Virginia households paid an average of 17.64¢ per kWh in August 2026, 3% below the US average and +11.3% on a year earlier. That ranks #20 of 51, most expensive first.
Source EIA, residential retail priceLatest month August 2026
Average residential priceVA
17.64¢/kWh
Typical bill
$177/mo
Average use
1,066kWh
EV, 1,000 mi
$46/mo
Thirteen months of prices
Average residential price by month, ¢/kWh (EIA). Highest 17.64¢ in August 2026, lowest 15.27¢ in December 2025. Download the data (CSV)
Utilities and rate plans
Each utility’s current residential tariffs, transcribed from its tariff sheets, with periods, tiers, fixed charge and a typical bill. Customer counts from EIA-861 (2025).
Each row prices a utility’s standard plan for a typical home. The Virginia average of 16.64¢/kWh (EIA, 12 months) is what every household in the state actually paid, including utilities not modeled here and discounted low-income bills, so it can sit below every row.
Virginia service area only; Appalachian Power's West Virginia customers have different tariffs.
Against the national average and states with similar prices
Average residential ¢/kWh, August 2026 (EIA).
Virginia17.64¢
United States18.16¢
Minnesota17.20¢
Colorado17.17¢
Iowa17.06¢
Indiana17.02¢
Charging an electric car in Virginia
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 $46 at the state average. A 25.5 mpg gasoline car covering the same distance at $3.90 a gallon (Lower Atlantic (PADD 1C) average, October 2026) costs about $153.
Some utilities, such as Dominion, sell EV plans with cheaper overnight hours. The table shows, for each utility, the plan with the lowest total bill for a typical Virginia home that adds 1,000 EV miles a month, averaged over the year, and what plugging in at 6 pm would cost instead.
Over the last 12 months the average price was 16.64¢ per kWh and the average home used 1,066 kWh a month, so a typical Virginia household spent about $177 a month on electricity, or $2,129 a year. Use is 22% above the US average of 875 kWh a month, peaking in January at 1,509 kWh.
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 Dominion’s page to see its plans, prices by hour and fixed charge, or run the calculators below with Virginia preloaded.
Natural gas for homes averaged $1.73 per therm over the 12 months to August 2026 (EIA, all charges included), and a typical gas-heated home uses about 496 therms a year for heating. The heat pump calculator compares that with electric heating on your plan.
A south-facing, 20° rooftop array in Virginia produces about 1,335 kWh per installed kW a year (NREL PVWatts at the state’s population center). What that is worth depends on your utility’s export rule, shown on each utility’s page.
Virginia electricity: common questions
How much does electricity cost in Virginia?
Homes in Virginia paid an average of 17.64¢ per kWh in August 2026, against 18.16¢ for the US, which ranks the state #20 of 51 from most expensive. Over the last 12 months the average was 16.64¢. These are EIA averages of what households actually paid, fixed charges included; your utility and plan set your own price.
What is the average electric bill in Virginia?
About $177 a month ($2,129 a year): the average Virginia home used 1,066 kWh a month over the last 12 months at an average 16.64¢/kWh. Use peaks in January, at 1,509 kWh.
Are electricity prices going up in Virginia?
Virginia's average residential price was 17.64¢/kWh in August 2026, 11.3% higher than a year earlier. Over the last ten years the 12-month average has changed by +3.8% a year, against +3.7% a year for the US.
How much does it cost to charge an electric car in Virginia?
Driving 1,000 miles a month in a Tesla Model Y Long Range AWD takes 275 kWh from the wall, about $46 at the state's average home price, against about $153 of gasoline for a 25.5 mpg car. On a time-of-use plan, charging overnight can cost less than that.
Do Virginia utilities offer time-of-use plans?
Yes. Dominion offers Schedule 1G (peak 3 pm–6 pm on summer weekdays); Appalachian Power offers RS-TOD (peak 7 am–8 pm on summer weekdays). Each utility's page shows every period and price.