Why Are Electricity Rates So High in California — And What Can Long Beach Homeowners Do About It?
If your SCE bill has been climbing higher every year, you’re not imagining it. California has some of the highest electricity rates in the country, and for Long Beach homeowners served by Southern California Edison, the numbers have become genuinely difficult to ignore.
This post breaks down why rates keep rising, what it actually costs to run your home on the grid in 2026, and what electrical upgrades can make the biggest difference in your monthly bill.
How Much Does Electricity Cost in Long Beach Right Now?
As of 2026, the cost of electricity in Long Beach is around 38 cents per kilowatt-hour — roughly 79% higher than the national average.
To put that in context, the average utility rate across the US is around 19 cents per kWh. Long Beach homeowners are paying about double that.
And it’s not just the base rate. SCE’s time-of-use rate plans have on-peak rates that reach as high as 74 cents per kWh during summer weekday evenings. If you’re running your AC, dishwasher, or EV charger between 4 and 9 PM, you’re paying some of the most expensive electricity in the country.
Why Do Rates Keep Going Up?
This is the question most homeowners ask, and the honest answer is that several things are happening at once.
Wildfire prevention and grid upgrades. SCE has been spending billions on wildfire mitigation, undergrounding power lines, and grid hardening throughout Southern California. SCE’s plans include spending $28.7 billion from 2025 to 2028 on upgrading the electric system, replacing infrastructure, mitigating wildfire risks, and improving cybersecurity. All of that investment gets passed directly to customers through rate increases.
Rate hikes are approved by the state. SCE doesn’t just raise rates on its own. Every increase has to be approved by the California Public Utilities Commission. But approval doesn’t make the increases easier to afford — it just means they’re official.
The increases have been compounding for years. SCE has increased rates every single year for the past 10+ years, meaning a homeowner today pays 70–100% more than they did a decade ago. That’s not a typo.
Time-of-use pricing adds complexity. Most SCE customers are now on time-of-use rate plans, which means electricity costs now depend on both how much energy you use and when you use it — making it difficult to estimate future bills based on past usage.
What Does This Mean for the Average Long Beach Household?
A typical Long Beach home using around 500 kWh per month is looking at a monthly bill in the range of $170–$200 before any credits or adjustments. Larger homes, homes with EV charging, or homes with electric heating and cooling can easily run $300–$500 or more per month.
And the trend isn’t reversing. SCE’s approved rate case includes projected increases of approximately 2.6–2.7% per year through 2028 — on top of the larger increases that already hit in 2025.
What Can You Actually Do About It?
The good news is that there are real, practical steps Long Beach homeowners can take to reduce their exposure to high electricity rates. Some of them involve electrical upgrades that Karmic Electrical can help with directly.
Switch to time-of-use pricing and shift your usage. If you’re not already on a TOU rate plan, it’s worth reviewing your options with SCE. Off-peak rates are lower than rates in the tiered pricing plan, which means running your dishwasher, laundry, and EV charger late at night instead of during peak evening hours can make a measurable difference on your bill.
Upgrade your electrical panel. Older Long Beach homes with 100-amp panels are often running at or near capacity, which means appliances are competing for power and the system isn’t operating efficiently. A panel upgrade to 200 amps gives your home the capacity it needs to support modern loads cleanly — and it’s required before you can add an EV charger or certain high-draw appliances. At Karmic Electrical, a 100-amp to 200-amp panel upgrade runs $4,800 – $7,500 depending on your home’s configuration.
Install a Level 2 EV charger on a smart schedule. If you own an electric vehicle and you’re still using a standard 120V outlet to charge it, you’re almost certainly charging during hours when rates are highest. A dedicated Level 2 EV charger installed by a licensed electrician gives you full control over charging schedules — meaning you can charge overnight at off-peak rates and save significantly compared to daytime charging. Level 2 EV charger installation at Karmic Electrical starts at $2,400 – $3,800 without a panel upgrade, or $7,200 – $12,000 if a panel upgrade is needed at the same time.
Add surge protection. High electricity bills aren’t the only consequence of an unstable grid — voltage fluctuations and power surges can damage appliances and shorten their lifespan. Whole-home surge protection is an inexpensive upgrade that protects everything plugged into your home.
Consider an energy audit. If you’re not sure where your electricity is going, a professional energy audit can identify the biggest sources of waste in your home and prioritize the upgrades that will have the most impact on your bill.
The Bottom Line
California electricity rates are high, they’re going higher, and the trend is unlikely to reverse anytime soon. But that doesn’t mean Long Beach homeowners are powerless. The right electrical upgrades — a modern panel, a smart EV charging setup, better load management — can meaningfully reduce how much of that expensive grid power your home actually needs.
If you’re not sure where to start, Karmic Electrical offers a $249 service call that includes the first hour of diagnostic work. We’ll assess your current electrical system, identify what’s working against you, and give you a clear picture of what upgrades make the most sense for your home and budget.
Ready to schedule? Book directly online or call us at (562) 708-7673. Karmic Electrical serves Long Beach, Lakewood, Signal Hill, Seal Beach, Torrance, Huntington Beach, Carson, and Cerritos.