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Here’s how to save money on your electric bill in Boston

"You could be on a 100 percent local, renewable electricity plan from sources like solar or wind and be paying less than Eversource's basic service."

Krisztian Bocsi/Bloomberg

December 15, 2021

As electric customers across the country face the pinch of higher bills, Boston officials are reminding residents there’s a way they can save on energy expenses this winter.

Mayor Michelle Wu on Wednesday announced that starting on Jan. 1, rates for the city’s Community Choice Electricity program will be lower than Eversource’s basic service rate for at least six months.

That could mean a savings of about $27 dollars per month for the average Eversource customer with a basic hook-up who switches to the CCE’s standard option, according to the Wu administration.

“With these new rates, you could be on a 100 percent local, renewable electricity plan from sources like solar or wind and be paying less than Eversource’s basic service,” Wu said during a press conference.

As a city councilor, Wu and fellow Councilor Matt O’Malley first pushed the concept of the municipal energy aggregation program in 2017. Residents were ultimately offered the option beginning in February.

Through the program, the city uses its collective buying power to secure lower, competitive rates of renewable electricity for residents and businesses.

CCE customers have three options to choose from, each with a different amount of electricity generated by renewable energy sources, from 18 to 100 percent, according to Rev. Mariama White-Hammond, the city’s chief of Environment, Energy, and Open Space.

CCE customers keep Eversource as their utility that delivers electricity and the company also handles billing, customer service, power outages, and grid maintenance.

Interested residents can opt into the program via the city’s website.

According to the Wu administration, Eversource’s new basic rates are at 15-year highs and will remain in effect between Jan. 1 and June 30, 2022.

Notably, the city cannot guarantee that CCE rates will remain lower than Eversource’s rates after June 30, but Wu urged unenrolled residents to consider the option as a potential cost savings move as the winter months set in.

“This is a step not just to lower your rates, but to invest in protecting our environment and investing in our shared future,” Wu said.

Both Wu and White-Hammond also spoke on Wednesday about third-party electricity suppliers who promise lower rates that don’t last long if at all.

Many of those suppliers often send employees door-to-door in Boston and use “predatory tactics” that disproportionately impact communities of color and households where languages other than English are spoken, according to Wu.

“We want to help you,” White-Hammond said. “We don’t want residents overpaying when they could have cheaper and cleaner energy in their portfolio.”