Retail Choice Power Markets Overcharge U.S. Households by $4 Billion in 2024
Updated
Updated · Forbes · Jul 8
Retail Choice Power Markets Overcharge U.S. Households by $4 Billion in 2024
1 articles · Updated · Forbes · Jul 8
Summary
$4 billion in 2024 overcharges hit U.S. households in retail-choice electricity markets, with some residential accounts paying up to $480 more than customers in regulated utility areas, according to a new report using EIA data.
Texas drove much of that gap: nearly 7 million households must buy through licensed retailers, while NRG and Vistra control about 70% of the residential retail market and can match prices on the state's comparison website.
The report says many households do not switch plans annually and are moved onto pricier offerings, adding to a long record of ERCOT overcharges that the Wall Street Journal previously pegged at $28 billion from 2003 to 2019.
Residential electricity prices nationally rose 8.0% between April 2025 and April 2026, and the disparity is sharper in deregulated markets; in Texas, household rates are almost double commercial and industrial rates.
As AI data-center demand strains grids, the report argues regulated states are better positioned to add supply without shifting costs to households, while some grid operators such as PJM are making large users fund their own power needs.