Compare electricity supply quotes on equal terms

Annual kWh at this siteFrom twelve months of bills

Your current supply rate (¢/kWh), optionalSupply only, not delivery

Your current monthly supply fee ($), optional

Offer 1

Name

Rate (¢/kWh)

Monthly fee ($)

One-time fee ($)

Term (months)

Early-termination fee ($)Not in the total; flagged if large

Price typeFixedVariable

Offer 2

Name

Rate (¢/kWh)

Monthly fee ($)

One-time fee ($)

Term (months)

Early-termination fee ($)Not in the total; flagged if large

Price typeFixedVariable

Offer 3

Name

Rate (¢/kWh)

Monthly fee ($)

One-time fee ($)

Term (months)

Early-termination fee ($)Not in the total; flagged if large

Price typeFixedVariable

Offer 4

Name

Rate (¢/kWh)

Monthly fee ($)

One-time fee ($)

Term (months)

Early-termination fee ($)Not in the total; flagged if large

Price typeFixedVariable

Smallest all-in supply price among these offers: Supplier C at 8.10¢/kWh (variable, held at the rate typed). Quoted rates run from 8.10¢/kWh to 8.90¢/kWh; all-in prices run from 8.10¢/kWh to 8.90¢/kWh. The terms differ, so compare the all-in price, not the totals.

Offers on one scale for 120,000 kWh a year (supply only)

Offer	Quoted rate	Fees	Term	Supply cost a month	All-in price	Supply cost a year	Against your current a year
Supplier C (variable)	8.10¢/kWh	None	12 months	$810	8.10¢/kWh	$9,720	$2,040 lower
Supplier B	8.40¢/kWh	$45 a month	36 months	$885	8.85¢/kWh	$10,620	$1,140 lower
Supplier A	8.90¢/kWh	None	24 months	$890	8.90¢/kWh	$10,680	$1,080 lower

Your current supply price: 9.80¢/kWh plus $0 a month, which is 9.80¢/kWh all in ($11,760 a year). Differences are supply cost only, on the figures typed.

• Supplier C: A variable price can change every month. This total holds the rate you typed constant, so it cannot show what will be paid.
• Supplier B: The early-termination fee of $4,000 is at least 3 months of this offer's supply cost. Fees add 0.45¢/kWh to the quoted rate, so the all-in price is higher than the quote.

These are illustrative figures, not real offers. Replace them with the figures in the quotes you hold. Amounts are in dollars, U.S. or Canadian: use the currency your quotes use.

The arithmetic

This is the whole calculation. Nothing is hidden behind it and no language model performs it.

kWh in the term   = annual kWh x term months / 12
energy            = kWh in the term x rate
fees              = monthly fee x term months + one-time fee
all-in price      = (energy + fees) / kWh in the term     (dollars per kWh, over the whole term)
supply cost a year = all-in price x annual kWh
against current   = (your current all-in price - offer all-in price) x annual kWh

Fees are spread across the kWh the term covers, so a short term with a one-time fee is not flattered against a long one. Because the all-in price is per kWh, offers with different terms can be compared directly; the totals over different terms cannot.

What these figures leave out

• Delivery and tax. Delivery is set by the utility tariff and tax by law, so both are the same whichever supplier is chosen and neither decides between offers. Read them on your own bill: supply versus delivery.
• Charges the contract passes through. These are not the same on every offer. A supplier may bill some costs outside the quoted rate, so ask each one which, and enter any fixed monthly amount as a monthly fee.
• The future of a variable price. A variable offer is held at the rate you typed. It can rise or fall, so its total is a snapshot, not a forecast: fixed versus index pricing.
• Who is paid through the rate. A broker or consultant may be paid a commission built into the rate. It is a fair question to ask each supplier whether one is, and how much.
• What the contract says. A calculator organises numbers; it cannot read a contract, judge a supplier or accept an offer for you.

Questions to put to any supplier before signing

• Is the price fixed for the whole term, and does it include every supply-side pass-through, or can the supplier add some later? See pass-through clauses.
• What happens when the term ends: does the contract renew by itself, and at what price? See holdover rates.
• How is the early-termination fee worked out, and does it change over the term?
• Is there a tolerance band on usage, and a charge if the site uses much more or less than the figure quoted on?
• Are there monthly, administration or metering fees that are not in the headline rate?

In Alberta, the default Rate of Last Resort is a useful point of comparison for a small business. The Alberta guide shows who it is for and what it offers: how to read an Alberta business electricity bill.