MLGW (Memphis Light, Gas and Water) commercial electricity rates in Tennessee

• Average commercial price, 202513.04¢per kWh, all commercial customers
• vs Tennessee average+1.3%state commercial average 12.87¢
• Commercial customers43,9872nd largest of 82 in Tennessee
• Average use11,347 kWha month per commercial customer
• Average bill$1,480a month per commercial customer
• Since 2015+32%from 9.89¢ per kWh
• Outages283 mina year per customer · US average 124

MLGW (Memphis Light, Gas and Water) is a municipal utility serving 1 county in Tennessee. Among the 82 Tennessee utilities in EIA’s 2025 sales data with 500 or more commercial customers, it is the 2nd largest, with about 8.0% of the state’s commercial customers. EIA lists it as City of Memphis.

MLGW commercial electricity prices, 2015 to 2025

In 2015 MLGW billed its commercial customers an average of 9.89¢ per kWh. In 2025 the figure was 13.04¢, so it rose 32% over 10 years. The average for all commercial customers in Tennessee rose 27% over the same period. The latest year, 2025, is the highest of the 11 on record here. Between 2024 and 2025 it rose 8.6%.

Average use and average bill are the utility’s commercial sales and revenue divided by its commercial customers and by twelve. The bill is an all-in figure: energy, delivery, demand and fixed charges together. A few very large customers pull both averages up, so most businesses use and pay less than the average.

Residential, commercial and industrial prices at MLGW

In 2025 the average commercial price at MLGW was 1.5% below the residential figure and 71% above the industrial one. Larger customers take power at a higher voltage and use it more steadily, so at most utilities the average falls from residential to commercial to industrial. Which class an account falls in is the utility’s decision, and the line between commercial and industrial is drawn differently from one utility to the next.

How MLGW’s commercial rates are set

MLGW is owned by the community it serves. Its rates are set locally, by the city council or a utility board, and in most states the state commission does not set them. A commercial account is billed on a rate schedule, chosen by the size of the account and the voltage it takes power at, and a schedule usually combines a fixed monthly charge, a charge per kWh and, above a certain size, a demand charge on the highest rate of draw in the month. The schedule code is printed on the bill. There is no competitive supply market for ordinary commercial accounts in Tennessee, so the levers are the schedule, the peak and the amount used.

Meters, time-varying rates and net metering at MLGW

EIA counts 43,087 commercial meters at MLGW in 2025, and 42,550 of them (99%) are advanced meters (AMI), which record use at least hourly and report it to the utility at least daily. Of the rest, 537 are standard meters. An advanced meter is what makes interval data possible, and interval data is what shows when a building’s peak demand happens.

EIA’s 2025 record of time-varying rates lists MLGW without a count of commercial customers on them. The kinds MLGW reports offering commercial customers are time-of-use pricing.

How reliable is MLGW’s electric service?

MLGW customers went without power for an average of 283 minutes in 2025, excluding major storms, with about 1.99 interruptions per customer. The average across U.S. utilities reporting the same way is 124 minutes. With major storms counted the figure was 349 minutes. These are averages over every customer of every class, so they describe the system and not any one street.

Where MLGW serves

EIA records MLGW serving customers in 1 Tennessee county: Shelby. A county can be shared between utilities, so this does not tell you who serves a given address. The utility that serves an address is the one named on its bill.

EIA lists the Tennessee Valley Authority as its balancing authority, the body that keeps supply and demand matched minute by minute across the area.

Other utilities in Tennessee

The average each billed its commercial customers in 2025. The Tennessee page has the state’s own figures and every utility with 500 or more commercial customers.

• Nashville Electric Service (12.68¢)
• Middle Tennessee Electric (12.12¢)
• Sevier County Electric System (12.53¢)
• KUB (13.21¢)
• EPB (12.46¢)
• Volunteer Energy Cooperative (13.48¢)
• Lenoir City Utilities Board (12.63¢)
• Duck River Electric Membership Corporation (14.63¢)
• Cumberland Electric Membership Corporation (13.48¢)
• BrightRidge (12.13¢)

What these figures can and cannot tell you

• They are averages over every commercial customer. A utility whose commercial customers are mostly large averages fewer cents per kWh than one serving mostly small shops, so a lower figure can mean larger customers and not a lower rate.
• They are not a rate schedule. None of these figures is a charge printed in MLGW’s tariff, and nothing here works out a bill from one. The tariff index lists the utilities whose filed schedules are quoted on this site.
• They are annual and final. EIA publishes utility figures once a year. The Tennessee page carries the state’s trailing 12 months, which is more recent and still preliminary.

For one building, the cost estimator gives a range by building type, size and state, and price by utility sets every utility side by side. Commercial vs residential vs industrial compares the classes in every state.

Data: every year of these figures, for this utility and every other with a page, is in one CSV, free to use with credit to the U.S. Energy Information Administration and this site. To cite this page: MLGW commercial electricity rates, CommercialElectricityRates.com, from EIA Form EIA-861 final 2025 data.

Common questions about MLGW

What is the average commercial electricity rate at MLGW?

MLGW billed its commercial customers in Tennessee an average of 13.04¢ per kWh in 2025, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. That is 1.3% above the Tennessee commercial average of 12.87¢. It is the utility’s commercial revenue divided by its commercial sales, so it describes the whole class and is not the rate on any one schedule.

How much is the average commercial electric bill at MLGW?

About $1,480 a month in 2025, on average use of about 11,347 kWh a month. That is MLGW’s commercial revenue divided by its 43,987 commercial customers. A few very large accounts pull the average up, so most businesses pay less than this.

Have MLGW’s commercial electricity rates gone up?

The average MLGW billed commercial customers rose 32% between 2015 and 2025, from 9.89¢ to 13.04¢ per kWh. The Tennessee commercial average rose 27% over the same period.

How reliable is MLGW’s electric service?

MLGW customers averaged 283 minutes without power in 2025, excluding major storms, against a 124-minute average for U.S. utilities reporting the same way (EIA).

Does MLGW use smart meters for businesses?

EIA counts 42,550 advanced (AMI) meters among MLGW’s 43,087 commercial meters in 2025, which is 99%. An advanced meter records use at least hourly, which is what makes interval data and time-varying rates possible.

Is this the rate my business will pay MLGW?

No. It is an average over every commercial customer, from a corner shop to a campus. What one business pays depends on its rate schedule, how much it uses and how hard it draws at its peak. The schedule code is printed on the bill, and the schedule itself is in MLGW’s tariff.