For homes · Texas plan guide
How to read a Texas Electricity Facts Label (EFL)
Read the plan before you choose it. Find the prices, credit conditions and fees in the Electricity Facts Label, then compare them with your usage.
By Voltcheckr Research · Published Jul 25, 2026 · Updated Oct 23, 2026 · 8 min read
What changed: Updated the Home and comparison links to our residential homepage.
The short answer
Read an Electricity Facts Label in four parts: the price section, with the average price at 500, 1,000 and 2,000 kWh a month; the plan type and term; the fees, including any early termination fee; and the conditions on any bill credit or minimum usage fee. Then check those averages against your own monthly kWh.
- The averages include the utility's area-wide delivery charges and leave out sales taxes.
- A bill credit applies only in a month that meets its condition. A minimum usage fee is charged in a month below its line.
- In 2024 the average Texas home used 1,000 kWh or more in 7 months and less in 5.
- A variable plan's label prices the first billing cycle and says where to find a year of past prices.
See Houston plans priced on your usage
On this page
What an Electricity Facts Label is
An Electricity Facts Label, or EFL, is the standard fact sheet a Texas retail electric provider must provide for each plan it offers. Every label follows one format, set in the PUCT's rule 16 TAC §25.475, so you can read any two labels side by side.1,5
The label is part of your contract, with the terms of service and the Your Rights as a Customer document. A provider that enrolls homes on its website must show each plan's label without asking for personal information beyond a ZIP code, and the label must print on two pages or fewer.1
How to read an EFL, section by section
Read the label from the top. The rule sets its order: a header, an electricity price section, a line pointing to the terms of service, then a disclosure chart that asks the same questions on every label, with the provider's contact details at the end.1
The parts of an Electricity Facts Label
- Header
- Electricity price
- Other key terms
- Type of product and contract term
- Termination fee
- Can my price change?
- Other fees
- Prepaid, solar buyback and renewable content
- Contact and version
Header
The provider's name, the plan's name, the service area if it applies, and the date.
Electricity price
The average price per kWh at 500, 1,000 and 2,000 kWh a month. A variable plan adds a notice that the price applies to the first billing cycle.
Other key terms
A pointer to the terms of service for the full list of fees, the deposit policy and other terms.
Type of product and contract term
Fixed rate or variable rate, and the length of the contract in months.
Termination fee
Whether ending service early carries a fee, and if so, how much.
Can my price change?
Yes or no. If yes, how the price will change and by how much.
Other fees
The fees you may be charged, or where the terms of service list them.
Prepaid, solar buyback and renewable content
Whether the plan is prepaid, whether the provider buys excess power from home renewable generation, and the plan's renewable share beside the statewide average.
Contact and version
The provider's certification number, its phone number with hours, and the label's version number.
The three average prices, and which one is you
The price section gives the plan's total average price per kWh at 500, 1,000 and 2,000 kWh a month, rounded to a tenth of a cent. It reflects all recurring charges, the utility's delivery charges among them, and leaves out sales taxes and the state gross receipts tax reimbursement.1
In Houston those delivery charges are CenterPoint's, set in its tariff under PUCT oversight, whichever provider you choose. A charge that applies only in part of a utility's area, such as one for underground service, is left out, and the label must say how to find it.1,4,8,9
Each average is figured at exactly that usage, and a home's usage moves through the year. Your bills show the kWh used each month, so line up a year of them against the three levels.2
In 2024 the average Texas home used 1,000 kWh or more in 7 months and less in 5
| Monthly use | Months in 2024 | Which months |
|---|---|---|
| Under 500 kWh | 0 | None |
| 500 to 999 kWh | 5 | Feb, Mar, Apr, Nov, Dec |
| 1,000 to 1,999 kWh | 7 | Jan, and May through Oct |
| 2,000 kWh or more | 0 | None |
Bill credits and minimum usage fees
Some plans give a bill credit in a month when your usage reaches a set amount. It is a plan term, not a rule, and a month that falls short does not earn it. A minimum usage fee works the other way: a charge added when your usage falls below a set amount.4,5
Power to Choose, the PUCT's shopping site, says typical cut-off points for a minimum usage fee are below 500 or 1,000 kWh, and that the fee may not appear as its own line on your bill. The label is where to find it.4,6
In this invented example, 1 kWh short of the credit adds $49.85 to the bill
| Monthly use | Example bill | Per kWh |
|---|---|---|
| 500 kWh | $75 + $10 = $85.00, no credit | 17.0¢ |
| 999 kWh | $149.85 + $10 = $159.85, no credit | 16.0¢ |
| 1,000 kWh | $150 + $10, less the $50 credit = $110.00 | 11.0¢ |
| 2,000 kWh | $300 + $10, less the $50 credit = $260.00 | 13.0¢ |
Near a threshold, a few kWh can move a bill by the whole credit or fee. On this example, the average Texas home's 2024 would have earned the credit in 7 months and missed it in 5.10
Plan type, term and fees
The disclosure chart says whether the plan is fixed rate or variable, gives the term in months, and says whether ending service early carries a fee and how much. A fixed rate holds through the term, except for changes in delivery charges, ERCOT or Texas Regional Entity fees, and new costs imposed by law.1,7
On a variable plan, the label's price applies to the first billing cycle, and the label says where to find the current price and, for homes, a year of past prices. If the price can rise only by a set percentage from month to month, the label states that percentage.1
The label lists the fees the provider may charge and whether each is part of the recurring charges, or it points to that list in the terms of service. Charges for one-time events, such as a late payment or a returned check, are itemized in the terms of service.1
On a time-of-use plan, the averages rest on the provider's own estimate of how much power you use in each period. If your timing differs, your average price will too.5,7
What to check before you sign
Get the label for the exact plan
Make sure it names the plan and your area, and note its date and version number.
Line up a year of your usage
Take the kWh from 12 bills and see which months sit near 500, 1,000 or 2,000 kWh.
Read every condition on a credit or fee
Note the usage a credit needs or a fee is charged below, and count how many of your months would meet it.
Confirm the type, term and termination fee
Fixed or variable, the length in months, and what leaving early would cost.
Check your first bill against the label
Each bill shows the average price you paid that month. If your usage was close to one of the label's levels, the two should be a reasonable match.
That last check comes from the PUCT's 2009 order adopting the label rule. If the numbers are far apart, ask your provider why. If it does not resolve a billing complaint, the PUCT's customer hotline takes it at 1-888-782-8477.2,3,4
Our Houston guide to a high electric bill covers the other causes to check, from summer cooling to an expired contract.
Questions
What does the 1,000 kWh price on an EFL mean?
It is the plan's total average price per kWh for a month with exactly 1,000 kWh of use, with recurring charges in and sales taxes out. In a month with different usage your own average will differ, most of all on a plan with a credit or fee tied to usage.
Does the EFL price include delivery charges?
Yes, the delivery charges that apply to every home in the utility's area, because the averages reflect all recurring charges. A charge that applies in only part of the area, such as one for underground service, is left out, and the label must say how to find it.
Does the EFL show the early termination fee?
Yes. Its disclosure chart asks whether you pay a fee to end service early and, if so, how much, beside the contract's length in months. The terms of service add how service can be ended and any penalties that apply.
Why is my bill's average price different from the EFL?
Your usage may not have been at one of the label's three levels, or a credit or fee may have depended on your usage. When your usage is close to a level, the PUCT has said the two numbers should be a reasonable match. If they are not, ask your provider.
How do I read my electric bill?
Texas rules set what a bill shows: the current charges, the amount due and its due date, your kWh, and, when your provider has them, the previous and current meter reads and whether the bill was estimated. The line "The average price you paid for electric service this month" is your recurring charges divided by the kWh you used, with taxes and nonrecurring charges left out, so you can set it beside the label's average at the usage nearest yours. On a plan with a fixed rate, the bill also shows the date the plan expires, in bold and underlined.
Where do I find a plan's EFL?
On the provider's website: a provider that enrolls homes online must prominently show each plan's label without asking for personal information beyond a ZIP code. It must also give you the label when you enroll and whenever you ask.
Sources
- 16 TAC §25.475, Retail Electric Provider Requirements and Disclosures (PUCT), read Oct 5, 2026
- 16 TAC §25.479, Issuance and Format of Bills (PUCT), read Oct 7, 2026
- PUCT, Project No. 35768, Order adopting §25.475 (2009), read Oct 5, 2026
- Power to Choose (a PUCT website), FAQ, read Oct 5, 2026
- Power to Choose (a PUCT website), Glossary, read Oct 5, 2026
- PUCT, Choosing an Electric Plan, read Oct 5, 2026
- PUCT, Types of Electric Plans, read Oct 5, 2026
- PUCT, Understanding your bill, read Oct 5, 2026
- CenterPoint, Houston Electric rates and tariffs, read Oct 5, 2026
- EIA, Form EIA-861M monthly sales and customers by state, read Oct 5, 2026
How we research
Voltcheckr Research writes each guide from primary sources: the PUCT's rules, the utility's tariff and federal data. Every source is listed above with the day it was read. AI tools help draft each guide; every fact is checked against its source and the guide is approved before it is published. Voltcheckr LLC is a PUCT-registered broker, registration BR260102, with no affiliated supplier.
Found an error? Email support@voltcheckr.com and we correct it with a note on the page. See how we are paid.
Questions? Call (469) 708-9311