How NSW electricity prices work in 2026-27
New South Wales does not have one electricity price. It has three, one for each of the companies that own the poles and wires: Ausgrid, Endeavour Energy and Essential Energy. Which one you pay depends only on where you live. Your retailer, the company that sends the bill, then sets its own prices on top of that network.
The rates on this page are the reference prices behind the Default Market Offer, the price cap the Australian Energy Regulator sets each year. They are the most a retailer can charge you on a standing offer, which is the plan you end up on if you never chose one. From 1 July 2026 the cap fell 3.4% in the Ausgrid and Endeavour areas and 5.0% in the Essential Energy area.
Most households are on a market offer instead, and a decent market offer should sit below these numbers. Use them as a ceiling: if your rates are higher than the reference price for your network, you are almost certainly paying too much.
NSW electricity rates by network zone
| Network | Usage | Supply | DMO annual cap | At 4,000 kWh |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| AusgridSydney, Hunter and Central Coast | 33.14c/kWh | $1.66/day | $1,899 at 3,900 kWh | $1,932/yr |
| Endeavour EnergyWestern Sydney, Blue Mountains, Illawarra and South Coast | 33.73c/kWh | $1.85/day | $2,328 at 4,900 kWh | $2,025/yr |
| Essential EnergyRegional and rural NSW | 35.01c/kWh | $2.72/day | $2,604 at 4,600 kWh | $2,394/yr |
Ausgrid: Sydney, the Hunter and the Central Coast
Ausgrid covers the eastern half of Sydney, the Central Coast and the Hunter, including Newcastle. Its reference price is 33.14c/kWh with a supply charge of $1.66 a day. The AER caps a standing offer at $1,899 a year for a household using 3,900 kWh.
Endeavour Energy: Western Sydney and the South Coast
Endeavour serves Greater Western Sydney, the Blue Mountains, the Southern Highlands, the Illawarra and the South Coast. Its usage rate is a little higher at 33.73c/kWh and the supply charge is $1.85 a day. The AER benchmarks Endeavour households at a higher 4,900 kWh a year, so the annual cap is higher too, at $2,328.
Essential Energy: regional and rural NSW
Essential Energy runs the network across most of regional NSW, from the north coast to Broken Hill. It has the highest prices in the state: 35.01c/kWh and $2.72 a day. That supply charge alone comes to about $994 a year before you switch on a light, because the network has to maintain long lines to relatively few customers.
What the DMO price cap means for you
The Default Market Offer is set as a total yearly bill, not a per-kWh rate. The AER works out what a household on a standing offer should pay at a benchmark level of usage, and retailers cannot charge more than that amount. The usage and supply figures above are the reference split behind each cap.
The cap also does a second job. Every retailer must show how its offers compare to the DMO, as a percentage above or below it. When a plan says it is "15% below the reference price", the reference price is the figure in this table.
A quick test for your current plan
Find the usage rate and daily supply charge on your latest bill. If both are higher than the figures for your network above, you are paying more than the standing offer cap allows for a typical household, and switching is very likely to save you money.
How to find your network zone
The quickest way is to look at your bill. Retailers list your distributor, often under a heading such as "Your distributor" or near the faults and emergencies phone number, because the distributor is who you call when the power goes out. If it says Ausgrid, Endeavour Energy or Essential Energy, that is your zone.
If you are moving or do not have a bill yet, enter your postcode on Energy Made Easy, the AER's free comparison site. Some postcodes sit across two networks, so use your full address if the result looks wrong.
Solar feed-in tariffs and free midday power
NSW has no mandatory minimum feed-in tariff. Instead IPART publishes a benchmark range each year to show what a fair rate looks like. For 2026-27 the all-day benchmark is 3.4 to 6.5c/kWh, down from 4.8 to 7.3c the year before, because rooftop and grid solar are pushing midday wholesale prices down.
| Export window | Benchmark |
|---|---|
| 10am to 3pm | 3.9-4c/kWh |
| 3pm to 4pm | 4.8-8.5c/kWh |
| 4pm to 9pm | 17.2-18.7c/kWh |
| 9pm to 10am | 3.2-4.9c/kWh |
The gap between midday and evening is the reason batteries have become worth a look. Power exported at lunchtime earns about 4c, while the same power stored and sent back after 4pm is benchmarked at more than 17c, if your plan pays time-of-day feed-in rates.
Since 1 July 2026 retailers with more than 1,000 customers must also offer a Solar Sharer plan, with free grid power from 11am to 2pm every day, up to 24 kWh. You need a smart meter but not solar panels. The supply charge still applies and other rates on these plans can be higher, so it suits homes that can run the dishwasher, pool pump or EV charger in the middle of the day.
NSW energy rebates
These are paid as credits on your bill once you register with your retailer or Service NSW.
- Cheaper Home Batteries Program: About 30% off the first 14kWh. Homes and small businesses installing a battery with solar. Official details
- NSW Low Income Household Rebate: Up to $285 a year. Pensioner Concession, Health Care, Low Income Health Care or Veteran Gold Card holders. Official details
- Electricity concessions in every state and how to claim
NSW also runs the Family Energy Rebate, the Seniors Energy Rebate, the Medical Energy Rebate and the Life Support Rebate. Amounts are indexed each July, so check the current figure with Service NSW before you apply.
How to pay less than the reference price
- Check your network. Comparing an Essential Energy bill against an Ausgrid price tells you nothing, so start with the right row in the table.
- Look at the reference price percentage. Every offer must show how far above or below the DMO it sits. The further below, the better, all else being equal.
- Match the plan to when you use power. If most of your usage is in the evening, a time-of-use plan can cost you more. If you can shift it to midday, a Solar Sharer or time-of-use plan can cost you much less.
- Read the conditions. Pay-on-time discounts only help if you always pay on time, and some plans raise prices after a benefit period ends.
Our NSW bill calculator prices your own usage at these rates so you can see the gap.
Electricity rates by city in NSW
Each city page shows the network price, the cheapest plans, typical bills for the local climate zone, solar output for the postcode and who to call in an outage.
- Electricity in Sydney
- Electricity in Newcastle
- Electricity in Central Coast
- Electricity in Wollongong
- Electricity in Blue Mountains
- Electricity in Bathurst
- Electricity in Queanbeyan
- Electricity in Dubbo
- Electricity in Wagga Wagga
- Electricity in Tamworth
- Electricity in Armidale
- Electricity in Coffs Harbour
- Electricity in Lismore
- Electricity in Port Macquarie
- Electricity in Broken Hill
Questions about NSW electricity rates
It depends on your network. The Default Market Offer reference price is 33.14c/kWh plus $1.66 a day in the Ausgrid area, 33.73c plus $1.85 a day with Endeavour Energy, and 35.01c plus $2.72 a day with Essential Energy. These are standing offer ceilings set by the AER. Market offers from retailers are usually cheaper, so treat these numbers as the most you should be paying.
No, it is the opposite. The DMO is a cap on standing offers, the plans people land on when they never pick one. Retailers compete below it with market offers, and every offer must state how far under the reference price it sits. If you have not compared plans in the last year or two, there is a good chance you can beat what you pay now.
Essential Energy maintains a huge network across regional NSW with far fewer customers per kilometre of line than Ausgrid or Endeavour. Those costs land mostly in the daily supply charge, which is $2.72 a day in 2026-27 compared with $1.66 for Ausgrid. That works out to roughly $994 a year before any usage, which is why low-usage regional homes feel it most.
Check your electricity bill for the distributor name, usually printed near the faults and emergencies number. You can also enter your postcode on Energy Made Easy, the AER comparison site. Ausgrid covers eastern Sydney, the Central Coast and the Hunter, Endeavour covers Western Sydney and the South Coast, and Essential covers most of regional NSW.
Yes, the price cap did. The AER lowered the 2026-27 Default Market Offer by 3.4% for Ausgrid and Endeavour customers and by 5.0% for Essential Energy customers. Whether your own bill falls depends on your retailer, because market offers can move by different amounts. Check the price change notice your retailer had to send before the new prices started.
IPART suggests 3.4 to 6.5c/kWh as a fair all-day rate for 2026-27, so anything in or above that range is reasonable. Some plans pay more for evening exports, with IPART benchmarking 17.2 to 18.7c between 4pm and 9pm in the Ausgrid area. Higher feed-in rates often come with higher usage rates, so compare the whole plan rather than the feed-in figure alone.
Yes, through the Solar Sharer Offer, which retailers with more than 1,000 customers must offer from 1 July 2026. It gives free grid power from 11am to 2pm every day, up to 24 kWh, to households with a smart meter. You do not need solar panels. The daily supply charge still applies and other rates can be higher, so it pays off only if you can shift real usage into those hours.
Concession card holders can claim the Low Income Household Rebate, worth up to $285 a year. NSW also offers the Family Energy Rebate, the Seniors Energy Rebate for Commonwealth Seniors Health Card holders, the Medical Energy Rebate and the Life Support Rebate. Most are applied through your retailer or Service NSW, and amounts are indexed each July.
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.