Independent guide. Not affiliated with SDG&E. Rate figures sourced from SDG&E's CPUC-approved tariff schedules effective January 2026.Verified June 2026

SDG&E rates 2026: cost per kWh by plan

San Diego Gas & Electric is the smallest of California's three big investor-owned utilities and the most expensive in the country: its average all-in residential rate is about 45 cents per kWh in 2026, the highest of any major utility in the continental US. It serves about 3.7 million people through roughly 1.5 million electric meters across San Diego County and southern Orange County. This page walks through the default TOU-DR1 plan, the flatter TOU-DR2, the EV-TOU-5 rate for electric vehicles, and the new Base Services Charge, with current cents per kWh, peak windows and example bills.

Average all-in rate

~45c/kWh

blended, Jan 2026

TOU-DR1 summer peak

~70c

4-9pm, every day

EV-TOU-5 super off-peak

~12c

midnight-6am overnight

Base Services Charge

~$24/mo

fixed, non-CARE

The SDG&E residential rate plans

SDG&E has moved essentially all residential customers onto time-of-use rates, so the legacy flat tiered plan is rare and mostly closed to new enrollment. The plan that matters for nearly everyone is TOU-DR1, the default, which prices power by the hour and charges far more during the late-afternoon and evening peak when the grid is most stressed and solar output has fallen off. TOU-DR2 offers a flatter version with a smaller peak-to-off-peak gap, and EV-TOU-5 is the rate for households charging an electric vehicle. On top of whichever plan you are on sits the Base Services Charge, a fixed monthly fee that arrived in October 2025.

The cents-per-kWh figures throughout this page are SDG&E's blended per-period rates effective January 1, 2026, which already fold in the generation, delivery and regulatory components of the bill. They are CPUC-approved tariff figures and update on roughly an annual cadence, with smaller quarterly true-ups; check SDG&E's published rate schedules for the exact current number before making a switching decision.

TOU-DR1: the default plan

TOU-DR1 is the plan most SDG&E customers are on. In summer (June through October), on-peak power from 4pm to 9pm runs about 70 cents per kWh, off-peak about 48 cents, and a super-off-peak overnight period about 39 cents. In winter (November through May) the same 4pm to 9pm on-peak window is about 62 cents, off-peak about 54 cents, and super-off-peak about 45 cents. The critical detail that sets SDG&E apart from SCE and PG&E: the 4pm to 9pm peak applies every day, weekends included, where the other two California utilities exempt weekends. There is no escaping the peak window two days a week, so the daily habit of shifting load matters more here than anywhere else.

A modest household using 400 kWh a month, careful to keep load off the 4pm to 9pm window, pays roughly $180 to $210 all-in on TOU-DR1 including the Base Services Charge. A larger home running central AC hard through a San Diego inland summer and using 900 kWh, much of it in the peak window, can pay $450 or more in a peak month. The peak-to-off-peak spread, from about 39 cents super-off-peak to about 70 cents on-peak, is the widest of any major US utility, which is what makes load-shifting and battery storage so valuable in this territory.

TOU-DR2: the flatter alternative

TOU-DR2 narrows the gap between peak and off-peak in exchange for a higher off-peak floor. It suits households that have genuinely unavoidable early-evening load (medical equipment, a work-from-home setup that cannot pause, a household schedule that puts everyone home and cooking at 6pm) and cannot realistically dodge the 4pm to 9pm peak. By flattening the curve, TOU-DR2 caps the damage from peak usage at the cost of paying more overnight. For a household that can shift load, TOU-DR1 almost always wins; for one that cannot, TOU-DR2 is the defensive choice. SDG&E's rate-comparison tool will model your actual interval data against both and is the reliable way to decide.

EV-TOU-5: the plan for electric vehicles

EV-TOU-5 is designed for households charging an electric vehicle at home. Its defining feature is a super-off-peak rate of about 12 cents per kWh from midnight to 6am in both seasons, by far the cheapest power SDG&E sells and a fraction of the roughly 70-cent summer peak. The trade-off is a steeper on-peak rate (about 80 cents in summer, 4pm to 9pm) plus the same roughly $24 monthly Base Services Charge. The plan only pays off if you actually move the bulk of your load overnight: EV charging on a timer, plus dishwasher, laundry and pool pump scheduled after midnight. A household that charges an EV overnight and pre-cools before the peak typically lands the lowest bill of any SDG&E plan; a household that signs up but keeps running heavy load at 6pm pays the high peak and gets little back.

The Base Services Charge: California's new fixed fee

In October 2025 SDG&E began billing the Base Services Charge, California's income-graduated fixed charge approved by the CPUC. Most customers pay about $24.15 per month regardless of how much electricity they use. CARE-enrolled households pay about $6 and FERA or deed-restricted affordable-housing households about $12. The fixed charge was paired with a small cut to the per-kWh volumetric rates, so it is roughly revenue-neutral across the customer base but shifts who pays what: a very low-usage household generally pays a little more overall, while a high-usage household pays a little less. The fixed fee is unavoidable on every plan, so it does not change which rate plan is cheapest for you; it simply raises the floor on every SDG&E bill.

CARE, FERA and the income-tested discounts

SDG&E's CARE program (California Alternate Rates for Energy) gives income-qualified households about a 30 percent discount on the electric bill, applied as a line credit on whatever plan they are on, along with the reduced roughly $6 Base Services Charge. Eligibility is income-tested against state limits that scale with household size and update annually. FERA (Family Electric Rate Assistance) applies a smaller discount for households of three or more whose income exceeds CARE limits but still falls under a higher threshold, with a roughly $12 Base Services Charge. Both enroll via self-certification on SDG&E's CARE/FERA portal, with periodic verification, and the discount applies from the enrollment date, so it is worth checking the income limits after any job change, retirement or new child.

Community Choice Aggregators in SDG&E territory

California does not let residential customers shop for an independent retail supplier, but more than 80 percent of SDG&E's territory is now covered by a Community Choice Aggregator. San Diego Community Power (SDCP) serves the City of San Diego and several neighbouring cities, having added residential customers in 2022; Clean Energy Alliance (CEA) serves much of north San Diego County. A CCA buys the generation portion of your electricity on behalf of all residents of its territory, while SDG&E keeps the wires, sends the bill and handles outages. When a CCA launches, residents are auto-enrolled with an opt-out window; the all-in cost is typically at or slightly below SDG&E's default generation rate, with a 100 percent renewable upgrade option priced slightly higher. A Power Charge Indifference Adjustment, an exit fee recalculated annually by the CPUC, partly offsets the supply-side saving.

SDG&E versus PG&E and SCE

Among California's three big investor-owned utilities, SDG&E is the most expensive. Its all-in residential rate of about 45 cents per kWh tops PG&E in northern and central California (north of 40 cents) and SCE in the southern half of the state (about 35 cents), and runs nearly two and a half times the US average. The structural drivers are the same across all three (wildfire mitigation and grid-hardening cost recovery, the renewable portfolio standard, and the income-graduated fixed charge), but SDG&E spreads those costs across far fewer customers, which is the main reason its rate sits highest. When comparing across utilities, always use total bill divided by total kWh rather than the headline supply rate, because the non-shoppable delivery and regulatory charges differ materially.

Sources and further reading

FAQ

What is the average SDG&E rate per kWh in 2026?
San Diego Gas & Electric's average all-in residential rate is about 45 cents per kWh as of January 2026, blending every plan, season and period. That is the highest of any major investor-owned utility in the continental US, above PG&E (north of 40 cents) and SCE (about 35 cents), and roughly two and a half times the US average of about 19 cents. Only Hawaii's island utilities consistently run higher. SDG&E serves about 3.7 million people through roughly 1.5 million electric meters across San Diego County and southern Orange County.
What are the SDG&E TOU-DR1 peak and off-peak rates?
TOU-DR1 is SDG&E's default residential plan. In summer (June through October) on-peak power from 4pm to 9pm runs about 70 cents per kWh, off-peak about 48 cents, and a super-off-peak overnight period about 39 cents. In winter (November through May) the 4pm to 9pm on-peak is about 62 cents, off-peak about 54 cents, and super-off-peak about 45 cents. The peak window applies every day, including weekends, which is stricter than SCE or PG&E, where the equivalent peak is weekday-only. All figures are CPUC-approved tariff rates effective January 1, 2026.
What is the SDG&E Base Services Charge and when did it start?
The Base Services Charge is California's new income-graduated fixed charge, which began appearing on SDG&E bills in October 2025. Most customers (those not on a low-income program) pay about $24.15 per month regardless of usage. CARE-enrolled households pay about $6 and FERA or deed-restricted affordable-housing households pay about $12. The fixed charge was paired with a small reduction in the per-kWh volumetric rates, so the bill impact depends on how much you use: low-usage homes generally pay a little more overall, high-usage homes a little less.
Why are SDG&E rates the highest in the continental US?
Three structural drivers stack on top of each other. First, wildfire mitigation and grid-hardening cost recovery, which is heavy across all three California utilities but proportionally large for SDG&E's smaller customer base. Second, the cost of meeting California's renewable portfolio standard and the transmission to import that power. Third, SDG&E spreads its fixed costs across far fewer customers than PG&E or SCE, so each household carries more of the system cost. The result is an all-in rate near 45 cents per kWh, with on-peak TOU rates reaching about 70 cents in summer.
Which SDG&E plan is cheapest for an EV owner?
EV-TOU-5 is built for households charging an electric vehicle overnight. Its super-off-peak rate (midnight to 6am) is about 12 cents per kWh in both seasons, the lowest residential rate SDG&E offers and a fraction of the roughly 70-cent summer peak. The trade-off is a steep on-peak rate (about 80 cents in summer, 4pm to 9pm) and the same roughly $24 monthly Base Services Charge. For a household that can shift the bulk of its load (EV charging, dishwasher, laundry, pool pump) to the overnight super-off-peak window, EV-TOU-5 produces the lowest bill of any SDG&E plan.
Can I shop for a cheaper electricity supplier in San Diego?
California is not deregulated in the retail-shopping sense, so you cannot pick an independent supplier the way Texas or Ohio customers can. However, most of SDG&E's territory is now served by a Community Choice Aggregator: San Diego Community Power (SDCP) covers the City of San Diego and several neighbouring cities, and Clean Energy Alliance (CEA) serves much of north county. Together the two CCAs cover more than 80 percent of SDG&E's customers. A CCA buys the generation portion of your power, while SDG&E keeps the wires and sends the bill. Enrollment is automatic with an opt-out window, and the all-in cost is typically at or slightly below SDG&E's default generation rate with a cleaner energy mix.
How do CARE and FERA discounts work at SDG&E?
CARE (California Alternate Rates for Energy) gives income-qualified SDG&E households about a 30 percent discount on the electric bill, applied as a line credit on whatever rate plan they are on, plus a reduced Base Services Charge of about $6 per month. FERA (Family Electric Rate Assistance) gives a smaller discount to households of three or more whose income exceeds CARE limits but falls under a higher threshold, with a Base Services Charge of about $12. Both are income-tested against state limits that scale with household size and update annually; enrollment is via SDG&E's CARE/FERA portal with self-certification and periodic verification.
How can I lower an SDG&E bill without moving?
Because the peak-to-off-peak spread on TOU-DR1 is the widest of any major US utility, the single highest-value habit is shifting discretionary load out of the 4pm to 9pm window every day, weekends included. Pre-cool the house before 4pm with a smart thermostat, run laundry and the dishwasher overnight, and schedule any EV charging or pool pump for the super-off-peak hours. Solar paired with a home battery is unusually attractive in SDG&E territory precisely because the avoided peak rate is so high, though net-metering economics now run under NEM 3.0, which pays far less for exported power than the old NEM 2.0 regime.
Disclaimer. All SDG&E rate figures cited are blended per-period averages from SDG&E's published tariffs effective January 1, 2026, subject to CPUC-approved updates that typically take effect on January 1 and quarterly thereafter. Your exact bill will reflect your Base Services Charge tier, CARE/FERA discount, any CCA enrollment, NEM 3.0 net-metering credits, and the precise mix of off-peak versus peak usage. Independent resource, not affiliated with San Diego Gas & Electric.

Updated 2026-06-10