Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) has announced that it will lower electric rates for its customers on January 1, 2026. This marks the fourth rate decrease in two years. The company also stated that natural gas rates will be reduced.
According to PG&E, the combined effect of these decreases means residential electric rates will be 11% lower than they were in January 2024. A typical residential customer will see about $20 less on their monthly bill compared to two years ago.
Patti Poppe, CEO of Pacific Gas and Electric Corporation, said, “We know how important stable and predictable bills are for families and businesses. That’s why we are lowering rates, even as national prices are expected to rise. Our actions match our promises: we’ve reduced electric rates multiple times since 2024, and we remain committed to finding new ways to save and pass those savings on to our customers.”
The U.S. Energy Information Administration is forecasting a nearly 10% increase in national electric prices between 2024 and 2026, but PG&E’s electric prices have stabilized or declined during this period.
Starting January 1, residential electric rates will decrease by about 5% for customers who receive both electricity supply and delivery service from PG&E. For those enrolled in the California Alternate Rates for Energy (CARE) program, which provides income-eligible discounts, rates will go down by about 6%. This translates into a decrease of approximately $7 per month for typical residential customers using around 500 kilowatt hours monthly. CARE customers can expect their bills to drop by about $4 per month.
For natural gas customers, rates will fall by 3%, with CARE customers seeing a reduction of approximately 2.6%. Typical residential natural gas bills are expected to decline by about $1 per month for those using roughly 31 therms monthly. The reductions are attributed to certain costs being removed from rates and lower greenhouse gas compliance expenses.
PG&E does not profit from energy supply costs as it passes market prices directly onto consumers without markup. The company manages volatility in natural gas supply pricing through strategies such as buying from multiple sources, storing gas when prices are low, and using financial tools to guard against winter price spikes.
Other factors may still affect customer bills, including colder-than-average weather or increased demand for liquefied natural gas and electricity generated from natural gas-fired power plants.
Customers who get their electricity generation through Direct Access (DA) or Community Choice Aggregators (CCA) should contact their providers directly regarding potential changes in generation rates since PG&E does not set those charges.
PG&E serves more than sixteen million people across Northern and Central California over an area of approximately 70,000 square miles. More information can be found at https://www.pge.com/news.
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