Short answer: Most Southern California Edison (SCE) bills went up this summer and fall for five reasons:
- Record heat kept air conditioning running into SCE’s most expensive evening hours.
- Time-of-Use pricing makes power used from 4 to 9 p.m. on summer weekdays cost up to about twice as much as off-peak power.
- A fixed $24.15 Base Services Charge now appears on every bill, even if you have solar.
- The California Climate Credit came in August and September, so October bills don’t have it.
- Some homes are on the wrong rate plan, or have an estimated bill or billing error.
This guide explains how SCE’s rates are set and how to find what’s driving your bill.
What happened in 2026
- The heat set records. NOAA ranked Ventura County’s January–August 2026 average temperature the warmest in more than a century, more than 5 degrees above average (Ventura County Star).
- The heat continued into October. On October 3, Burbank hit 102°F and the National Weather Service office in Oxnard hit 97°F, both daily records. Extreme heat warnings covered Los Angeles and Ventura counties, Orange County and the Inland Empire through October 8 (Yahoo News).
- The credit timing changed. SCE residential customers got two $36 Climate Credits in 2026, one in August and one in September. The CPUC moved the credit to the summer this year (Edison Newsroom). Your October bill has no credit and includes the October heat wave, so it can look much higher than September’s.
How SCE sets its rates: the CPUC
SCE is an investor-owned utility, and it can’t raise rates on its own. It must ask the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC), and the CPUC must approve every rate change (SCE).
Compared with LADWP: LADWP is city-owned. Its base rates are set by the Los Angeles City Council, and its adjustment factors change every quarter without a new vote. SCE has to get CPUC approval for every change. See our companion guide, “Why Is My LADWP Bill So High?”
The General Rate Case
Every four years, SCE files a General Rate Case asking the CPUC how much money it can collect for operating and upgrading the grid:
- The decision: on September 18, 2025, the CPUC approved $41.78 billion for 2025–2028. That was $4.39 billion less than the $46.17 billion SCE requested (CPUC).
- The bill impact: for a typical home using 500 kWh a month, the CPUC estimated a 9.1% increase in 2025.
- What the money pays for: the decision funds wildfire work such as undergrounding, covered power lines and a $553.5 million vegetation-management budget.
Other CPUC decisions during the year
SCE files rate changes with the CPUC throughout the year. The October 1, 2026 change is a good example (SCE Rate Advisory):
- New average rate: 34.5¢ per kWh, up from 34.4¢. Counting the Climate Credit, it’s 33.3¢.
- Typical bill: a 500 kWh home on TOU-D-4-9PM went from $185.85 to $188.64 a month, up 1.5%.
- Increases:
- Woolsey Fire costs: $49.7 million for restoration and $140.1 million for bonds that pay wildfire claims.
- Other approved costs: $59.7 million from a CPUC review of past energy costs.
- Cost sharing: a CPUC decision that shifted a slightly larger share of costs to residential customers.
- Decreases: $628 million came out of rates for costs that had been fully paid off.
The takeaway: SCE’s per-kWh rate is roughly flat this year. SCE says rates were down an average of 4.3% in 2026 compared with December 2025 (Edison Newsroom). For most homes, the jump in the bill comes from how much and when they used power during the heat, not from a new rate increase.
The $24.15 Base Services Charge
Since November 2025, every SCE residential bill includes a fixed Base Services Charge (SCE):
| Customer | Monthly charge |
|---|---|
| Standard residential | $24.15 (about $0.80 a day) |
| FERA or qualifying affordable housing | $12.08 |
| CARE | $6.00 |
What you need to know:
- Why it exists: state law (AB 205, 2022) required the CPUC to restructure residential bills. In exchange for the fixed charge, the per-kWh price dropped by about 10%.
- Who comes out ahead: low-use homes may pay more, average homes about the same, and high-use homes may pay less.
- You can’t avoid it. You can’t opt out or reduce it by using less power. It still applies during outages, including Public Safety Power Shutoffs.
- Solar homes pay it too. Solar production can’t offset it. The only exception is remaining Net Surplus Compensation or Solar Billing Plan bonus credits.
- The minimum charge is gone. A home with zero usage pays only the Base Services Charge.
Time-of-Use: why 4 to 9 p.m. drives your bill
Most SCE homes are on a Time-of-Use (TOU) plan, where price depends on when you use power. These are SCE’s published prices for the three main plans (SCE Time-of-Use plans).
Summer prices (June–September)
| Plan | Off-peak | Weekday peak | Peak hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| TOU-D-4-9PM (most common) | 33¢ | 59¢ | 4–9 p.m. |
| TOU-D-5-8PM | 34¢ | 72¢ | 5–8 p.m. |
| TOU-D-PRIME (EV, battery or heat pump homes) | 26¢ | 61¢ | 4–9 p.m. |
Winter prices (October–May)
| Plan | Super off-peak (8 a.m.–peak) | Evening mid-peak |
|---|---|---|
| TOU-D-4-9PM | 32¢ | 50¢ |
| TOU-D-5-8PM | 32¢ | 55¢ |
| TOU-D-PRIME | 24¢ | 45¢ |
Baseline credit
TOU-D-4-9PM and TOU-D-5-8PM give a 9¢ per kWh credit on usage up to your baseline allocation. The CPUC sets your allocation based on your climate zone, the season and whether you heat with electricity. TOU-D-PRIME has no baseline credit. Your allocation is listed on page 3 of your bill under “Additional information” (SCE).
Why the heat hits SCE homes so hard
A house heats up all afternoon, so the air conditioner works hardest between 4 and 9 p.m., when SCE’s prices are highest. During a heat wave that lasts all week, the 59¢ peak applies every weekday evening. A 3-ton air conditioner running through those five hours can easily add $5–$8 a day in peak charges alone.
Example: an inland home in a hot summer month
This is an illustration using SCE’s published TOU-D-4-9PM summer prices. Your baseline and usage will be different.
| Line | kWh | Price | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Weekday peak, 4–9 p.m. | 350 | 59¢ | $206.50 |
| Weekend peak, 4–9 p.m. | 100 | 44¢ | $44.00 |
| Off-peak | 850 | 33¢ | $280.50 |
| Baseline credit | 450 | −9¢ | −$40.50 |
| Base Services Charge | 30 days | $0.80 | $24.00 |
| Electric total before taxes and fees | 1,300 | ≈ $515 |
About 35% of the usage costs about 47% of the energy charges. That 35% is the power used during peak hours.
Are you on the right rate plan?
Being on the wrong plan can cost hundreds of dollars a year:
- Do you have an EV, a home battery or a heat pump? You may qualify for TOU-D-PRIME, which has the lowest off-peak prices (26¢ in summer, 24¢ super off-peak in winter). It has no baseline credit, and its peak is still 61¢ (SCE).
- EV charging prices rose this winter: overnight off-peak on TOU-D-PRIME went up to 30¢, a 25% increase from last winter (Solar.com).
- Can you shift heavy use to before 5 p.m.? TOU-D-5-8PM has a shorter peak window, but that peak is 72¢.
- Did you just install a heat pump water heater? Ask for the extra baseline allocation of 1.9 kWh a day in summer and 2.6 kWh a day in winter.
- Do you qualify for a discount? CARE takes 32.5% off and FERA takes 18% off (Edison Newsroom). Both also lower your Base Services Charge.
- Do you need medical equipment at home? Medical Baseline adds 16.5 kWh a day at the lower baseline price.
Use SCE’s Rate Plan Comparison Tool in your online account before switching. After you switch Time-of-Use plans, you can’t switch again for 12 months (SCE).
Clean Power Alliance customers: if your city buys power through Clean Power Alliance, your bill splits into SCE delivery charges and Clean Power Alliance generation charges. Check both sections, because the prices in the tables above can be different for you.
Could it be a billing error?
Check these before assuming the bill is right:
- Is it an estimated bill? SCE reads meters every 27–33 days. When it can’t, because of a locked gate, a loose pet or bad weather, it estimates from your past use. The next actual reading then “catches up,” and that can produce one very large bill (SCE Rates FAQ).
- How many days were billed? A 33-day cycle in August costs more than a 27-day one.
- Is the rate plan correct? Make sure the plan name on page 3 matches what you signed up for.
- Is the baseline correct? If you heat with electricity and your allocation shows basic instead of all-electric, you’re losing baseline credit.
- Does your meter agree? Your smart meter’s “001” screen shows total kWh. Subtract an earlier reading from it and compare with your bill.
If something is wrong:
- Start with SCE. Call SCE’s customer service first. SCE’s own guidance is to contact them before going anywhere else (SCE).
- Then the CPUC. If SCE doesn’t resolve it, file a complaint with the CPUC’s Consumer Affairs Branch online. The online portal is the fastest route (CPUC). You can also call 800-649-7570 (CPUC).
SCE solar customers: NEM 2.0 vs. the Solar Billing Plan
How solar affects your SCE bill depends on when your system was approved.
NEM 2.0 (approved before April 15, 2023)
- How credits work: credits are tracked monthly, then settled once a year on your True-Up bill.
- Why credits are worth less now: the November 2025 restructuring lowered per-kWh prices, so each kWh you export earns a smaller credit (SCE).
- What solar can’t cover: the Base Services Charge.
- What this means for your True-Up: if it came in higher than in past years, lower credit values and the fixed charge are often why. Adding a battery can store daytime solar and use it from 4 to 9 p.m. instead of buying 59¢ power.
Solar Billing Plan (NEM 3.0, newer systems)
- Required rate plan: customers must be on TOU-D-PRIME.
- What exports earn (SCE Solar Billing Plan):
| 2026 export credit | Daytime, 6 a.m.–4 p.m. | Evening, 4–9 p.m. |
|---|---|---|
| Summer | 6¢ | 21¢ |
| Winter | 3¢ | 10¢ |
- Rate lock: export values are locked in for nine years from when your system starts service.
- Bonus credit: customers who enroll before 2028 get an extra bonus of about 4¢ per kWh, or 9¢ for income-qualified customers.
The math is simple. Solar sent to the grid at noon earns about 6¢. The same power used at 6 p.m. would cost 61¢. That’s why solar plus a battery makes the most sense for SCE homes under the Solar Billing Plan. The battery stores cheap daytime solar for the expensive evening hours.
Quick checklist for a high bill
- ☐ Compare this bill’s kWh and billing days with the same month last year.
- ☐ Check whether last month’s bill had the $36 Climate Credit.
- ☐ Confirm whether the meter read was actual or estimated.
- ☐ Find your rate plan and baseline allocation on page 3.
- ☐ Look at how much of your usage fell in the 4–9 p.m. peak. Your online account shows hourly data.
- ☐ Run SCE’s Rate Plan Comparison Tool.
- ☐ Check eligibility for CARE, FERA or Medical Baseline.
- ☐ Call SCE about any error. If it isn’t resolved, contact the CPUC Consumer Affairs Branch.
- ☐ Get a solar or battery estimate based on your real 12-month usage.
Frequently asked questions
Did SCE raise rates in 2026?
Only slightly. The October 1, 2026 average went from 34.4¢ to 34.5¢ per kWh, and SCE says 2026 rates were down 4.3% compared with December 2025 (SCE; Edison Newsroom). Most of this year’s increase in bills came from heat, peak-hour usage and the end of the Climate Credit.
Who approves SCE’s rates?
The California Public Utilities Commission. SCE has to file a request, and the CPUC must approve it before rates change (SCE).
Can I get rid of the $24.15 Base Services Charge?
No. It applies to every residential account no matter how much power you use. CARE, FERA and qualifying affordable-housing customers pay a lower amount (SCE).
Why was my October bill higher than September’s?
September’s bill included a $36 Climate Credit and October’s didn’t. The October 2–8 heat wave also pushed air-conditioning use into peak hours (Edison Newsroom).
Which SCE rate plan is cheapest?
It depends on when you use power. Homes with an EV, battery or heat pump often do best on TOU-D-PRIME. Homes that can avoid 5–8 p.m. may do better on TOU-D-5-8PM. Compare your plans with SCE’s tool before switching, because you can’t switch again for 12 months.
Does solar still make sense with SCE?
Yes, but a battery matters much more than it does with LADWP. Under the Solar Billing Plan, daytime exports earn about 6¢ while evening power costs 59–61¢, so storing your solar for evening use is where most of the savings come from.
Get a free SCE bill review
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- show you how much of your cost comes from 4–9 p.m. peak usage,
- check whether your rate plan and baseline are correct, and
- size solar and a battery to your actual usage, with no pressure to buy.
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Rates shown are SCE published prices for customers receiving both delivery and generation from SCE, current as of October 2026. Customers of Clean Power Alliance or another community choice provider will see different generation charges. Check SCE’s rate plan pages for current prices.