Why Is My Edison Bill So High? How to Check an SCE Bill in 2026

An Edison bill usually jumps for one of five reasons: a longer billing period, more kWh per day, summer 4-to-9 p.m. prices, the Base Services Charge SCE added in November 2025, or a credit that stopped. SCE's average rate also rose about 13.1% on October 1, 2025. Compare your daily kWh with last year first.

That order matters because each check rules out the next. If daily use is up, the fix is in the house; if daily use is flat but the dollars rose, it is the price. This page covers Southern California Edison specifically; the statewide picture is in our guide to high California electric bills.

Start with two bills from comparable periods

Pull the current bill and the same season from last year if you have it. If you no longer have the paper copy, SCE's My Account shows up to 36 months of bill history with PDFs, and its Copy of Bill form returns up to three years of bills, 12 at a time. Record the billing days, total kWh, electric charges, rate-plan name and any generation-provider line. A larger bill over more days is not the same change as a larger bill over the same number of days.

Read the change in this order

1. Billing days and kWh per day. Divide total kWh by billing days on each bill. The Public Advocates Office says SCE customers in hot climate zone 15 average about 700 kWh a month and those in cool zone 6 about 385, so where you live sets the baseline for what is normal.

2. Summer and the peak hours. SCE's summer runs June through September, and most homes are on a time-of-use plan. SCE lists these prices on its plan page, checked September 23, 2026, for customers who buy both delivery and generation from SCE:

A summer evening kWh on TOU-D-5-8PM costs more than twice an off-peak one. Air conditioning that runs from late afternoon into the evening is the most common way a July or August bill doubles. For the full plan details, see SCE's time-of-use plans and peak hours.

3. Baseline and tiers. On SCE's tiered Schedule D, the price as of June 1, 2026 was 30 cents per kWh up to your baseline allowance and 40 cents above it. Allowances run from 11.4 kWh a day in cool region 6 to 45.0 kWh a day in hot region 15 in summer, and SCE adds 16.5 kWh a day for Medical Baseline customers. The full list of plans is in SCE residential rate schedules.

4. The Base Services Charge. In November 2025 SCE replaced its old Basic Charge with a Base Services Charge, about $24 a month for most customers, $12 for FERA customers and qualifying affordable housing, and $6 for CARE customers, and cut the per-kWh price by about 10%. SCE's own chart says low-use homes may see a higher bill and high-use homes a lower one. Solar customers pay it too. The full list of what moved on SCE statements is in what changed on SCE bills since November 2025.

5. Rate changes. SCE's residential average rose about 13.1% on October 1, 2025, when its 2025 general rate case took effect, then fell about 2.3% on January 1, 2026 and 0.1% on June 1, 2026, per the CPUC Public Advocates Office. If you are comparing a 2025 bill with a 2026 one, part of the difference is the price. The full timeline is in the SCE rate increase history.

6. Credits. The California Climate Credit came to SCE residential bills in August and September 2026, $36.00 each time, per the CPUC. An October bill without it can look about $36 higher on the same usage.

7. Generation and delivery. If a community choice provider buys your power, its generation charges and SCE's delivery charges are separate sections of one bill and answer different questions.

If the bill lists Desert Community Energy

For a Palm Springs-area account, confirm the generation provider on the bill before applying an SCE-only solar-billing explanation. Desert Community Energy says it handles its solar customers' generation charges and credits and runs its own true-up, at the end of May for most net energy metering customers, while SCE continues delivery charges. For a question about the generation line, contact the provider shown there; for delivery, meter or recorded-usage questions, contact SCE.

What is the average SCE bill?

One average would hide more than it shows, because usage varies so much by region. The CPUC Public Advocates Office tracks estimated SCE bills in a hot and a cool climate zone. As of June 1, 2026, they run from about $81 a month for a CARE customer in cool zone 6 to about $254 for a non-CARE customer in hot zone 15. SMUD's published comparison, also as of June 1, 2026, prices a 750 kWh month at $283 on SCE. For a statewide comparison, see the average California utility bill.

Why an SCE bill stays high with solar panels

SCE's net energy metering customers still get a monthly bill for set fees, which SCE lists as delivery and nonbypassable charges, even in months when the panels cover the energy. On SCE's annual billing option, net energy charges for the whole year come due once, on the annual settlement statement, which is why a single SCE bill can be very large. Our guide to the SCE annual settlement bill explains how to read it. Newer systems on the Solar Billing Plan pay monthly, are required to take TOU-D-PRIME, and earn export credits that the CPUC says are usually lower than the retail price.

Use SCE's own comparison before changing plans

SCE's Rate Plan Comparison uses your account history to compare eligible plans. Review the result beside the hours your household actually uses electricity; SCE says a customer who switches to a time-of-use plan cannot switch again for 12 months. If the utility, service address or a charge does not match what you expected, contact SCE before asking anyone else to interpret it.

If the bill is hard to pay

You are not alone: the Public Advocates Office counts 813,943 SCE customers, 17%, behind on their bills in May 2026, owing $733 on average. CARE cuts the electric bill 30% to 35% for households under the CPUC's income limits and FERA 18% for households just above them, and both lower the Base Services Charge.

When a solar or battery comparison is useful

Once you know the bill pattern, you can decide whether to compare a solar or battery proposal. Ask for the same billing period, rate-plan assumption, remaining fixed charges, delivery and generation treatment, and any battery settings in writing. A proposal that cannot show those inputs is not ready for comparison. If roof work or backup is part of the decision, start with whether the roof is suited to solar and the separate backup and battery decision. For address-level checks, see the local guides for Temecula, Murrieta and Palm Desert, and confirm the utility on your own bill rather than assuming it from the city.