Budget Billing Calculator
| Winter worst ↓ · year total → (worst-month excess over the level payment) | $1,200/yr | $1,800/yr | $2,400/yr | $3,000/yr |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $160 worst month | +$60 | +$10 | -$40 | -$90 |
| $220 | +$120 | +$70 | +$20 | -$30 |
| $280 | +$180 | +$130 | +$80 | +$30 |
| $340 | +$240 | +$190 | +$140 | +$90 |
Enter your worst winter month, your quietest month and the 12-month total off last year's utility bills. The calculator sets the level payment a budget billing plan would charge, and shows what happens to both ends of your year.
Budget billing does not cut the bill - it averages it. The winter spike shrinks, the cheap months grow, and once a review cycle the plan settles: underpayment comes due, overpayment comes back as a credit. It is a cash-flow tool, not a discount.
How to use
- Take the three numbers off last year's bills, or off the review letter your utility sends with its proposed budget amount.
- The verdict updates live: the level payment, how far your worst month drops, and how much your quiet months give up to carry it.
- Plans re-review the average every 6 to 12 months, so a mild winter means your amount steps down at the next review - and a price-spike winter means it steps up.
Frequently asked questions
Is a budget billing plan worth it?
If winter bills squeeze the rest of your budget, yes: the plan trades one bad month for twelve even ones and protects you from late fees. If you never carry a balance, paying as billed and parking the difference yourself is mathematically identical - the plan buys convenience and discipline, not savings.
Does budget billing cost more overall?
Not the total: you pay the same kilowatt-hours either way. What you give up is float - an even payment means the utility holds your spring and fall overpayment interest-free until the settle, and if fuel prices spike mid-year your budget amount is raised at the review rather than the bill.
What happens at the annual settlement?
The utility trues up the plan against what you actually used. Underpaid and the difference lands on that month's bill or a payment agreement; overpaid and it becomes a credit or refund. Reviews run every 6 to 12 months, which is why the budget amount can move between years.
Can I still get LIHEAP while on budget billing?
Yes, and they solve different halves of the problem: assistance shrinks the total you owe, budget billing spreads what remains into even pieces. Utilities apply the credit to your account whether it is billed evenly or not.
Why did my budget amount jump mid-year?
Plans re-set the average when the review shows actual usage running ahead of the budget - a colder winter or a rate increase both do it. The jump is the utility protecting the settle: a plan left too low ends in one large catch-up bill the customer never planned for.