Residents in Carson City (city) County, NV who request quotes on the EnergySage Marketplace spend an average of $178 monthly on electricity. That adds up to $2,136 per year. A different way to look at it is that a typical Carson City (city) County, NV resident uses 1,185 kWh of electricity per month and 14,220 kWh over the year.
(For what it’s worth: Carson City (city) County, NV residents shopping for solar on EnergySage may use more electricity than a typical household.)
The easiest way to compare electricity costs across regions is to look at the electricity rate. In the U.S., residential rates generally range from 11 ¢/kWh all the way up to 34 ¢/kWh.
As of February 2026, the cost of electricity in Carson City (city) County, NV is 15 ¢/kilowatt-hour (kWh)—roughly 24% lower than the national average cost. That number is based on real-world electric bills shared with EnergySage over the past 12 months. You can compare that number to the most recent average state electric price reported by the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA).
Nevada’s electricity market is regulated, which means you can’t choose which company supplies your electricity. Instead, the state determines your electric utility company based on where you live.
NV Energy is the state's primary electricity company. It's an Investor Owned Utility (IOU), meaning it’s a private for-profit company. However, residents of certain towns and cities in Nevada can access municipally-owned, not-for-profit electric companies. While these organizations can offer lower rates and typically don’t face the same requirements as IOUs, they often don’t provide benefits like net metering.
- 100% free to use, 100% online
- Access the lowest prices from installers near you
- Unbiased Energy Advisors ready to help
When you pay your electric bill, you’re not only covering the costs to produce that electricity, but also the costs of running and maintaining the electrical grid, as well as public benefit funds that promote things like renewable energy and energy efficiency.
Electric bill costs are rolled into fixed (monthly customer charges) and variable charges (¢/kWh that you use).
Fixed charges, like the flat fee for having a meter, generally remain the same monthly unless your utility makes a policy update.
Your variable charges will change every month and depend on your electricity rate and how much electricity you use.
Your electric bill's variable charges will include a supply (or generation) charge and a transmission and distribution (or delivery) charge. The supply charge covers the cost of electricity generation, while the transmission and distribution charges cover the cost of delivering it to your home.
Some utility companies give the option to sign up for variable rate plans, usually time-of-use (TOU) rates or demand charge plans. For now, only NV Energy offers TOU rates for residential customers, which means you'll pay different rates per kWh depending on the time of day and season. The TOU rate plan also includes demand charges, which are applied to your daily 15-minute maximum electricity demand during on-peak TOU hours.
How clean is the electricity in Nevada?
It’s not easy to pinpoint an exact number, but according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, about 60% of the electricity on Nevada’s utility grid comes from fossil fuels—primarily natural gas—as of August 2025.
An impressive 41% comes from renewable sources. Still, installing a 100% renewable home solar panel system in Nevada will almost always shrink your carbon footprint.
Some utility companies in Nevada provide the option to pay a bit more so that most (or even all) of your electricity comes from renewable sources. If you’re unwilling or unable to go solar in Nevada but still want to reduce your carbon footprint, this is a great alternative. It just won’t save you any money in most cases. (Though occasionally it could if it’s through a municipal group-buy program.)
As long as you have a suitable roof, one of the surest ways to save on energy is to go solar—ideally with a vetted contractor offering a competitive price.
Solar panels will reduce or even eliminate your electric bills in the short term and protect you against rising electricity costs in the long run, too. The amount you save depends on how much you spend on electricity now and how much of your electric bill you can offset with solar energy.
Solar panels are a big investment, but Carson City (city) County, NV homeowners who install them—and pay upfront—break even after an average of just 9.39 years. Then, the solar panels will continue to produce free electricity for years to come.
Does Nevada offer net metering?
When the sun is shining, your solar panels will usually produce more than enough energy to fulfill your home’s needs at any given moment—especially in sunny Nevada.
That extra energy doesn’t go to waste. In Nevada, several utility companies (NV Energy and Overton Power District #5 (OPD5)) offer net metering, a solar buyback program that provides energy credits for all the solar power you send to the grid. Later, when you need to pull electricity from the grid (like at night or on cloudy days), your utility company doesn’t charge you. Instead, they deduct the cost from your banked energy credits.
Under net metering, what’s important is the total amount of solar power you produce throughout the year—not when you produce it. At the end of every month, you’ll only be billed for the electricity you take from the grid.
Exactly how net metering works in Nevada depends on your specific utility company. For example, OPD5 lets you roll over credits month to month, but only NV Energy allows you to hold onto credits indefinitely with no expiration date.
Valley Electric Association (VEA) doesn’t offer net metering, but it does let you sign up for net billing, a monetary exchange where you can “sell” your extra energy to your utility company. However, the net billing rate is based on the wholesale rate of electricity, which is less than the rate you pay as a consumer.
How much can you save with solar?
The Silver State’s abundant sunshine and net metering programs mean you can save big when you go solar in Carson City (city) County, NV.
Just take a look at how much you'll spend on electricity over time based on your current bill. It’s easy to see how going solar can pay off quickly.
Electricity cost over time in Nevada
Current monthly electric bill | 10-year electricity cost | 20-year electricity cost | 30-year electricity cost |
|---|---|---|---|
$50 | $6,600 | $15,000 | $24,000 |
$100 | $13,000 | $29,000 | $49,000 |
$150 | $20,000 | $44,000 | $73,000 |
$200 | $26,000 | $58,000 | $97,000 |
$250 | $33,000 | $73,000 | $120,000 |
Assuming a 2% annual increase based on inflation and average annual electric rate increases in Nevada.
Let's assume you pay $178 for electricity monthly (the Carson City (city) County, NV average) and that electricity prices increase by 2% annually. Let's also assume you buy your solar panel system upfront and that it costs you $17,000 before any available incentives.
In the first year with solar, you'll avoid spending $2,100 on electric bills. Over five years, you'll avoid $11,100; by 10 years, you'll have avoided $23,400. Solar panels are usually covered under warranty for 25 years—by then, you'll have avoided spending $68,600 on electric bills in Carson City (city) County, NV.
The average payback period in Carson City (city) County, NV is 9.39 years, so by this point, you've already broken even on your investment. When you subtract your upfront installation cost, you'll pocket $51,600 over 25 years with solar.
Your solar savings depend on you
How much your utility company charges for electricity is a big indicator of how much you'll save with solar. But your exact solar savings depend on your unique situation—including your energy usage, roof layout, system size, and how you pay for your system.
Here are some reasons your savings could be below average:
You don’t use much electricity, or your roof is small or has a less-than-ideal layout. You might have a relatively long payback period, so you'll save a little less over time.
You don't install enough solar panels to 100% offset your energy use. You’ll pay less up front but save less in the long run.
You finance your solar panel system with a loan or sign a lease or power purchase agreement (PPA) instead of paying up front. These types of arrangements can make a lot of sense for keeping your capital flexible and will allow you to start saving sooner. But they will cut into your long-term savings.
Choosing a high-quality solar installer is the key to getting a top-notch solar panel system that will help you save on electric bills.
We pre-screen all solar companies on EnergySage to ensure they get the job done right. Here are the highest-rated EnergySage installers in Carson City (city) County, NV:
Elite+ InstallerScreened & Verified4.8 /5.0850 Reviews
Elite InstallerScreened & Verified5.0 /5.071 Reviews
Elite InstallerScreened & Verified5.0 /5.012 Reviews
Elite InstallerScreened & Verified4.5 /5.0525 Reviews
Helping customers make informed decisions since 2009.
See what electricity costs in Carson City (city) County, NV cities and towns
Choose a city below to see the electricity costs in that area.
