Ohio Duke Energy Territory: Compare Electric Rates at 1000 kWh

If you live in southwest Ohio and Duke Energy Ohio is on your bill, you have a choice most Americans never get: you can shop for who sells you electricity while Duke keeps delivering it over the wires. That sounds simple until you open a stack of supplier postcards, each advertising a cents-per-kWh rate that may or may not apply to your home.

The number that cuts through the noise is 1,000 kilowatt-hours (kWh). In Duke's territory, regulators and the utility itself use that usage level as a reference point when publishing the Price to Compare—the default generation rate you pay if you stay on Duke's Standard Service Offer (SSO). Whether you use a little less or a lot more in a given month, 1,000 kWh is the apples-to-apples benchmark for comparing supply offers. This guide explains where Duke serves, how Ohio's market splits your bill, what the current Price to Compare means in real dollars at 1,000 kWh, and how to evaluate competing plans without chasing a headline rate that disappears on your first summer bill.

Why 1,000 kWh Is the Benchmark Ohio Shoppers Should Know

A kilowatt-hour is the unit your meter tracks: one kilowatt of power drawn for one hour. Duke's business customer guide describes electricity usage the same way most residential customers see it on a statement—total kWh consumed over the billing period, like miles on a car's odometer (¹).

Ohio residential customers as a whole averaged 846 kWh per month in 2024, with an average bill of $135.16 at 15.99 cents/kWh (²). Nationally, the typical household buys about 899 kWh per month (³). So 1,000 kWh is slightly above what many Ohio homes actually use in a spring or fall month, but it is a round, regulator-approved reference that makes plan comparisons consistent.

For Duke Energy Ohio specifically, the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio publishes the residential Price to Compare based on the first 1,000 kWh block of usage. Industry reporting notes that while Duke's summer residential energy and capacity rates technically use block structures, the rate is identical across blocks during the summer period—so the published Price to Compare still functions as a clean comparison point at 1,000 kWh (⁴).

Using 1,000 kWh matters because supplier offers are often marketed at a single usage level. A plan that looks cheap at 500 kWh can look different at 1,000 kWh once fees, tiered rates, or bill credits enter the picture. Starting at 1,000 kWh aligns with how Duke's default supply rate is defined—and with how most informed shoppers normalize offers before signing a contract.

Where Duke Energy Ohio Delivers Power

Duke Energy Ohio Inc. is an investor-owned utility operating in Ohio, with its metropolitan statistical area listed as Cincinnati, OH-KY-IN (⁵). The company is among the private utilities identified under federal PURPA listings for Ohio, alongside Ohio Edison, Ohio Power, Dayton Power & Light, and others (⁶). Duke Energy Ohio was formerly known as Cincinnati Gas & Electric Company (⁶).

Practically, that means Duke's electric distribution system covers a large share of southwest Ohio, centered on the Cincinnati metro and surrounding counties. Your address—not your supplier—determines whether Duke is your wires company. If Duke appears as the utility of record on your bill, every competitive supplier offer you evaluate must be eligible for Duke Energy Ohio's territory; delivery charges and outage response stay with Duke regardless of who supplies the energy.

If you are moving into the area, confirm the utility name on the prior tenant's bill or on your closing documents. In Ohio's choice market, picking a supplier before move-in prevents falling onto a default rate without a deliberate comparison (¹).

Supply vs Delivery: What You're Actually Comparing

Ohio restructured its electric industry starting in 1999, launching a full retail market after an extended transition (⁷). Under restructuring, the local utility still delivers power and maintains lines, while customers may choose an alternate retail electricity supplier (⁸).

Think of your bill in two layers:

1. Generation/supply — the commodity cost of the electricity itself. This is what competitive suppliers sell, and what Duke's Price to Compare reflects if you stay on SSO.
2. Delivery/transmission — regulated charges for getting electricity to your meter. Duke continues to bill for this service even when you switch suppliers (⁸).

Duke's Ohio customer guide explains that customers may select an alternative supplier for the electric commodity while Duke remains obligated to deliver power across its local distribution system. Suppliers may bill separately or appear as a line item on Duke's bill (¹).

That split explains a common frustration: generation prices can fall while total bills drift up. A report cited in industry coverage noted that competitive pressure pushed generation costs down even as the regulated delivery portion trended upward, so overall bills did not fully reflect deregulation savings (⁹). When you compare rates at 1,000 kWh, you are usually comparing supply offers against the Price to Compare—not rewriting Duke's delivery charges.

Ohio's market activity reflects how widely customers exercise choice. In 2024, Ohio logged 115.5 million MWh in energy-only provider sales versus 38.2 million MWh in full-service provider sales (¹⁰). Outside Texas, Ohio has the largest number of residential retail choice customers in the country (⁷). Shopping is normal here—not a niche workaround.

What "Price to Compare" Means on Your Duke Bill

If you do nothing, Duke assigns you to its Standard Service Offer—the default generation product for customers who do not choose a competitive supplier. The Price to Compare (PTC) is the per-kWh benchmark for that default supply, expressed as a single number you can stack against supplier offers.

For Duke Energy Ohio, the PTC bundles several riders, including retail energy (RE), retail capacity (RC), alternative energy compliance (AER), and standard-service auction cost reconciliation (SCR) (⁴). Duke updates these components through regulatory filings; the PTC can shift when new SSO auction results take effect or when bypassable riders change.

Ohio utilities use competitive wholesale auctions to procure supply for SSO customers. Regulators accept winning bids, and results are blended over time to set the comparable default rate (¹¹). That mechanism is why the PTC moves in steps rather than tracking daily spot markets—and why the effective date on a supplier contract matters.

When evaluating offers, match rate type (fixed vs variable), term length, and renewable content against your risk tolerance. The PTC itself can change on schedule; a fixed supplier rate that beats the PTC today may or may not beat it after the next SSO update.

Duke's Current Price to Compare in Dollars at 1,000 kWh

As of early July 2026, Duke Energy Ohio's residential Price to Compare is in transition:

The June 2026 PTC represents a 6% increase from the prior period (⁴). At the benchmark usage, the rate gap alone is (10.7016¢ − 10.0819¢) × 1,000 kWh ≈ $6.19 per month on the generation portion only (⁴).

Important nuances:

• The PTC covers supply only. Delivery riders, fixed customer charges, taxes, and fees sit outside the Price to Compare. Your total Duke bill at 1,000 kWh will be higher than $107.
• Duke's updated riders run June 1, 2026 through May 31, 2027, with a defined summer period through September 30, 2026 (⁴).
• Bypassable riders AER and SCR were fixed through June 30, 2026 and typically update July 1, so the published PTC may shift slightly mid-summer even after the June 1 change (⁴).

For small commercial customers on Rate DM (Secondary Distribution Service, Small), the first usage block comparison differs: the first 2,800 kWh block—not 1,000 kWh—anchors the small-commercial PTC. On June 1, 2026, that combined rate rises to 11.3583¢/kWh, up about 7% from 10.5918¢/kWh (⁴). Small businesses should normalize offers at their actual block, not at 1,000 kWh, unless their usage clearly fits residential Rate RS.

Worked example: comparing a supplier offer at 1,000 kWh

Suppose a competitive supplier offers 9.9¢/kWh fixed for 12 months with no monthly fee, and your PTC is 10.7016¢/kWh:

• SSO supply at 1,000 kWh: 1,000 × $0.107016 = $107.02
• Supplier supply at 1,000 kWh: 1,000 × $0.099 = $99.00
• Estimated monthly supply savings: $8.02 before taxes and before any supplier surcharges

That math ignores early-termination fees, introductory teasers, and pass-through charges some contracts allow. It also ignores delivery—unchanged either way. The exercise shows why a fraction of a cent per kWh matters at 1,000 kWh: every 0.1¢/kWh is $1.00 per month at that usage.

How Ohio's Average Bills Stack Up

Statewide averages help sanity-check whether your total bill—not just supply—is in a reasonable range.

Ohio's 2024 average residential retail price was 15.99 cents/kWh, up from 15.38 cents/kWh in 2023 (¹²). At exactly 1,000 kWh, that statewide all-in average retail price equates to $159.90 per month—but that blends supply and delivery across all utilities and all customer choices, so it will not match your Duke supply line item alone.

Ohio's 2024 average residential bill was $135.16 on 846 kWh of average usage (²). Scaling linearly for conversation only: a household using 1,000 kWh at the same average retail price might land near $160 total, but your mileage varies with home size, HVAC, and rate class.

Ohio's broader average retail price across all sectors was 11.29 cents/kWh in 2024 (¹⁰)—lower than the residential figure because industrial and commercial loads pull blended averages down. Residential shoppers should compare against residential benchmarks, not the all-sector number.

How to Compare Retail Supplier Offers Without Getting Burned

Step 1: Start from the PTC on your actual bill

The Price to Compare printed on your Duke statement is the authoritative benchmark for your rate class and effective period. Regulatory summaries round to four decimal places when expressed in dollars per kWh (⁴); supplier marketing may round differently. Use the bill figure when deciding.

Step 2: Normalize every offer at 1,000 kWh

Convert each offer to total supply dollars at 1,000 kWh:

Monthly supply cost ≈ (¢/kWh ÷ 100) × 1,000 kWh + fixed monthly fees

Compare that number to 1,000 × PTC. If a plan includes a bill credit tied to usage bands, recalculate at 800 kWh and 1,200 kWh as stress tests—many homes swing month to month.

Step 3: Read contract mechanics, not postcard headlines

Check:

• Term and renewal: Does the rate expire into a variable month-to-month price?
• Early termination fees (ETFs): Switching after a rate drop could erase savings.
• Pass-through clauses: Some contracts allow recovery of grid or capacity surcharges beyond the advertised energy rate.
• Renewable content: Ohio law requires disclosure of renewable percentages; a higher renewable share may cost more—or may fit a city aggregation program you can opt out of.

Ohio allows community choice aggregation, where municipalities negotiate group supply rates; customers can typically opt out (⁸). Aggregation prices should still be compared to Duke's PTC at your expected kWh.

Step 4: Remember delivery is separate

Switching suppliers does not eliminate Duke's delivery charges or fixed customer costs (⁸). A supplier saving 1¢/kWh on supply at 1,000 kWh saves $10 on the commodity line—not on the entire bill.

Step 5: Time your switch to SSO cycles

Because Duke's PTC updates on regulatory schedules and auction blends, a fixed supplier rate that beats SSO today should be judged against how long you are locked in—and when the next SSO adjustment likely lands (¹¹).

Fixed, Variable, and Aggregation: Choosing a Structure That Fits

Fixed-rate plans lock a supply price for a term. They trade flexibility for predictability—useful when SSO rates are rising, as they were heading into Duke's June 2026 update (⁴).

Variable-rate plans float with market conditions. They can beat fixed offers in falling markets but expose you to spikes during hot summers or capacity price jumps—the same regional pressures that have pushed SSO rates higher across Ohio utilities in recent auction cycles (⁴).

Staying on SSO is a valid choice. It requires no contract, no ETF, and trues up through regulated auctions. The downside is less control: you accept whatever blended SSO price regulators approve.

Municipal aggregation sits between SSO and individual shopping. Ohio's retail choice participation history shows aggregation can move large groups of customers at once when municipal contracts beat utility default rates (⁷). Read opt-out rules carefully; aggregation terms may be shorter than multi-year supplier contracts.

A Practical Comparison Checklist for Duke Territory Customers

1. Confirm Duke Energy Ohio is your utility (Cincinnati and southwest Ohio service area) (⁵).
2. Find your current PTC on your bill for the active period.
3. Estimate your typical kWh—compare 846 kWh (Ohio average), your last three bills, and the 1,000 kWh benchmark (²).
4. Calculate supply cost at 1,000 kWh for SSO vs each supplier offer.
5. Add delivery and fixed charges mentally so you expect a total bill, not sticker shock.
6. Check contract exit costs before signing.
7. Set a calendar reminder 60 days before contract end to re-shop.

Seasonal Usage: When 1,000 kWh Is Too Low—or Not Enough

Ohio's climate pushes usage around the benchmark. Central air, electric heat, and old refrigeration can push a summer bill well above 1,000 kWh even when spring and fall bills sit closer to the statewide 846 kWh average (²). Duke's summer RE and RC period runs through September 30, 2026 (⁴), overlapping with the months when many households hit peak kWh.

That is why a supplier plan should be tested at 800 kWh, 1,000 kWh, and 1,200 kWh if your contract includes tiered pricing or bill credits. A plan optimized for 1,000 kWh can overcharge a low-usage month or underperform when July heat drives 1,400 kWh. The Price to Compare itself is published at 1,000 kWh for residential Rate RS—but your wallet lives at your actual meter reading.

If you are shopping in July 2026, also note that bypassable riders AER and SCR were scheduled for a July 1 update after being fixed through June 30 (⁴). A few tenths of a cent change in those riders shifts the PTC slightly without a full SSO auction. Re-check the PTC on your bill after mid-year rider updates before locking a long fixed contract.

The Bottom Line

In Duke Energy Ohio territory, comparing electric rates at 1,000 kWh is not an arbitrary exercise—it mirrors how regulators publish the residential Price to Compare and gives you a level field for judging competitive supply offers. As of July 2026, the active residential PTC near 10.7016¢/kWh puts SSO supply near $107 at 1,000 kWh, up from about $101 before the June 1 update (⁴). Against Ohio's 2024 average residential bill of $135.16 at 846 kWh (²), supply is only one slice of what you pay—but it is the slice you control.

Shop the supply number, verify it at 1,000 kWh, and read the contract footnotes. Duke keeps the lights on either way. The cents you save on generation are the ones you choose.