SCE's Five-Tier Price Structure rewards you for lowering your energy usage, and helps you save money on your residential electric bill.
Here's how it works:
- The more energy you use, the more you pay.
- Each household is given a set amount of kilowatt hours (kWh) of electricity to use in each tier, each month. Similar to a full "bucket," there is a limit to the kWh you get in each tier.
- Once you use more electricity than is available in the first "bucket," you move to the next "bucket," which has a higher cost per kWh.
- Tier 1 (your baseline) provides electricity at the lowest cost per kWh.
- Higher price tiers, especially Tiers 4 and 5, are the most expensive, and every kWh you can save at this level can help you lower your bill.
| Tier | Tier 1 | Tier 2 | Tier 3 | Tier 4 | Tier 5 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cents per kWh | 13¢ | 15¢ | 23¢ | 26¢ | 30¢ |
Here's an example:
Your central air conditioner may use 15,000 watts (15 kilowatts) of electricity per hour, costing about $1.80 per hour to run in Tier 1. Throughout the month, if you use your A/C often, your electricity usage will rise, and you may move into a higher price tier. Leave your air on all day and night one month, and your usage may spill into Tier 5, and the same air conditioner can cost you about $4.20 per hour to run.
Here's how we can help:
It is important to understand that the more energy you use, the more you will pay. By conserving energy, you can reduce your electricity usage costs, and lower your bill.
For help managing your usage and lowering your bill, take a look at our Money Saving Tips. Then, see how the Tiers chart on your monthly bill can serve as a helpful gauge in understanding how your conservation efforts impact your energy costs.
*Prices shown are examples only. Your rates may be different.
