA, including the cities of Mckeesport, Altoona, Bethel Park, Monroeville, and Pittsburg.
• Philadelphia Gas Works (PGW) -- PGW provides natural gas to all of Philadelphia..
• UGI -- provides natural gas to Allentown, Harrisburg, Lancaster, Reading, Scranton, and Union.

Once you know which one is your natural gas utility, visit their website from the list below to start service.

Be ready to provide your address, move-in date, and identification details. Service can usually begin within a few business days.

What is the Price to Compare?

If you don't choose a supplier, you'll get the "Price to Compare" (PTC) rate. This is the default price your utility charges for supplying electricity or natural gas to customers that don't shop for a competitive supplier. The PTC is based on how much each utility pays for energy it buys from generators and natural gas producers through an auction process. Auction prices must be approved by the PA Public Utilities Commission and are then passed directly to customers as PTC rates without mark up.

You can use the PTC with other electricity suppliers to see if you can save money. This is because - unlike utilities - retail suppliers have more options to find deals. They can negotiate contracts or take advantage of shopping wholesale electricity prices on the PJM Day Ahead Market or the Real-Time Market. By using all these methods, most suppliers can offer cheap rates that beat the PTC price.

Switching

It's easy to switch to a new electricity or natural gas supplier in Pennsylvania. To begin, gather the following information.

• Your name and the service address
• Your email or phone number
• Your most recent utility bill showing your account number.*

*Please Note - the Duquesne Light Company uses a Supplier Agreement ID Number for switching purposes only.
This number is usually located on page 3 of your monthly bill in the Shopping Information Box.

Step 1: Enter Your ZIP Code

Type in your ZIP code to see the licensed electricity or natural gas suppliers available in your utility company's service area.

Step 2: Compare Plans

While price is the most important factor when shopping for a plan for most people, make sure you consider other factors as well. Make sure you choose the best plan for your household!

Look at the details of each plan:

Price per kWh/ccf - The price you'll pay for each unit of electricity or natural gas.

Fixed or Variable rate - "Fixed" = same price every month. "Variable" = price can change each month.

Term Length - How long the contract lasts (e.g. 6 months, 12 months).

Early Termination Fee - A fee for leaving the plan before plan term ends.

Renewable Energy - Some plans include features that support clean energy.

Step 3: Choose a Plan

Once you find a plan that fits your needs, you can sign up with the supplier directly through UtilityRates.com.

Step 4: Confirmation and Switch

Once you've signed with your new provider, there are two last things to watch for. First, your new provider will send you a plain language disclosure statement. This contains prices and terms for your new electricity supply agreement. When you receive this, you have three days to cancel the contract.

Next, your local utility will mail you a letter confirming the switch and showing the date when your new service will begin. The service change is usually on the date of the next meter read. So, your new plan will then take effect on your next billing cycle.

Step 5: No Fees!

That' it! You're done! There are no fees for switching plus, you'll see no service interruption and no technician needs to visit. You can also switch to your utility's PTC rate whenever you want.

Deregulation (The Short History)

Pennsylvania's energy market experienced a huge transition when, in 1996, Pennsylvania passed a law called the Electricity Generation Customer Choice and Competition Act. Before that, people could only buy power from the one utility company in their area. This utility company controlled everything: power plants, power lines, rates, and billing.

Even though the law passed in 1996, changes didn't happen overnight. Until 2010, electricity prices were limited by rate caps to provide a transition period to avoid sudden price spikes. In 2011, the rate caps ended across the state. After that, the electricity market was fully open and consumers could freely shop for suppliers.

Today in Pennsylvania, you can shop for your electricity supplier at UtilityRates.com. And, while your local utility still brings the electricity to your house and sends the bill, you have the power to choose your supplier. You can compare prices, choose how long a term you need, pick a company offering renewable energy, or find the lowest rate. Just like you can choose your phone or internet provider, you can choose your PA electricity supplier.

Utility vs Retailers in PA

In Pennsylvania, utilities own and maintain the wires and poles in their service area that deliver the power to homes and businesses. They also send you the monthly bill. Your local utility is the one you need to contact when you want to start service or if there's an outage. Utilities get paid for all these things through the distribution charge on the monthly bill.

Electricity and natural gas utilities in PA also supply energy to their customers who choose not to shop for a retail supplier through the default rate or "Price to Compare". Utilities must buy their energy supplies at yearly auctions. So rates can sometimes change dramatically. For this reason, auctions can sometimes limit utilities' ability to get the best price on electricity or natural gas rates.

Retail suppliers, however, are able to use a variety of ways to line up electricity for their customers, including contracts and shopping for deals on the PJM wholesale market. As a result, they are able to offer their customers much more flexible term lengths and low priced energy that fits their needs.

Green Energy Plans in PA

When you pick a green plan in Pennsylvania, the electricity you use is matched by clean energy sources like solar, wind, hydro, or biomass. However, once green energy enters the grid, it is delivered through the same wires as all other electricity so it can't be tracked. For this reason, green energy plans in PA use Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs). These show that a supplier bought an equal amount of clean energy that was produced somewhere on the grid. Suppliers then retire the RECs when they use energy to supply their customers. This way, you can help support new renewable power projects and help reduce CO₂.

Types of Pennsylvania Green Plans

100% Green Plans: Every kilowatt-hour (kWh) you use is backed by renewable energy RECs purchased by the supplier.

Partial Green Plans: These might be 25%, 50%, or 75% renewable energy content. These are also backed by renewable energy RECs purchased by the supplier.

Suppliers may offer fixed-rate and variable-rate versions of green plans.