{"id":302458,"date":"2026-05-06T14:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-05-06T18:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/?post_type=short-read&p=302458"},"modified":"2026-05-08T09:16:00","modified_gmt":"2026-05-08T13:16:00","slug":"many-americans-hold-utility-companies-responsible-for-their-rising-home-energy-bills","status":"publish","type":"short-read","link":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/short-reads\/2026\/05\/06\/many-americans-hold-utility-companies-responsible-for-their-rising-home-energy-bills\/","title":{"rendered":"Many Americans hold utility companies responsible for their rising home energy bills"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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(Ivelin Denev\/iStock\/Getty Images Plus)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Home energy costs are rising faster than inflation<\/a> in the United States, and there\u2019s no sign<\/a> that the increases are slowing down.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Overall, three-quarters of U.S. adults say their home energy costs have gone up in recent years, <\/strong>according to a recent Pew Research Center survey. This includes 42% who say these costs have gone up a lot<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When asked why they think their home energy costs are rising, Americans most commonly say it\u2019s due to utility companies wanting to make more money:<\/strong> 64% say this is a major reason. But many see other factors at play, too. For example, most say electrical grid upgrade costs and increased energy use at data centers are at least minor reasons for their rising bills.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Related<\/em><\/strong>:<\/strong> <\/em>What we know about energy use at U.S. data centers amid the AI boom<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

These findings are based on a survey conducted March 16-22, 2026, among 3,524 U.S. adults. We asked a random half of all respondents about rising home energy costs and asked the other half about rising home insurance costs<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

About this research<\/summary>\n

This Pew Research Center analysis looks at Americans\u2019 experiences with home energy costs and their opinions about why costs are rising.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Why did we do this?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pew Research Center does research to help the public, media and decision-makers understand important topics. This research builds on our work studying economic conditions in the U.S.<\/a> and Americans\u2019 views of energy issues<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Learn more about Pew Research Center<\/a> and our research on science and society<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How did we do this?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

We surveyed 3,524 U.S. adults from March 16 to 22, 2026, including 1,753 respondents who received questions about home energy costs. Everyone who took part in the survey is a member of the Center\u2019s American Trends Panel. The survey represents the views of the full U.S. adult population.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here are the survey questions<\/a> used for this analysis, the detailed responses<\/a> and the survey methodology<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This analysis also relies on data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration<\/a> (EIA) to highlight residential electricity<\/a> and natural gas<\/a> prices by state.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n\n\n\n

In all regions, most Americans say their home energy costs have gone up<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

At least seven-in-ten adults in each of the four census-designated regions<\/a> of the country \u2013 the Northeast, Midwest, South and West \u2013 say their home energy prices increased a lot or a little in the last few years.<\/p>\n\n\n

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3 in 4 U.S. adults say their home energy costs have gone up in the last few years<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
% who say that over the last few years, their home energy costs have gone up \u2026<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
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Note: Respondents who said \u201cStayed about the same,\u201d \u201cGone down a lot\/a little,\u201d \u201cNot sure\u201d or did not give an answer are not shown.<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
Source: Survey of U.S. adults conducted March 16-22, 2026.<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
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