2026-27 rates are live. DMO, VDO and solar feed-in tariffs updated for July 2026. See what changed

Average bills

Average Electricity Bills in Australia by State for 2026-27

What a household pays for electricity in each state in 2026-27, by month, quarter and year, priced on the regulated tariff at low, medium and high usage so you can see where your own bill sits.

Checked against regulator sources, October 2026

Eight-state average
$1,820
a year at 4,000 kWh
Per quarter
$455
supply included
Highest
$2,334
SA, a year
Lowest
$1,495
NT, a year

Average electricity bills by state

Yearly bill at 4,000 kWh on the regulated price, 2026-27
  1. SAAdelaide$2,334
  2. ACTCanberra$1,968
  3. NSWSydney$1,932
  4. QueenslandBrisbane$1,820
  5. WAPerth$1,766
  6. TasmaniaHobart$1,654
  7. VictoriaMelbourne$1,590
  8. NTDarwin$1,495

Eight-state average, $1,820

Victoria is the average of its five networks. NSW, Queensland, WA and Tasmania use their main network or tariff.

Average electricity bill by state at 4,000 kWh a year, 2026-27
StateMonthQuarterYear
South Australia$194$583$2,334
Australian Capital Territory$164$492$1,968
New South Wales$161$483$1,932
Queensland$152$455$1,820
Western Australia$147$441$1,766
Tasmania$138$414$1,654
Victoria$133$398$1,590
Northern Territory$125$374$1,495
Regulated prices including GST and supply charges. No solar credits or concessions.

Average bills at low, medium and high usage

Two homes in the same suburb can have very different bills. These three usage levels cover most households: low suits a small apartment or a home with gas heating and hot water, medium is the 4,000 kWh regulators often use as a benchmark, and high reflects a larger family home, a pool, electric heating or an EV.

Yearly electricity bill by usage level and state, 2026-27
State2,500 kWh4,000 kWh6,500 kWh
NSW$1,435$1,932$2,761
Victoria$1,167$1,590$2,295
Queensland$1,400$1,820$2,519
SA$1,705$2,334$3,381
WA$1,267$1,766$2,597
Tasmania$1,283$1,654$2,273
ACT$1,414$1,968$2,892
NT$1,020$1,495$2,287
Regulated prices including GST and supply charges.

The jump from low to high usage is bigger than the gap between most states. In NSW, going from 2,500 to 6,500 kWh a year adds about $1,325, more than the difference between the dearest and cheapest state at the same usage.

What drives the differences between states

  • Usage rates. South Australia charges 41.91c/kWh on the reference price, while inner Melbourne pays 25.96c. That gap alone is worth hundreds of dollars a year.
  • Supply charges. These range from 62c a day in the NT to $2.72 in regional NSW. They hit low-usage homes hardest.
  • Climate. Cooling in the north and heating in the south push usage up at different times of year.
  • Gas. Homes that heat water and rooms with gas use less electricity. Victoria has a high share of gas homes, which keeps electricity use down there.
  • Solar. Rooftop solar cuts the power a home buys from the grid, so states with lots of solar have many households paying far below these figures.

Each state's regulated price is explained in our rates by state guide.

Summer and winter bills

Regulated rates stay the same all year, but usage does not. Victorian, Tasmanian and Canberra bills peak in winter with heating. Queensland, Darwin and Perth bills peak in summer with air conditioning. Sydney and Adelaide can see high bills in both seasons. A winter bill well above your spring bill is normal for an electrically heated home and is not, on its own, a sign of a billing error. Check the kWh line: if usage rose, the bill rose with it.

Reverse cycle is the cheapest electric heating

A reverse cycle air conditioner moves heat rather than making it, so it delivers several units of heat for each unit of electricity. Plug-in fan, bar and oil heaters turn one unit of electricity into one unit of heat, which makes them far more expensive to run.

How your bill compares

Your bill shows your total kWh and the number of days. Divide one by the other to get your daily usage, then find the closest level below.

Usage levels in kWh a day
LevelPer dayPer quarterPer year
Low usage6.8 kWh625 kWh2,500 kWh
Medium usage11.0 kWh1,000 kWh4,000 kWh
High usage17.8 kWh1,625 kWh6,500 kWh

If your usage is in line but your bill is higher than the figure for your state, compare plans. If your usage is high, our guide to usage charges shows how to find where it is going.

Questions about average electricity bills

For a household using 4,000 kWh a year on regulated prices, the average across the eight states and territories is about $1,820 a year, or $455 a quarter. It ranges from about $1,495 in the NT to $2,334 in South Australia. Many households pay less on market offers.

At 4,000 kWh a year, the eight-state average works out to about $152 a month on regulated prices. In South Australia it is closer to $194 a month, and in the NT about $125. Most retailers bill quarterly, so multiply by three to compare with your bill.

Regulators use benchmarks between about 3,900 and 6,500 kWh a year. The AER prices its NSW, Queensland and SA caps at 3,900 to 4,900 kWh, the ESC uses 4,000 kWh in Victoria and the ICRC bases its average ACT household on 6,500 kWh. Homes with gas heating and hot water use less electricity than all-electric homes.

South Australia. At 4,000 kWh a year a household pays about $2,334 on the regulated price, because its usage rate of 41.91c/kWh is the highest in the country. The ACT and NSW come next.

On regulated prices at 4,000 kWh a year, the Northern Territory is cheapest at about $1,495, followed by Victoria at about $1,590. The NT has a very low daily charge, and Victoria has some of the lowest usage rates on the mainland.

Divide the kWh on your bill by the number of days to get kWh a day, then compare it with the usage levels on this page. If your usage is normal but the bill is higher than the regulated price for that usage, your plan is the problem. If your usage itself is high, look at heating, cooling, hot water and pool pumps first.

Regulated rates do not change with the seasons, but usage does. Heating pushes winter bills up in Victoria, Tasmania and the ACT, while air conditioning drives summer bills in Queensland, WA and the NT. In NSW and SA both seasons can be expensive.

No. They show what a household pays for power bought from the grid on the regulated price, with no solar credits or concessions. A home with solar usually buys far less from the grid during the day and gets a feed-in credit, which can cut the bill substantially.

Not exactly. They use the regulated reference price for each state. Most households in NSW, Victoria, South East Queensland, SA and the ACT are on market offers that can be cheaper. Enter your own usage and rates in the bill calculator to see your figure.

About 11 kWh a day at the 4,000 kWh a year we use to compare states. A small apartment can use half of that, while a large family home with a pool, electric heating or an EV can use 20 kWh or more. Your bill shows your own figure as average daily usage.

Sources

Every rate on this page comes from the regulator or the regulated retailer. Last checked October 2026. Prices include GST unless we say otherwise.