New Report Reveals Utility Bills on the Rise as Consumers Spend $351 Per Month, Up 7% Since Last Year

New report finds Americans spend $436 billion on utility bills annually; breaks down the most expensive states and cities for utility usage in the U.S.

A new report released today from doxo reveals that Americans spend an average of $351 per month on utilities, up 7% from last year. Through a statistical analysis of actual household payments toward utilities across 97% of U.S. zip codes, doxoINSIGHTS’ U.S. Utilities Market Size and Household Spending Report for 2023 reveals that Americans spend $436 billion annually on utility bills. The findings uncover that 79% of U.S. households with a utility bill spend $351 per month, or $4,212 per year – which equates to $3,327* per year when averaging across all U.S. households. The report breaks out the U.S. household spending market size; percentage of households that pay each bill; and average monthly and annual bill pay costs by state, largest 50 U.S. cities and cities in the U.S. with more than 40k households.

These doxoINSIGHTS findings come as energy prices have continued soaring upward over the past year, due to complex factors including geopolitical tensions and costs to modernize the grid, with electricity rates reaching an all-time high in September, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. While costs of natural gas are expected to decrease slightly this winter, usage will increase across the country as the weather becomes colder. In line with this forecast, doxo’s data reveals that payments to Utility bills as a whole were up 7% year over year, suggesting that Americans could continue to be in for an expensive winter in terms of paying bills.

“While inflation may be cooling overall, the cost for Americans heating their homes this winter remains high,” said Liz Powell, Senior Director of INSIGHTS at doxo. “Giving consumers access to this level of data through doxoINSIGHTS empowers them to budget for higher than average bills or consider ways to decrease or keep utility usage steady as the temps drop.”

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“Giving consumers access to this level of data through doxoINSIGHTS empowers them to budget for higher than average bills or consider ways to decrease or keep utility usage steady as the temps drop.”

The doxoINSIGHTS 2023 Utilities Market Size and Household Spending Report Findings

doxoINSIGHTS leverages doxo’s unique, aggregate, anonymized bill pay data comprised of actual bill payment activity to confirmed household service providers across the country. The Utilities Market Size and Household Spending Report, inclusive of electric, gas, water & sewer, and waste & recycling, breaks out the household spending market size; percentage of households that pay each bill; and average monthly and annual bill pay costs by state, and U.S. cities based on population. Key findings include the following:

• Total Market Size: $436 billion spent per year
• Average Monthly/Annual Cost: $351 spent per month; $4,212 spent per year
• Percent of Households: 79% of U.S. households pay Utility bills
• Average Annual Cost per U.S. Household: $3,327 per year*
• Percent of Annual Income: Utility bills amount to 7% of consumers’ income per year

States with the Highest Utility Bills

Access Utility Household Bill Pay Data for all 50 states here.

Largest US Cities With the Highest Utility Bills

Access Utility Household Bill Pay Data for the Top 50 Largest US Cities here.

*Average Monthly Bill x % of Households with Bill x 12 months per year = Average Annual Cost per U.S. Household.

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