Average Electricity Bill in Ireland 2026

Average electricity bill by supplier at 4,200 kWh

Each supplier’s best new-customer 24-hour plan, urban meter, costed at the CRU typical usage. “Annual bill” is unit rate times 4,200 kWh plus the standing charge plus the current PSO levy (€6.67 a year). Welcome credits are shown separately because they only apply in year one.

All figures include 9% VAT. The average is a simple mean across suppliers, not weighted by customer numbers, so it sits above what most people actually pay: the four largest suppliers are all in the cheaper half of the table. Flogas is costed at its standard rate because it lists no new-customer discount plan. For the ranked list with switching details see cheapest electricity in Ireland.

Average electricity bill by household size

Usage, not household size, sets the bill, so we cost four usage bands and describe the kind of home each fits. The bands and labels are ours; the 4,200 kWh figure is the CRU’s. Each row is the average across all 10 suppliers, PSO levy included, with the cheapest plan at that usage alongside.

The all-in cost per kWh falls as usage rises because the standing charge and PSO levy are spread over more units. Most Irish suppliers bill every two months, which is why the bi-monthly column is the one that matches the envelope on the mat. To find your own usage, look for “kWh” on a recent bill or in your ESB Networks online account.

What makes up the bill

How this compares with the CRU estimated annual bill

Every Irish supplier must publish an Estimated Annual Bill (EAB) for each plan, calculated on the CRU’s typical consumption figures. The CRU set those figures at 4,200 kWh of electricity and 11,000 kWh of gas in a decision paper published on 21 March 2017, with suppliers and comparison sites required to use them from 1 August 2017 at the latest. Both were reductions on the previous figures.

Our supplier table uses the same 4,200 kWh, so our per-supplier bills should sit close to each supplier’s own EAB for the same plan and meter. Small differences come down to rounding, whether the PSO levy is included, and the date each was calculated; a supplier’s EAB is fixed at publication while ours moves whenever we re-verify rates. Where our figure and the supplier’s EAB disagree by more than a few euro, trust the supplier’s sheet and tell us.

The one thing the EAB cannot tell you is whether 4,200 kWh is you. The figure dates from 2017 and predates the wave of heat pumps and EVs; a home with either will usually sit in our 6,000 or 8,000 kWh band. Run your actual annual kWh through the electricity price comparison rather than relying on the typical figure.

Why the average bill rose in October 2026

Three of the four largest suppliers raised electricity prices in the first two weeks of October: SSE Airtricity (5 October, standard 24-hour rate up 9.4%), Bord Gáis Energy (9 October, unit rates up 9.1%) and Energia (12 October, electricity unit rates up 4.73%). That followed Pinergy in mid-September and Electric Ireland, Yuno Energy and Flogas in July, and Yuno repriced its new-customer plan again on 23 Oct 2026 to 39.10c/kWh. Every one of these changes is now in force, so the average bill of €1,858 at 4,200 kWh across all suppliers already includes them, along with the PSO levy cut and higher network charges from 1 October. The full list, with before-and-after rates, is on the electricity price increases page.

• 23 Oct 2026, Yuno Energy: New-customer Variable Discount Plan repriced. The 24-hour urban rate went from 34.85c to 39.10c/kWh and the urban standing charge from €219.22 to €264.73; Variable Smart became 41.39c day, 26.08c night, 47.65c peak. Yuno's EV Standard Smart plan closed to new customers on 16 October, and Yuno's pricing page says a winter price freeze on electricity and gas runs from 13 October 2026 to 1 March 2027.
• 12 Oct 2026, Energia: Electricity unit rates rose 4.73% and gas 9.38%. The standard 24-hour rate went to 43.50c/kWh and the urban standing charge from €265.01 to €278.27. With the combined new-customer discount now 26% (it was 30%), the 24-hour rate we track went from 29.85c to 32.19c/kWh. The EV Smart Drive charge-time rate rose to 12.25c/kWh after the 10% discount.
• 9 Oct 2026, Bord Gáis Energy: Electricity unit rates up 9.1% and standing charges up 7.2% (typical bill +8.8%). Standard 24-hour rate 41.59c to 45.38c/kWh; urban standing charge €244.76 to €262.38. The new-customer discount is now 28% (it was 26%), so the 24-hour rate we track went from 30.78c to 32.67c/kWh.
• 5 Oct 2026, SSE Airtricity: Electricity rose around 9%: the standard 24-hour rate went from 41.13c to 45.00c/kWh. Top Discount 24-hour rate 28.79c to 31.50c/kWh; urban standing charge €263.86 to €279.99.
• 14 Sep 2026, Pinergy: Pinergy said a typical bill would rise 7.6%. The 24-hour standard rate went from 41.77c to 45.80c/kWh (up 9.6% on the unit rate) with the standing charge unchanged. The pay-as-you-go plan we track is priced at 10% off that standard rate.

Every average on this page uses each supplier’s current rate, verified on 28 Oct 2026, so it will move again when suppliers next change their prices.

How solar panels change the average bill

Every figure above assumes you buy all 4,200 kWh from the grid. A home with solar buys fewer units, so the unit rate matters less and two other numbers start to matter more: the standing charge, which you pay in full no matter how much you generate, and the Clean Export Guarantee rate the supplier pays for the surplus you send out. That changes which supplier is cheapest, and the ranking for a solar home is often different from the table above.

Two guides cover the numbers: what a system costs after the SEAI grant and how long it takes to pay back on today’s rates is on solar panel costs, and the electricity price comparison has a solar what-if that reprices every supplier on your reduced import and your export.

Irish Electricity Price Changes 2026

Every announced change we have verified on the supplier's own site, newest first, with the date it takes effect. The rates on this page were last verified on 28 Oct 2026 and show the current price until each change lands.

1. 23 Oct 2026

   Yuno Energy

   New-customer Variable Discount Plan repriced. The 24-hour urban rate went from 34.85c to 39.10c/kWh and the urban standing charge from €219.22 to €264.73; Variable Smart became 41.39c day, 26.08c night, 47.65c peak. Yuno's EV Standard Smart plan closed to new customers on 16 October, and Yuno's pricing page says a winter price freeze on electricity and gas runs from 13 October 2026 to 1 March 2027. source

2. 12 Oct 2026

   Energia

   Electricity unit rates rose 4.73% and gas 9.38%. The standard 24-hour rate went to 43.50c/kWh and the urban standing charge from €265.01 to €278.27. With the combined new-customer discount now 26% (it was 30%), the 24-hour rate we track went from 29.85c to 32.19c/kWh. The EV Smart Drive charge-time rate rose to 12.25c/kWh after the 10% discount. source

3. 9 Oct 2026

   Bord Gáis Energy

   Electricity unit rates up 9.1% and standing charges up 7.2% (typical bill +8.8%). Standard 24-hour rate 41.59c to 45.38c/kWh; urban standing charge €244.76 to €262.38. The new-customer discount is now 28% (it was 26%), so the 24-hour rate we track went from 30.78c to 32.67c/kWh. source

4. 5 Oct 2026

   SSE Airtricity

   Electricity rose around 9%: the standard 24-hour rate went from 41.13c to 45.00c/kWh. Top Discount 24-hour rate 28.79c to 31.50c/kWh; urban standing charge €263.86 to €279.99. source

5. 1 Oct 2026

   All suppliers

   CRU-approved 2026/27 network charges added about €41.25 a year (€3.44 a month) to a typical domestic electricity bill after the regulator trimmed network revenue allowances by €138 million. Every supplier passes these charges through. source

Full details of each rise, with before-and-after rates, are on the electricity price increases page. The underlying market is tracked daily on the wholesale electricity prices page. Budget 2027 on 6 October contained no universal energy credit: see what support exists instead.

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