Cincinnati Electric Choice: How to Compare Rates at 1,000 kWh

If you live in or around Cincinnati and your power bill feels like a riddle, you are not imagining it. Ohio lets most investor-owned utility customers shop for the generation part of electricity while the local utility still owns the poles and wires. That split is the whole game—and the number “1,000 kWh” is the yardstick regulators and shoppers use to line offers up side by side. This guide walks through what that figure means on a Duke Energy Ohio bill, how to compare a supplier’s cents-per-kWh quote against the utility’s Price to Compare, and what else (fees, contract length, aggregation, green claims) actually moves your monthly total.

Why 1,000 kWh Is the Benchmark Shoppers Use

A kilowatt-hour (kWh) is a unit of energy: one kilowatt of power used for one hour. Households do not consume the same amount every month, but comparison tools and default-service math often standardize on 1,000 kWh so you are not comparing a 500 kWh teaser to a 2,000 kWh plan as if they were the same product.

That benchmark sits close to real U.S. usage. In 2022, the average U.S. residential customer purchased about 10,791 kWh for the year—roughly ¹, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA). Many homes land a bit above or below that, especially in seasons when air conditioning or electric heat runs hard. Treating 1,000 kWh as a planning number is therefore a practical middle of the road, not a claim that every Cincinnati apartment or warehouse uses exactly that much.

Texas shoppers see the same habit baked into official guidance. The Public Utility Commission of Texas’s Power to Choose site tells customers to ask what they will pay ² before calling a provider. Ohio’s market rules differ from Texas, but the comparison logic travels well: pick a usage level you actually experience, then hold every offer to that same volume so “cheap” means something.

One more caution before you open a spreadsheet. EIA’s statewide “average price” figures fold generation, delivery, and other charges into one cents-per-kWh number. In May 2026, Ohio’s average residential price was ³. For a full year of 2024 data, Ohio residential customers paid an average of ⁴. Those all-in averages are useful context for the size of a typical bill. They are not the same thing as a competitive supplier’s generation-only offer, which is what you are usually shopping in Cincinnati.

How Electric Choice Works in Greater Cincinnati

⁵, in EIA’s glossary, is the process of replacing a monopoly system of electric utilities with competing sellers so retail customers can choose a supplier while still receiving delivery over the local utility’s power lines. WattKarma’s Ohio switching guide puts the same idea in consumer terms: you may pick a competitive supplier for generation, but you ⁶.

Ohio opened that model with legislation in 1999. As WattKarma summarizes for shoppers, Senate Bill 3 let customers choose who supplies electricity while the local utility kept delivery, outage response, and the wires business. In the Cincinnati area, ⁷ is the delivery utility for the city and nearby communities. Elsewhere in the state you will see names such as AEP Ohio, AES Ohio, and FirstEnergy operating companies—still the same shopping concept, different territory codes on comparison charts.

If you never pick a competitive retail electric service (CRES) supplier, you remain on the utility’s Standard Service Offer (SSO)—the default generation price set through processes overseen by the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio (PUCO). WattKarma notes that the SSO is ⁷ rate in the market; it is the safety-net default. Competitive suppliers then compete against that default by posting fixed, variable, or green-leaning offers for the supply line on your bill.

Retail choice is widespread enough in Ohio that it is not a niche hobby. EIA reported that among states with residential retail choice programs, ⁸—one of the higher statewide rates in that analysis (Texas is tracked separately because choice is mandatory for most ERCOT customers). Nationally, about ⁸ participated in retail choice programs in 2021.

Ohio’s wholesale grid context also differs from Texas. Ohio sits in the multi-state ⁷, while most of Texas runs on ERCOT. For a Cincinnati household, that mostly shows up as “your utility still bills delivery and often consolidates charges,” not as a reason to ignore shopping. The shopping skill set—separate supply from delivery, compare at a fixed usage, read the contract—still applies.

Price to Compare: The Number You Must Beat at 1,000 kWh

On a shopping day, the most important utility figure is the Price to Compare (PTC)—the generation-side default rate that a competitive offer has to undercut if your goal is a lower supply charge than staying on the SSO. Trade reporting on Duke Energy Ohio’s filings is unusually clear about how that PTC is built and why 1,000 kWh matters.

Duke’s electric PTC includes retail energy and retail capacity riders plus bypassable riders for alternative energy compliance and SSO auction supplier cost reconciliation. Critically, ⁹. In other words, the regulator’s comparison snapshot is already speaking the language of a 1,000 kWh month for residential Rate RS customers.

As of the June 1, 2026 update, Energy Choice Matters reported Duke Energy Ohio’s residential (non-PIPP) electric PTC at ⁹, up about 6% from $0.100819 per kWh in the prior period. Riders that feed the PTC can still nudge the number slightly when they refresh mid-summer, so treat any single published PTC as current until the next rider change—not as a forever rate.

The year before, the same market showed a much sharper step-up: effective June 1, 2025, Duke’s residential PTC was ¹⁰, up about 30% from $0.080174 per kWh. That history matters for shoppers because a fixed supplier rate signed when the PTC is high can look brilliant—or merely okay—once the default moves again. Always compare a live offer to the PTC printed on your latest bill or the current Duke residential PTC for your rate class, not to a number you remember from last spring.

Do the 1,000 kWh supply math in dollars so the comparison is visceral. At $0.107016 per kWh, generation alone for 1,000 kWh is about $107.02 before delivery charges, taxes, and non-bypassable riders. If a certified supplier quotes a true fixed generation rate of, say, $0.095 per kWh with no monthly fee, the same 1,000 kWh of supply would be $95—about $12 of supply-side savings that month, all else equal. If that “bargain” rate comes with a $9.95 monthly base charge, you have already given most of the savings back. Headline cents-per-kWh without the fee schedule is how people overpay while congratulating themselves.

Small commercial customers in Duke territory face a related but different first-block structure. For Rate DM (small secondary distribution), Energy Choice Matters reported the June 1, 2026 sum of the comparable riders at ⁹. Business owners should not paste a residential PTC into a commercial spreadsheet and call it done.

How to Compare Offers Without Getting Fooled by the Fine Print

Start with your own usage, not the ad. Pull 12 months of kWh if you can. A mild May and a brutal August can differ by hundreds of kilowatt-hours; a plan that wins at exactly 1,000 kWh may lose if you routinely sit at 1,400. WattKarma’s plan-comparison guidance stresses that advertised rates are often shown at ¹¹, and that credits tied to hitting a threshold can evaporate if you miss the mark.

Then build an all-in effective rate for each offer at your kWh:

1. Multiply the energy charge by 1,000 (or your average).
2. Add monthly customer charges and any minimum-usage fees that would apply at that volume.
3. Subtract bill credits that you would actually earn at that volume.
4. Divide the total by kWh to get an effective cents-per-kWh for supply.
5. Compare that effective supply rate to the current PTC—not to EIA’s statewide all-in average.

Texas’s Power to Choose checklist is a useful interview script even when you are shopping Ohio offers: ask whether the quoted rate ², whether the product is fixed, variable, or indexed, how long the contract runs, what happens at expiration, and whether there is a penalty for breaking it. Ohio does not use Power to Choose as its official board—¹² is the Texas PUC’s unbiased listing site—but the questions are the right ones in any choice market.

Watch for product features that break a naive 1,000 kWh comparison:

• Introductory or teaser rates that last a few months, then flip to a higher fixed rate or an open-ended variable rate.
• Monthly base charges that look small until you annualize them.
• Minimum usage fees that punish vacation months or efficient apartments.
• Early termination fees (ETFs) that make mid-contract shopping expensive.
• Renewable adders priced as a premium over a plain fixed rate.

Consumer-protection thinking around retail competition has been consistent for decades: shoppers need clear terms, not just a marketing number. A U.S. Department of Energy blueprint on retail electric competition warned that calling the shift “[deregulation] is not entirely accurate,” because states were not proposing to leave retail sales totally unregulated—they were mainly changing how generation prices are set (¹³). Your practical takeaway is simpler: if the contract language is vague about how the rate can change, walk away.

Fixed Rates, Variable Rates, and When Each Makes Sense

Fixed-rate plans lock a price per kWh for a stated term. WattKarma’s Ohio switching overview describes fixed terms commonly in the ⁶ range, while variable-rate plans can move month to month with market conditions. Fixed rates buy budget predictability: if Duke’s PTC jumps the way it did between early 2025 and mid-2025, a locked supply price can look wise even if it was not the absolute lowest offer on signing day.

Variable rates shift risk to you. They can be fine for short stays, for people watching the market closely, or as a temporary landing spot after a fixed contract ends—if you are willing to check the bill. They are a poor fit if you want a stable monthly generation line through a volatile wholesale season.

The ETF is the other half of the fixed-rate decision. WattKarma’s FAQ guidance is blunt: if you are under contract and switch early, you ⁶, so check terms before you enroll elsewhere. A simple break-even test helps. Suppose an ETF is $150 and you expect to use about 1,000 kWh a month. If a new plan saves you only $8 a month on supply, it takes nearly 19 months to recover the exit fee—longer than many people stay in a rental. Thin savings plus a fat ETF is how “I shopped” turns into “I paid to shop.”

Also calendar the renewal. Fixed deals end. Some roll to variable pricing; some auto-renew at a new fixed rate. Put a reminder 45–60 days before expiration so you are comparing fresh offers against the then-current PTC instead of drifting onto a default you never chose consciously.

Aggregation, Green Power, and Cincinnati’s Opt-Out History

Not every Cincinnati-area customer arrives at choice by browsing supplier websites. Community choice aggregation (CCA) lets local governments negotiate supply for residents and small businesses, often with an opt-out path. Utility Dive has reported that Ohio is among the states with CCA-enabling legislation, and that aggregators such as the Northeast Ohio Public Energy Council and the Sustainable Ohio Public Energy Council serve large community footprints. In a 2022 feature, aggregators noted that residents of major Ohio cities—including ¹⁴—have used CCAs in part to reach 100% green power goals, not only to chase the lowest commodity rate.

Cincinnati’s early municipal aggregation experience is a useful case study in how “green” and “cheaper” can be marketed together. Utility Dive covered the city’s opt-out renewable aggregation as it launched: residents were automatically enrolled, small businesses and households were eligible, about ¹⁵, and the program was pitched with promised average savings versus the prior Duke Energy bill while directing supply dollars toward renewable energy credits. Aggregation details change over time with new RFPs and council decisions, so treat historical savings claims as illustration, not a live quote. The durable lesson is procedural: if your city or township runs an aggregation, read the current opt-out notice, the rate, the term, and whether you are already enrolled before you also sign a door-to-door supplier contract.

Green retail products deserve the same skepticism as cheap teasers. A “100% renewable” label usually means a contractual claim—often backed by renewable energy certificates—not a private wire from a particular wind farm to your breaker panel. Compare the premium, if any, against your PTC at 1,000 kWh, and decide whether you are buying price stability, environmental attributes, or both.

Switching Mechanics, Timing, and Scam Avoidance

A supplier switch should not feel like a construction project. In restructured markets, delivery stays with the utility; the supplier change is a commercial handoff. WattKarma’s Ohio switching guide states that a new rate typically starts at the ⁶, commonly within about one to two weeks depending on meter-read timing, and that service should not be interrupted because the local utility keeps delivering power on the same lines.

Before you enroll:

• Confirm you are in a competitive territory (Duke Energy Ohio for most Cincinnati addresses served by that IOU).
• Have your account number and service address ready.
• Screenshot or save the rate, term, ETF, and renewable claims at the moment of enrollment.
• If you are mid-contract elsewhere, price the ETF into the decision.
• If a broker or marketplace helps you, ask how it is paid; WattKarma discloses that it ⁶ while remaining free to the customer—compensation structures vary by channel.

Scams exploit confusion between “utility” and “supplier.” The Federal Trade Commission warns that unexpected calls, texts, emails, or door knocks threatening same-day shutoff unless you pay immediately are ¹⁶. Real utilities do not demand payment by gift card, wire transfer, cryptocurrency, or payment-app codes. Hang up, use the phone number on your bill, and report impersonation attempts to the utility, the FTC, and your state attorney general.

Door-to-door or phone pitches for a “new lower rate” can be legitimate certified suppliers—or high-pressure sales. Ask for the written contract, the PTC comparison at 1,000 kWh, and time to think. Pressure is a sales tactic; your bill is a 12-month relationship.

What Small Businesses Should Check Differently

Small commercial accounts often see different rate schedules, demand components, and first-block sizes than residential Rate RS. Duke’s small commercial Rate DM PTC example above—first ⁹ rather than 1,000—already shows why a residential shopping worksheet fails. Ask your supplier or broker for an estimate at your monthly kWh and, if applicable, demand (kW) profile.

Businesses may also have multi-site needs, landlord-controlled meters, or aggregation options through a chamber or municipal program. Keep tax ID and authorized-signer paperwork ready; enrollment is still a contract. And remember that EIA’s commercial price averages (Ohio commercial power averaged ³) are all-in market statistics, not your negotiated supply quote.

If your usage is spiky—restaurants, shops with big HVAC loads, light manufacturing—stress-test any fixed offer at both a quiet month and a peak month, not only at a tidy 1,000 kWh. The best plan on a marketing chart is the one that survives your real operating calendar.

A Practical Decision Checklist (Plus Cutting kWh Themselves)

Use this sequence when you are ready to act:

1. Identify the delivery utility on the bill (for Cincinnati proper, usually Duke Energy Ohio).
2. Write down 12-month average kWh and circle whether 1,000 kWh is realistic for you.
3. Copy the current Price to Compare and confirm it is the residential first-block figure when that is your class.
4. Shortlist fixed vs. variable based on how long you will stay and how much bill volatility you can stand.
5. Compute effective supply cost at 1,000 kWh (or your average), including fees and credits.
6. Subtract any ETF you would owe to leave a current contract.
7. Read renewal and cancellation language before you sign.
8. Check whether a municipal aggregation already covers you, and whether opting out or staying is the better move.
9. Save the confirmation and calendar the end date.
10. Ignore shutoff threats that demand exotic payment methods; verify with the utility using a number you trust.

Shopping the supply rate is only half of bill control. Cutting kilowatt-hours lowers every rate structure. ENERGY STAR notes that replacing your five most-used bulbs with certified LEDs can save about ¹⁷, and that an ENERGY STAR smart thermostat can trim heating and cooling costs by more than 8% on average—about $50 a year for a typical home, or roughly $100 if the home is empty much of the day. Those savings stack with a better supply rate; they do not replace reading the contract.

Nationwide residential prices have been rising in recent years—EIA’s monthly update for May 2026 showed U.S. residential average revenue per kWh up ¹⁸, with Ohio among the states posting large percentage increases in average revenue per kWh. In that environment, a Cincinnati household that treats 1,000 kWh as a disciplined comparison point—and that knows its PTC cold—has a clearer shot at paying for electrons on purpose instead of by accident.