Hawaii electricity rates
As of May 2026, the average residential electricity rate in Hawaii is 52.00 cents per kilowatt-hour, 182% above the U.S. average of 18.44¢. That is the 1st highest rate of the 50 states and the District of Columbia.
- Year over year
- ▲ +26.7% from 41.03¢ in May 2025
- Vs. U.S. average
- +182.0% U.S. average 18.44¢
- National rank
- #1 of 51 · #51 cheapest
- Supply market
- Island grids (no interconnection) Regulated monopoly
Why Hawaii pays what it pays
Hawaii is the only state that generates a large share of its electricity from petroleum. Each island runs an isolated grid with no interconnection to anywhere: no neighbouring state to import from, no shared reserve margin, no ability to lean on a regional market. Every island must hold its own reserves, which means more capacity per unit of demand than any mainland system.
Because oil sets the marginal price, Hawaii's rate tracks world oil markets more closely than any other state's. That is why it moved so sharply over the past year while most states moved by a few per cent.
Hawaii has responded with the most aggressive renewable mandate in the country and has built enormous quantities of rooftop and utility-scale solar plus battery storage. The state has among the highest rooftop solar penetration anywhere in the world. That is displacing oil steadily, but the transition is incomplete and the remaining oil still sets the price at the margin.
The closure of the state's last coal plant removed a cheap but high-emission resource, and the replacement has been a mix of renewables and, in the interim, more oil-fired generation.
How Hawaii compares
Hawaii ranks #1 of 51 jurisdictions by residential price, making it the 51st cheapest. Within the Pacific division, every other state is cheaper.
| State | ¢/kWh | YoY | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Washington | 14.95 | +9.5% | #37 |
| Oregon | 16.27 | +2.3% | #26 |
| Alaska | 28.23 | +8.2% | #7 |
| California | 33.25 | -0.1% | #2 |
| Hawaii | 52.00 | +26.7% | #1 |
Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration, Electric Power Monthly, Table 5.6.A: Average Price of Electricity to Ultimate Customers by End-Use Sector, by State. Data period May 2026. Retrieved 2026-08-19.
What a bill looks like at this rate
The figures below apply the May 2026 Hawaii average to four usage levels. They are arithmetic, not quotes. A real bill also carries fixed customer charges, taxes and any rider specific to your utility.
Estimate your Hawaii bill
Multiply your own usage by the May 2026 state average. Enter the kilowatt-hours from your last statement. This is a supply-and-delivery blended average, not a utility quote.
Rate used: …. U.S. average 18.44¢/kWh, May 2026. Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration, Electric Power Monthly Table 5.6.A.
Who sells electricity in Hawaii
Hawaiian Electric serves Oahu, and its subsidiaries Maui Electric and Hawaii Electric Light serve Maui County and Hawaii Island. The Kauai Island Utility Cooperative serves Kauai and is member-owned. It has moved further toward renewables than the rest of the state and has correspondingly different economics.
There is no retail choice. The Hawaii Public Utilities Commission regulates rates and has moved the utility to a performance-based framework tying revenue to outcomes rather than to capital spending.
What you can actually do about it
Rooftop solar with storage is more economically compelling in Hawaii than anywhere else in the United States, simply because the rate it displaces is so high. The constraint is grid capacity and programme availability, not payback period.
Solar water heating is required on most new single-family homes and remains one of the cheapest ways to cut a Hawaiian bill, since water heating is a large share of residential load in a climate with no space-heating demand.
Closest states by price
These jurisdictions charge within a fraction of a cent of Hawaii, which is useful if you are comparing a move or a multi-state operating cost.
Hawaii electricity rates: common questions
What is the average electricity rate in Hawaii?
The average residential electricity rate in Hawaii is 52.00 cents per kilowatt-hour as of May 2026, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. That is +182.0% relative to the national average of 18.44¢/kWh.
How much is a typical monthly electric bill in Hawaii?
At the May 2026 average rate of 52.00¢/kWh, a household using 900 kWh a month would pay about $468, and one using 1,500 kWh about $780. Actual bills vary with usage, rate schedule, fixed customer charges and taxes.
Have electricity rates in Hawaii gone up?
Hawaii rates rose 26.7% over the year to May 2026, from 41.03¢ in May 2025 to 52.00¢.
Can I choose my electricity supplier in Hawaii?
Regulated monopoly. Hawaii households buy both supply and delivery from their local regulated utility or co-operative; there is no competitive residential supplier market.
Where does this Hawaii rate figure come from?
It is the residential-sector average revenue per kilowatt-hour reported by utilities to the U.S. Energy Information Administration on Form EIA-861M and published in the Electric Power Monthly, Table 5.6.A. It blends supply and delivery across every residential customer in the state, so it is a statewide average rather than a quote for any individual household.