16.21¢
per kWh, 2025
[ French Broad Elec Member / NC ]
French Broad Elec Member electricity rates in North Carolina
CO-OP BOARD SETS RATES · DATA 2025
change in average rate, 2024→2025
+9.7%
vs 2024
36,049
residential customers
+29.8%
since 2020
What your bill becomes
Bill today
No change on file
Difference / month · / year
Estimated at French Broad Elec Member's average effective residential rate (16.21¢/kWh, EIA, all charges included). Your tariff, fees and taxes differ.
Rate history 2015–2025
| Year | ¢/kWh | Change | Customers |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 13.63¢ | — | 33,358 |
| 2016 | 13.19¢ | −3.2% | 33,551 |
| 2017 | 13.33¢ | +1.1% | 33,825 |
| 2018 | 13.65¢ | +2.4% | 34,052 |
| 2019 | 13.53¢ | −0.9% | 34,258 |
| 2020 | 12.49¢ | −7.7% | 34,599 |
| 2021 | 13.30¢ | +6.5% | 35,070 |
| 2022 | 13.81¢ | +3.8% | 35,438 |
| 2023 | 14.50¢ | +5.0% | 35,818 |
| 2024 | 14.78¢ | +1.9% | 36,147 |
| 2025 | 16.21¢ | +9.7% | 36,049 |
How this compares
14.00¢
North Carolina average, 2025
+15.8%
French Broad Elec Member vs NC 2025 average
−5.9%
vs US 2025 average
#8
priciest in NC
Serves 5 counties in North Carolina: Buncombe, Madison, McDowell, Mitchell, Yancey. 18 ZIP codes.
What the numbers show
Since 2015, French Broad Elec Member's average residential rate has gone from 13.63¢ to 16.21¢ per kWh: +18.9% over 10 years, or about +1.7% a year. It rose in 7 of the 10 years we can compare, and the biggest one-year increase was +9.7% in 2025. The largest drop was −7.7% in 2020.
For a home using 1,044 kWh a month, the North Carolina average, French Broad Elec Member's 2025 rate works out to about $2,031 a year, $277 more than at North Carolina's average rate of 14.00¢. Of the 54 North Carolina utilities in our data with a 2025 price, it is the 8th most expensive.
French Broad Elec Member served 33,358 homes in 2015 and 36,049 in 2025 (+8.1%), under 1% of North Carolina's residential electricity customers.
Who sets French Broad Elec Member's rates
French Broad Elec Member is a member-owned electric cooperative. A board elected by its members sets its rates. In some states the North Carolina Utilities Commission also reviews co-op rates, but most co-op rate changes do not go through a commission rate case, so watch the co-op's own member notices and board meetings.
Commission contact: North Carolina Utilities Commission. How we calculate every figure on this page: methodology.
Questions
Is French Broad Elec Member raising rates in 2026?
French Broad Elec Member's rates are set by its member-elected board, not through a rate case at the North Carolina Utilities Commission, so check its own notices for a change this year. Its average residential rate moved +9.7% from 2024 to 2025.
What does French Broad Elec Member charge per kWh?
French Broad Elec Member's average effective residential rate was 16.21¢ per kWh in 2025 (EIA-861, revenue divided by sales, all charges included). North Carolina's 2025 average was 14.00¢.
How much have French Broad Elec Member rates gone up in five years?
+29.8% between 2020 and 2025, against +33.2% for North Carolina as a whole over the latest five-year window.
How many customers does French Broad Elec Member have in North Carolina?
36,049 residential customers in 2025, across 5 counties including Buncombe, Madison, McDowell, according to the EIA-861 survey.
Where do these numbers come from?
Rates and customer counts are from the US Energy Information Administration's annual EIA-861 survey, which every US utility files. Nothing here is a utility bill; use it to understand the direction and size of changes.
Sources
- EIA-861 Sales to Ultimate Customers, 2015–2025 (released 2026-10-07)
- EIA-861M monthly state averages through Jul 2026
- NREL utility-by-ZIP lookup (2024)