How PG&E Rate Changes Impact Ava Customers
Last updated: October 2025
If you’ve felt sticker shock when looking at your latest energy bills, you’re not alone. Across our region, residents and businesses are noticing higher energy costs and looking for clear answers about what’s driving these changes.
We’ve gathered the key information you need to understand PG&E rate changes, how they affect Ava customers, and what options you have to manage your energy costs. This guide breaks down the complex factors behind rising rates, explains what you can expect moving forward, and provides practical steps to help lower your monthly bills.
Since 2020, PG&E residential rates have increased by almost 70%, with the average combined gas and electric bill rising from about $179 in 2020 to around $300 today. As an Ava customer, you can save 5% on electricity generation through our Bright Choice service. But everyone in PG&E’s territory still pays PG&E for delivery, so those rate changes impact us all equally.
How much have electricity rates actually changed?
California currently has among the highest electricity rates in the U.S., not only growing faster than inflation but also outpacing increases in other states. According to the Public Advocates Office of the CPUC, average residential electricity rates increased 104% between January 2015 and April 2025. In 2024 alone, there were five separate rate increases across electricity generation and delivery.
Electricity generation and delivery costs since 2019, with a notable increase in delivery costs shown in 2024.
The season also impacts rates. For customers on a time-of-use (TOU), electric vehicle (EV), or E-ELEC rate with PG&E, the four months of summer (June through September) have higher rates than October through May. So if you noticed your bill jump up in June or July compared to the previous months, it’s a good idea to review your energy usage! Follow these tips from KQED to save energy in the summer.
An example of seasonal rate changes as shown by average electricity charges for residential customers in Tracy, CA. Costs and kWh usage were nearly double in summer months compared to in winter.
Most recent change: September 2025
Electricity rates decreased 2.1% on September 1 as PG&E completed some large wildfire mitigation projects. These costs had been folded into delivery rates, so have now been removed.
Gas rates also decreased by 0.4%. Typical residential gas usage averages 31 therms/month, which translates to saving about $0.39 per month on gas.
PG&E has not planned any additional rate changes for the rest of 2025, and electricity rates are expected to decrease again in early 2026.
What’s driven PG&E’s rate increases?
According to PG&E and the California Public Utilities Commission, several major factors have pushed electricity rates higher:
- Wildfire mitigation: PG&E has spent billions on equipment upgrades, vegetation management, and grid hardening following devastating wildfires. These safety measures are expensive: wildfire-related spending has made up roughly 18% of PG&E’s overall system costs.
- Transmission and delivery infrastructure updates: Much of California’s electrical grid was built decades ago and requires lots of maintenance and replacement to meet modern reliability standards.
- Regulatory compliance: PG&E cites state mandates for renewable energy, grid reliability, and safety standards as adding operational costs.
- Shareholder returns: Unlike Ava, PG&E is a for-profit investor-owned utility. That means some of PG&E’s revenue goes to shareholders. PG&E requested permission to increase authorized investor returns on equity to 11.3% in March 2025. If approved by the CPUC, that would add about $5.50 to residential bills in January 2026.
The biggest increases have happened in the transmission and delivery part of energy bills. Currently, generation rates are about 50% less than delivery rates. That means customers pay twice as much to PG&E to have electricity delivered as they do for the electricity itself.
Gas rates have also increased as PG&E continues to invest in gas pipeline safety and reliability. On January 1, 2025, PG&E customers saw an 8.6% increase in gas rates, or about $7 extra per month for the average residential household. Ava only supplies electricity, so gas rate changes impact all PG&E customers equally.
Why do Ava customers still see these increases?
Electricity service has two components:
- Generation (power plants): This is what Ava provides. We procure clean electricity and pass it along at stable, competitive rates.
- Delivery (getting power to you): PG&E owns and maintains the transmission lines, distribution systems, and meters. They deliver the electricity that Ava generates, and also handle billing.
When PG&E raises delivery rates, it affects everyone in its service area equally—whether you’re an Ava customer or not.
However, when PG&E changes its generation rates, Ava’s rates adjust by the same percentage. In 2025, that means you’ll always be saving 5% on our Bright Choice service, or paying ¼ cent more per kWh if you’re on Renewable 100.
Average Monthly Cost by Plan:
Renewable 100
100% eligible renewable energy (2024)
Electric generation: $51.48
Electric delivery: $94.29
Additional non-Ava fees: $3.26
TOTAL: $148.91
Bright Choice
61.8% eligible renewable energy (2024)
Electric generation: $47.89
Electric delivery: $94.29
Additional non-Ava fees: $3.26
TOTAL: $145.32
PG&E
23% eligible renewable energy (2024)
Electric generation: $50.58
Electric delivery: $94.29
Additional non-Ava fees: $3.26
TOTAL: $148.01
This comparison is for an average residential E-TOU-C (Time-of-Use) customer using 360 kWh/month. Due to rounding, the rate components may not sum exactly to the total. For more details, visit our Rates page. Figures reflect our actual power mix from 2024 (most recently published). Power mixes are published annually each summer for the preceding year.
Ava has made a commitment to offer cleaner power at competitive rates to the communities we serve. Since beginning service in 2018, we’ve been able to steadily improve our value proposition for customers. Bright Choice is always at a discount to PG&E, while Renewable 100 costs slightly more for 100% renewable energy. Customers are free to choose the plan that best fits their priorities.
Ava Value Proposition Over Time:
| Ava Service Plan | June 2018– June 2020 | July 2020– June 2022 | July 2022– June 2023 | July 2023– Present |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bright Choice | 1.5% below PG&E | 1% below PG&E | 3% below PG&E | 5% below PG&E |
| Renewable 100 | 1¢ per kWh above PG&E | 1¢ per kWh above PG&E | ¾¢ per kWh above PG&E | ¼¢ per kWh above PG&E |
For a deeper dive into the components of your PG&E bill, check out our Understanding Your Bill explainer.
What is Ava doing about affordability?
As a not-for-profit community energy provider, we’re working on multiple fronts to ensure the long-term well-being of our community. For us, that means every customer should be able to access affordable, clean power. Here’s how we’re building that future:
Long-term renewable energy sourcing
We’ve locked in stable, lower-cost renewable energy through multi-year contracts that protect you from market swings. We’re continuing to build new wind, solar, and battery projects to add more local clean energy to our grid.
Direct bill savings and credits
Between lower rates and bill credits, Ava customers have saved over $167 million on their electricity bills since 2018. In addition to returning funds directly to our customers, we’ve also invested in a rate stabilization fund to protect against future market volatility.
Local programs and community reinvestment
As a not-for-profit public agency, we have no shareholders and all our excess revenue gets reinvested in the communities we serve. We develop energy programs to save customers money while helping the environment, and provide grants and sponsorships to local organizations that help our communities shine.
What can you do to manage your energy use?
While you can’t control PG&E rate increases, you can take steps to reduce your usage and costs.
Immediate steps:
- Understand your PG&E rate plan. The most important first step is to review your rate schedule and make sure you’re on the best plan for your usage patterns.
- Avoid peak hours. Most Californians are on a time-of-use (TOU) rate, which means electricity costs more during peak hours (typically 4-9 p.m.).
- Switch to Bright Choice. If cost is your top priority, Ava’s Bright Choice service plan is the cheapest option available. It is 5% lower than PG&E’s generation rates, which saves the average household $3 to $5 per month. A few dollars a month add up to real, consistent savings over time.
- See if you qualify for CARE or FERA. These statewide programs provide monthly bill discounts to income-qualified customers, regardless of whether you’re an Ava customer or not.
Longer-term strategies:
- Consider energy efficiency upgrades. From small changes like weatherstripping and using LED lightbulbs to bigger upgrades like buying a heat pump heating/cooling system, every step counts. Get started with electrification here.
- Look for rebates and incentives. You may have heard that federal incentives for electrification are changing, but there’s still time—and local and state incentives aren’t going away. Check our Incentive Finder to find rebates, programs, and incentives that you qualify for based on your zip code and housing situation.
Looking ahead: Are future increases planned?
PG&E electricity rates are expected to stabilize through 2025 and 2026, and return to 2025 levels in 2027. But the long-term trend points toward continued cost pressures as California—and the U.S. as a whole—adapts to climate change and increased energy demand. The best defense against rising rates is understanding your usage, taking advantage of available programs and incentives, and increasing your energy efficiency where you can.
As your community-owned, not-for-profit local energy provider, Ava is here to help navigate these challenges. We monitor rate changes closely, negotiate long-term contracts to provide stability, and work at the policy level to address the root causes of rate increases. Most importantly, we’re committed to being your trusted resource for understanding your energy options and connecting you with the right programs and assistance when you need them.