Texas TDU delivery charges explained
Your retail provider sells the electricity; your transmission and distribution utility (TDU, also called a TDSP) delivers it. Delivery has its own charges, usually a fixed amount each billing cycle plus an amount for every kWh you use.
By WattFacts · Published October 15, 2026 · Updated October 21, 2026 · Rates checked October 15. Residential schedule snapshot, not a live tariff feed.
WattFacts plan-table average prices already include delivery at the selected usage. Do not add the TDU amounts below to those prices a second time.
Residential delivery charges by TDU
The table uses Frontier Utilities’ residential schedule, marked updated October 4, 2026, checked by WattFacts on October 15. Dollar totals are our calculations for one billing cycle using that schedule.
The source’s update date is not a shared effective date for all six utilities. Tariffs and individual riders can change on different dates. Confirm the charges applicable to your service and billing period with your provider; special service areas and nonstandard metering can differ.
Delivery only, before taxes and nonrecurring fees. Energy and provider charges are excluded. Source schedule updated October 4, 2026. Scroll the table horizontally on smaller screens.
| Delivery utility | Per cycle | Per kWh | 500 kWh | 1,000 kWh | 2,000 kWh |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oncor | $4.06 | 6.8673¢ | $38.40 | $72.73 | $141.41 |
| CenterPoint Energy | $4.90 | 6.5333¢ | $37.57 | $70.23 | $135.57 |
| AEP Texas Central | $3.24 | 5.6898¢ | $31.69 | $60.14 | $117.04 |
| AEP Texas North | $3.24 | 5.5751¢ | $31.12 | $58.99 | $114.74 |
| Texas-New Mexico Power | $7.56 | 7.7710¢ | $46.42 | $85.27 | $162.98 |
| Lubbock Power & Light | $0.00 | 6.3120¢ | $31.56 | $63.12 | $126.24 |
CenterPoint: this schedule lists 6.5333¢/kWh. Earlier published schedules list 6.4130¢. Use the applicable billing-period tariff rather than combining figures from different schedule snapshots.
How are TDU delivery charges calculated?
Multiply your billing-cycle kWh by the delivery rate in cents, divide by 100, then add the fixed delivery charge. Use the TDU delivery charges calculator below for Oncor, CenterPoint or your own rates.
Presets were checked October 15, 2026, from a schedule updated October 4. They are not live quotes. Replace the rates with those applicable to your billing period.
$72.73
Delivery only: $4.06 + (1000 kWh × 6.8673¢ ÷ 100).
Effective delivery price: 7.2733¢/kWh.
One residential billing cycle; excludes energy charges, taxes, nonrecurring fees and special tariff adjustments. Do not add this result to an electricity price that already includes delivery.
Delivery cost = fixed charge + (kWh used × delivery rate in cents ÷ 100).
For the Oncor row at 1,000 kWh: $4.06 + (1,000 × 6.8673 ÷ 100) = $72.733, rounded to $72.73. At 500 kWh the same formula gives $38.40; at 2,000 kWh it gives $141.41.
At 1,000 kWh, delivery alone averages about 7.2733¢/kWh once the fixed charge is included. The 6.8673¢ variable charge is only one part of that cost. Lower usage reduces the variable amount but spreads the fixed charge over fewer kWh.
To build a full bill from separate components, also include the provider’s energy charge, base charge, qualifying credits, taxes and other applicable fees. For an illustrative 8¢ energy charge with no provider base charge or credits, 1,000 kWh in the Oncor example costs $80 + $72.733 = $152.73 before taxes. This is a teaching example, not a current plan offer.
1,000 kWh in the Oncor area. Delivery uses the October 4, 2026 source schedule; the energy price is illustrative. Taxes, provider base charges and credits are excluded.
- Electricity from the provider
- $80.00
- Delivery for the kWh used
- $68.67
- Fixed delivery charge
- $4.06
Illustrative 8¢/kWh × 1,000 kWh
6.8673¢/kWh × 1,000 kWh
One billing cycle
Delivery subtotal $72.73
Total before taxes $152.73
Each bar shows that component’s share of the full example bill. The two delivery amounts are already part of the total.
What do TDU delivery charges pay for?
Delivery tariffs cover the network and metering service. A bill can contain customer and metering charges, distribution charges, transmission cost recovery and other approved riders or credits. An energy charge pays for the electricity sold by your retail provider.
Your provider may combine delivery with its energy price or show delivery separately. Read the Electricity Facts Label (EFL) and Terms of Service to see how the offer handles it. The PUCT’s TDU rate reports and the utility’s tariff are useful checks against a bill.
Can switching providers lower delivery charges?
Switching retail providers at the same address does not change the delivery utility or the underlying tariff for the same service class and billing period. You can compare the provider’s energy price, fees, credits and contract terms. The address determines which network serves your home.
A fixed-rate electricity contract can still allow price adjustments for actual changes to TDU charges. Check your contract’s price-change terms. Do not assume a fixed rate guarantees an identical bill: your consumption also changes the total.
Reducing kWh lowers the usage-based delivery amount. It does not remove a fixed monthly charge. A provider credit or a free-hours offer can affect the bill, but its treatment of delivery depends on the specific plan documents.
Check a delivery charge that looks wrong
- Confirm your TDU, residential service class, kWh and billing dates on the bill.
- Check the fixed charge and per-kWh amount against the schedule applicable to that period. A cycle crossing a change date may need more detail from the provider.
- Separate recurring delivery from connection, disconnection, late-payment and other one-time fees.
- Ask the provider for an itemized calculation if the result differs. Keep the bill and plan documents when requesting a correction.
The residential table above is not a business-rate calculator. Commercial service can include demand charges based on kW, in addition to charges based on kWh.
Compare the full cost of a plan
Browse Texas electricity rates and compare plans in the same delivery area at your actual usage. Use the electricity bill calculator for an estimate from listed plan prices.
For conditional offers, read our guides to bill credits and free nights and weekends. Their advertised savings may depend on when or how much electricity you use.
Sources and dates
- Frontier Utilities TDU schedule and residential PDF: source of all six recurring-charge rows. Schedule update October 4, 2026; reviewed October 15. Calculations round only the final dollar total to cents.
- Oncor: Regulatory, Tariffs and Rate Schedules, and Delivery Charges 101 explain the fixed and variable components. The utility tariff controls service-specific applicability.
- AEP Texas tariffs: the posted tariff book is effective September 29, 2026. TNMP tariffs: posted retail delivery book effective September 13, 2026. These are tariff-book dates, not an assertion that every component changed that day.
- TXU fixed- and variable-rate explanation and commercial demand explanation provide context for contract adjustments and business billing.
This dated comparison is not a guarantee of today’s tariff or a complete bill. Applicable taxes, nonrecurring fees and special tariff conditions are excluded. Check the current EFL, Terms of Service and utility tariff before enrolling or disputing a charge.