{"id":6,"date":"2025-01-25T15:43:54","date_gmt":"2025-01-25T15:43:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/tech.harryotto.com\/?p=6"},"modified":"2025-01-25T16:56:13","modified_gmt":"2025-01-25T16:56:13","slug":"why-price-per-kwh-means-very-little-in-new-york","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tech.harryotto.com\/?p=6","title":{"rendered":"Why Price Per KWh Means Very Little in New York"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

It’s all about the junk fees with good ole’ Con Edison.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

Confession: My Electricity Bill is Small, But the Lesson Applies to Everyone<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

I have to confess upfront \u2014 my electricity bill is relatively small. This is a co-op unit I use as an office, so using 229 kWh<\/strong> in a month is nowhere near what some homes consume. Families with larger homes and more appliances may use two to three times<\/strong> that amount. But even with this modest usage, the lesson here applies to everyone: the price per kilowatt-hour (kWh) that energy providers advertise is essentially a meaningless number<\/strong> when you look at your full bill.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Let me show you how, using my January 2025 Con Ed bill<\/strong> as an example. I\u2019ll even consider what happens if you switch to a third-party energy supplier (an ESCO) offering to cut your supply rate by 50%<\/strong> \u2014 and why that savings is, ultimately, a waste of time and effort.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

Breaking Down My Current Bill<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Here\u2019s what my Con Edison bill looks like:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \n
  • Total Usage:<\/strong> 229 kWh<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • Advertised Supply Rate:<\/strong> $0.10856\/kWh<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • Supply Charges:<\/strong> $27.43<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • Delivery Charges (plus taxes):<\/strong> $69.64<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • Total Bill:<\/strong> $97.07<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n

    The key takeaway? The supply charges \u2014 the part of the bill affected by switching to an ESCO \u2014 only make up 28% of my total bill.<\/strong> The rest comes from delivery fees, taxes, and surcharges, which are non-negotiable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \n\n\n\n

    What Happens with a 50% Off Supply Rate?<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

    Now, let\u2019s assume I switched to an ESCO offering a 50% discount<\/strong> on my supply rate. Here\u2019s how that would look:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      \n
    1. New Supply Rate:<\/strong> 0.10856\u00d70.5=0.05428\u2009(5.4 cents per kWh).0.10856 \\times 0.5 = 0.05428 \\, \\text{(5.4 cents per kWh)}.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    2. New Supply Charges:<\/strong> 229\u00d70.05428=12.43\u2009(new supply charges).229 \\times 0.05428 = 12.43 \\, \\text{(new supply charges)}.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

      By switching, my supply charges drop from $27.43<\/strong> to $12.43<\/strong>, saving $15.00<\/strong>. But that\u2019s only part of the story.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      \n\n\n\n

      Total Bill with ESCO Savings<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

      The delivery charges and taxes<\/strong> remain unchanged, at $69.64. Here\u2019s the new total bill: New Total Bill=New Supply Charges+Delivery Charges and Taxes.\\text{New Total Bill} = \\text{New Supply Charges} + \\text{Delivery Charges and Taxes}. New Total Bill=12.43+69.64=82.07.\\text{New Total Bill} = 12.43 + 69.64 = 82.07.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      So, with a 50% discount on the supply rate, my total bill drops from $97.07<\/strong> to $82.07<\/strong> \u2014 a savings of $15.00<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      \n\n\n\n

      The Actual Savings<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
      \"\"
      But what are “actual” savings?<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

      Now, let\u2019s calculate what you\u2019re really saving as a percentage of the entire bill: Percentage Savings=Original Bill\u2212New BillOriginal Bill\u00d7100.\\text{Percentage Savings} = \\frac{\\text{Original Bill} – \\text{New Bill}}{\\text{Original Bill}} \\times 100. Percentage Savings=97.07\u221282.0797.07\u00d7100\u224815.5%.\\text{Percentage Savings} = \\frac{97.07 – 82.07}{97.07} \\times 100 \\approx 15.5\\%.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      Even though the ESCO promises a 50% discount<\/strong>, the actual savings on the total bill<\/strong> is only 15.5%<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      \n\n\n\n

      Why This Doesn\u2019t Work<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

      Here\u2019s why this isn\u2019t worth the effort:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      \"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
        \n
      1. The Supply Charge is Small:<\/strong> As I said earlier, the supply charge makes up only 28% of your total bill<\/strong>. Even a huge discount here won\u2019t have a big impact overall.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      2. Delivery Charges and Taxes are Unavoidable:<\/strong> These make up the bulk of your bill \u2014 over 70%<\/strong> in my case \u2014 and they don\u2019t change no matter which supplier you choose.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      3. Locking Into a Contract:<\/strong> Switching to an ESCO often means locking into a contract that can include hidden fees or rate hikes after an introductory period. You\u2019re doing extra work for very little gain.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n
        \n\n\n\n

        Do Your Own Math<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

        Everyone\u2019s electricity usage and bill are different, so I encourage you to grab your latest bill and do the math yourself. Look at:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

          \n
        • Total Usage (kWh)<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n
        • Total Supply Charges<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n
        • Total Delivery Fees and Taxes<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n

          Then calculate your real cost per kWh<\/strong> by dividing the total bill by your total usage. Chances are, you\u2019ll see the same pattern: the advertised price per kWh is a distraction. What really matters is the total cost, and ESCOs don\u2019t meaningfully lower that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

          \n\n\n\n

          The Bottom Line<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
          \"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

          Switching to an ESCO for a “50% off” supply rate might sound like a great idea, but in reality, it\u2019s almost pointless. In my case, it saved me just $15.00<\/strong> \u2014 or 15.5%<\/strong> of my total bill. For all the effort of locking into a contract and dealing with the fine print, that\u2019s not much of a reward.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

          So, before you get sold on flashy marketing, do the math<\/strong>. The savings probably aren\u2019t worth the trouble.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

          \n\n\n\n

          <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

          It’s all about the junk fees with good ole’ Con Edison. Confession: My Electricity Bill is Small, But the Lesson Applies to Everyone I have to confess upfront \u2014 my electricity bill is relatively small. This is a co-op unit I use as an office, so using 229 kWh in a month is nowhere near […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":9,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/tech.harryotto.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/tech.harryotto.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/tech.harryotto.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tech.harryotto.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tech.harryotto.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=6"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/tech.harryotto.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":19,"href":"https:\/\/tech.harryotto.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6\/revisions\/19"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tech.harryotto.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/9"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/tech.harryotto.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=6"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tech.harryotto.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=6"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tech.harryotto.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=6"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}