With one quarter of U.S. households having high energy burdens (spending more than 6% of their income on utility bills), the personal-finance website WalletHub today released its report on 2023’s Most & Least Energy-Expensive States, as well as expert commentary.
For a better understanding of Americans’ energy costs relative to their location and consumption habits, WalletHub compared the average monthly energy bills in each of the 50 states and the District of Columbia using a special formula that accounts for the following residential energy types: electricity, natural gas, motor fuel and home heating oil.
| Most Energy-Expensive States | Least Energy-Expensive States | ||
| 1. Wyoming ($845) | 42. Nevada ($421) | ||
| 2. North Dakota ($645) | 43. Louisiana ($420) | ||
| 3. Alaska ($613) | 44. Arizona ($416) | ||
| 4. Connecticut ($593) | 45. Florida ($415) | ||
| 5. Massachusetts ($589) | 46. California ($408) | ||
| 6. Oklahoma ($583) | 47. Kansas ($384) | ||
| 7. Vermont ($567) | 48. Nebraska ($384) | ||
| 8. Iowa ($552) | 49. Texas ($378) | ||
| 9. New Hampshire ($551) | 50. New Mexico ($373) | ||
| 10. Indiana ($545) | 51. District of Columbia ($274) | ||
Note: The dollar amount listed beside each state above reflects its average monthly energy bill.
Best vs. Worst
- Hawaii has the lowest average monthly consumption of electricity per consumer, 492 kWh, which is 2.9 times lower than in Louisiana, the highest at 1,449 kWh.
- Washington has the lowest average retail price for electricity, $0.1011 per kWh, which is 3.3 times lower than in Hawaii, the highest at $0.3349 per kWh.
- Idaho has the lowest average residential price for natural gas, $7.00 per 1,000 cubic feet, which is 6.7 times lower than in Hawaii, the highest at $46.99 per 1,000 cubic feet.
- The District of Columbia has the lowest average monthly motor-fuel consumption per driver, 20.83 gallons, which is 4.1 times lower than in Wyoming, the highest at 84.49 gallons.
- In Northeastern states, between 8 percent and 61 percent of households use heating oil to heat their homes, compared with less than 3 percent of households in the rest of the U.S.
