What this means for an Iowa household
Over the last 12 months the average price was 14.13¢ per kWh and the average home used 856 kWh a month, so a typical Iowa household spent about $121 a month on electricity, or $1,451 a year. Use is close to the US average of 870 kWh a month, peaking in July at 1,209 kWh.
Driving a Tesla Model Y Long Range AWD 1,000 miles a month takes 275 kWh from the wall (EPA 27.5 kWh/100 mi), about $39 at the state average. A 25.5 mpg gasoline car covering the same distance at $3.89 a gallon (Midwest (PADD 2) average, August 2026) costs about $153.
The state average hides the real spread. Utilities in the same state charge different prices, and on a time-of-use plan the same kWh costs more in the peak hours than off-peak; each utility page shows by how much. Open MidAmerican’s page to see its periods and fixed charge, or run the calculators below with Iowa preloaded.
Natural gas for homes averaged $1.09 per therm over the 12 months to June 2026 (EIA, all charges included), and a typical gas-heated home uses about 546 therms a year for heating. The heat pump calculator compares that with electric heating on your plan.
A south-facing, 20° rooftop array in Iowa produces about 1,373 kWh per installed kW a year (NREL PVWatts at the state’s population centre). What that is worth depends on your utility’s export rule, shown on each utility’s page.