The cost of energy might not be the top item to consider when deciding on a new city or state to live in. But it’s something to keep in mind as energy costs across the U.S. vary anywhere from $104 to $321 a month.
By the end of the year, that’s a $2,609 difference — not a paltry amount. So, if you don’t want to leave a family vacation on the table in the form of an energy bill, here are the most and least expensive states for energy.
Image Credit: WangAnQi/istockphoto.
51. Hawaii
- Monthly spend on energy: $321
- Yearly spend on energy: $3,856
Image Credit: Art Wager.
50. Connecticut
- Monthly spend on energy: $250
- Yearly spend on energy: $2,997
Image Credit: concoll.edu.
49. Pennsylvania
- Monthly spend on energy: $236
- Yearly spend on energy: $2,832
Image Credit: AppalachianViews.
48. Alabama
- Monthly spend on energy: $232
- Yearly spend on energy: $2,789
Image Credit: Sean Pavone.
47. Massachusetts
- Monthly spend on energy: $231
- Yearly spend on energy: $2,775
Image Credit: DepositPhotos.com.
46. West Virginia
- Monthly spend on energy: $231
- Yearly spend on energy: $2,775
Image Credit: DepositPhotos.com.
45. Rhode Island
- Monthly spend on energy: $225
- Yearly spend on energy: $2,702
Image Credit: Jim Schatz.
44. New York
- Monthly spend on energy: $212
- Yearly spend on energy: $2,547
Image Credit: monkeybusinessimages.
43. Missouri
- Monthly spend on energy: $209
- Yearly spend on energy: $2,508
Image Credit: DepositPhotos.com.
42. Kentucky
- Monthly spend on energy: $206
- Yearly spend on energy: $2,469
Image Credit: DepositPhotos.com.
41. Ohio
- Monthly spend on energy: $205
- Yearly spend on energy: $2,456
Image Credit: Mike/Flickr.
40. Alaska
- Monthly spend on energy: $200
- Yearly spend on energy: $2,405
Image Credit: Chilkoot.
39. New Hampshire
- Monthly spend on energy: $199
- Yearly spend on energy: $2,384
Image Credit: DepositPhotos.com.
38. Louisiana
- Monthly spend on energy: $194
- Yearly spend on energy: $2,330
Image Credit: Meinzahn / iStock.
37. Kansas
- Monthly spend on energy: $194
- Yearly spend on energy: $2,324
Image Credit: Tiago_Fernandez / iStock.
36. Indiana
- Monthly spend on energy: $194
- Yearly spend on energy: $2,323
Image Credit: f11photo.
35. Maryland
- Monthly spend on energy: $193
- Yearly spend on energy: $2,321
Image Credit: DepositPhotos.com.
34. Georgia
- Monthly spend on energy: $192
- Yearly spend on energy: $2,298
Image Credit: DepositPhotos.com.
33. Arkansas
- Monthly spend on energy: $191
- Yearly spend on energy: $2,293
Image Credit: wellesenterprises / iStock.
32. Mississippi
- Monthly spend on energy: $190
- Yearly spend on energy: $2,282
Image Credit: stevegeer.
31. District of Columbia
- Monthly spend on energy: $186
- Yearly spend on energy: $2,231
Image Credit: Sean Pavone/shutterstock.
30. Michigan
- Monthly spend on energy: $183
- Yearly spend on energy: $2,192
Image Credit: csterken.
29. Oklahoma
- Monthly spend on energy: $181
- Yearly spend on energy: $2,167
Image Credit: Kiddo27 / Flickr.
28. Iowa
- Monthly spend on energy: $178
- Yearly spend on energy: $2,137
Image Credit: JoeChristensen.
27. Illinois
- Monthly spend on energy: $178
- Yearly spend on energy: $2,131
Image Credit: IanDikhtiar.
26. Virginia
- Monthly spend on energy: $177
- Yearly spend on energy: $2,128
Image Credit: WilliamSherman.
25. Nebraska
- Monthly spend on energy: $177
- Yearly spend on energy: $2,124
Image Credit: DepositPhotos.com.
24. New Jersey
- Monthly spend on energy: $176
- Yearly spend on energy: $2,115
Image Credit: Zillow.
23. Texas
- Monthly spend on energy: $176
- Yearly spend on energy: $2,115
Image Credit: Zillow.
22. South Carolina
- Monthly spend on energy: $174
- Yearly spend on energy: $2,090
Image Credit: DepositPhotos.com.
21. North Dakota
- Monthly spend on energy: $164
- Yearly spend on energy: $1,973
Image Credit: DepositPhotos.com.
20. South Dakota
- Monthly spend on energy: $164
- Yearly spend on energy: $1,970
Image Credit: DepositPhotos.com.
19. Florida
- Monthly spend on energy: $162
- Yearly spend on energy: $1,949
Image Credit: Elisa.rolle.
18. Tennessee
- Monthly spend on energy: $162
- Yearly spend on energy: $1,942
Image Credit: NathanMerrill.
17. Wyoming
- Monthly spend on energy: $158
- Yearly spend on energy: $1,897
Image Credit: AnujSahaiPhotography.
16. Delaware
- Monthly spend on energy: $158
- Yearly spend on energy: $1,892
Image Credit: Pixabay.com.
15. Vermont
- Monthly spend on energy: $155
- Yearly spend on energy: $1,863
Image Credit: DepositPhotos.com.
14. California
- Monthly spend on energy: $155
- Yearly spend on energy: $1,859
Image Credit: Art Wager.
13. Minnesota
- Monthly spend on energy: $154
- Yearly spend on energy: $1,843
Image Credit: JoeChristensen.
12. Arizona
- Monthly spend on energy: $152
- Yearly spend on energy: $1,825
Image Credit: DepositPhotos.com.
11. North Carolina
- Monthly spend on energy: $151
- Yearly spend on energy: $1,806
Image Credit: ” Darwin Brandis”.
10. Maine
- Monthly spend on energy: $150
- Yearly spend on energy: $1,800
Image Credit: DepositPhotos.com.
9. Wisconsin
- Monthly spend on energy: $145
- Yearly spend on energy: $1,740
Image Credit: DepositPhotos.com.
8. Montana
- Monthly spend on energy: $138
- Yearly spend on energy: $1,659
Image Credit: raksyBH / iStock.
7. Nevada
- Monthly spend on energy: $123
- Yearly spend on energy: $1,478
Image Credit: DepositPhotos.com.
6. Oregon
- Monthly spend on energy: $122
- Yearly spend on energy: $1,458
Image Credit: DepositPhotos.com.
5. Washington
- Monthly spend on energy: $117
- Yearly spend on energy: $1,406
Image Credit: 4nadia.
4. Colorado
- Monthly spend on energy: $112
- Yearly spend on energy: $1,341
Image Credit: pilgrims49/istockphoto.
3. Utah
- Monthly spend on energy: $107
- Yearly spend on energy: $1,285
Image Credit: Robby_SixtyTwo.
2. New Mexico
- Monthly spend on energy: $105
- Yearly spend on energy: $1,254
Image Credit: Zillow.
1. Idaho
- Monthly spend on energy: $104
- Yearly spend on energy: $1,247
Image Credit: knowlesgallery.
Four ways to reduce your energy bill
If you don’t plan to move to a different state to cut your energy cost, there are other ways you can reduce your bill at home.
Image Credit: tommaso79/istockphoto.
1. Buy energy efficient appliances
By switching to Energy Star appliances, you’ll use 50% less energy, which could help you save 5 to 10% on your energy bill. Switching to energy efficient light bulbs could help you save $75 a year, according to energy.gov.
Image Credit: gopixa/istockphoto.
2. Use a rewards card
Although you’re not cutting energy costs, paying your utility bill with a rewards credit or debit card could help put money back into your pocket.
Image Credit: DepositPhotos.com.
3. Unplug your devices
Although you aren’t using it, if you keep your device plugged in it’s still using energy called phantom power. This type of energy makes up about 25% of all residential energy, according to a study by the Natural Resources Defense Council. For example, if you keep a phone charger plugged in, that may cost you $4 to $5 a year. To help cut costs, unplug your unused devices or buy a power strip.
Image Credit: EHStock/istockphoto.
4. Use off-peak energy hours
Check when your electric company’s peak and off-peak hours are. If you run your dishwasher and laundry during off-peak hours you could save money.
Image Credit: DepositPhotos.com.
Methodology
To determine the average energy cost, we calculated the average monthly spend on the following items by residential customers for each state:
- electricity
- natural gas
- heating oil
- propane
Monthly spend for each energy type was determined by the average monthly consumption and the average price for residential customers. For heating oil and propane, data was available regionally. All data was sourced from the US Energy Information Administration.
Related:
This article originally appeared on Finder.com and was syndicated by MediaFeed.org.
Image Credit: anatoliy_gleb / iStock.
