How to Find Your kWh Usage on Your Electric Bill
The single most useful number for a solar or battery quote is already on your bill. Here is where to look.
Every solar, battery or generator quote starts with the same question: how much electricity do you use? Contractors can guess from the size of your house, but a guess can be off by half. Your bill already has the real answer.
Look for kWh, not dollars
Your bill shows what you paid and how much energy you used. The energy number is in kilowatt hours, written as kWh. Duke Energy bills, cooperative bills and town utility bills all list it, usually near the meter readings, labeled something like energy used, total kWh or usage.
Find the 12 month chart
Most bills also print a small bar chart of the last twelve months. That chart is gold for sizing a system, because usage in the mountains swings a lot between July and January. If your heat is electric, winter can run two or three times your spring usage.
Use your online account
If you have an online account with your utility, look for a usage or energy section. Many let you see each month for the last year or two, and some let you download it. A screenshot or a printout is all a contractor needs.
What if you only have one bill?
Enter that month. One real number beats none. If you have no kWh at all, enter your average bill in dollars and the contractor can work backward from your rate.
Why this saves you time
When you enter your usage on HomeBackupPros, contractors see it before they ever call you. Their first estimate is closer, and if you book the $349 evaluation they arrive already knowing what they are designing for.
electric bill · getting started
