Average Utility Costs in Tennessee
Typical monthly utility costs in Tennessee are about $231.44/mo, based on 1,000 kWh of electricity and 5,000 gallons of water (plus sewer and trash where available). Covered cities include major metros such as Nashville, Memphis, and Knoxville—each with its own municipal or cooperative electric distributor and local water/sewer/trash fees.
Average Monthly Utility Costs in Tennessee
The average utility bill in Tennessee is estimated at $231.44 per month, a typical total assembled from median city estimates for electricity, water, sewer, and trash. To reflect a more typical bill across cities (and reduce the impact of outliers), these "average" values use the median of city estimates.
Assumptions: 1,000 kWh/month and 5,000 gallons/month (where applicable). "Average" values represent the median city estimate; water/sewer/trash medians exclude $0 entries when service or published rates vary by address. Actual bills vary by usage, fees, and provider.
Check Internet pricing & availability in Tennessee
Internet service varies widely—many providers, different plans, introductory offers, and bundles make it hard to compare apples to apples. That's why we don't estimate internet on this page like we do for electric, water, sewer, and trash. Use our tool to compare providers for your address or ZIP code.
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TVA power & your local electric bill
Most residents in the Tennessee cities we cover buy electricity from a local distribution utility—often a municipal system (for example NES, MLGW, or KUB) or a cooperative—while the Tennessee Valley Authority supplies wholesale power to the region. Your bill reflects that local utility's published residential tariff at our standard 1,000 kWh, including line items such as TVA Grid Access and periodic fuel adjustments as shown on the schedule we cite—not a single statewide retail rate.
Why totals differ city to city
Electric varies by local tariff; water, sewer, and trash are set separately by each city or authority. A low electric line item does not guarantee a low all-in utility total.
Cooling & seasonal use
Hot, humid summers push air-conditioning use. Our estimates hold usage constant so you can compare rate structures—your actual kWh may be higher in peak months.
Regulated retail model
Tennessee is not a Texas-style statewide residential power-choice market for most households. You generally receive service from the utility assigned to your area; compare cities here using the same usage assumptions.
Top electric providers in the Tennessee cities we cover
These utilities appear in our dataset for the cities below. Following them helps explain much of the electric portion of each estimate; water, sewer, and trash are still local.
Middle Tennessee Electric (MTE)
co op utility
Serves 2 covered Tennessee cities.
Example cities: Murfreesboro, Franklin
Nashville Electric Service (NES)
municipal utility
Serves 2 covered Tennessee cities.
Example cities: Nashville, Hendersonville
CDE Lightband (Clarksville Department of Electricity)
municipal utility
Serves 1 covered Tennessee city.
Example cities: Clarksville
Cookeville Electric Department
municipal utility
Serves 1 covered Tennessee city.
Example cities: Cookeville
Tennessee cities to compare first
Start with the largest covered metros if you're benchmarking costs or comparing a move. These pages combine the biggest service territories in our data with a wide range of water, sewer, and trash setups.
Davidson County • Nashville Electric Service (NES)
Estimated total monthly utilities
Shelby County • Memphis Light, Gas and Water (MLGW)
Estimated total monthly utilities
Knox County • Knoxville Utilities Board (KUB)
Estimated total monthly utilities
Montgomery County • CDE Lightband (Clarksville Department of Electricity)
Estimated total monthly utilities
Rutherford County • Middle Tennessee Electric (MTE)
Estimated total monthly utilities
Williamson County • Middle Tennessee Electric (MTE)
Estimated total monthly utilities
Washington County • BrightRidge
Estimated total monthly utilities
Madison County • Jackson Energy Authority (JEA)
Estimated total monthly utilities
Lowest total utility monthly cost in Tennessee
Top 5 cities with the lowest estimated total monthly utilities (electric + water + sewer + trash). This highlights affordability across all bill components, not electric alone.
These rankings are estimates for comparison at 1,000 kWh. For the full breakdown (electric, water, sewer, trash) by city, use the comparison table below.
Cheapest electric rates in Tennessee
Top 5 cities with the lowest estimated electric bill at 1,000 kWh (based on the serving utility and rate basis on each city page). See the comparison table below for all cities.
Most expensive total utility monthly cost in Tennessee
Top 5 cities with the highest estimated total (electric + water + sewer + trash). High totals are often driven by sewer, water, or fixed fees—not only the electric line item.
Compare all cities
Estimated monthly costs by city, sorted by total (highest first). Same assumed usage (1,000 kWh, 5,000 gal) for comparison; some cities may show $0 when no single published municipal rate is available or service varies by address. 11 cities; 10 per page.
| City | County | Electric | Water | Sewer | Trash | Total | View |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Knoxville | Knox County | $157.02 | $42.00 | $97.65 | $30.00 | $326.67 | View Knoxville details → |
| Franklin | Williamson County | $129.02 | $45.00 | $55.67 | $33.00 | $262.69 | View Franklin details → |
| Clarksville | Montgomery County | $139.07 | $31.00 | $46.00 | $17.00 | $233.07 | View Clarksville details → |
| Johnson City | Washington County | $140.48 | $29.20 | $44.49 | $16.25 | $230.42 | View Johnson City details → |
| Hendersonville | Sumner County | $137.18 | $25.80 | $48.00 | $17.59 | $228.57 | View Hendersonville details → |
| Memphis | Shelby County | $109.50 | $16.00 | $70.00 | $29.15 | $224.65 | View Memphis details → |
| Jackson | Madison County | $142.63 | $31.98 | $35.92 | $14.00 | $224.53 | View Jackson details → |
| Cookeville | Putnam County | $117.84 | $48.04 | $33.25 | $18.00 | $217.13 | View Cookeville details → |
| Gallatin | Sumner County | $122.85 | $33.67 | $33.67 | $21.00 | $211.19 | View Gallatin details → |
| Nashville | Davidson County | $137.18 | $34.21 | $35.10 | $0.00 | $206.49 | View Nashville details → |
Tennessee counties
View estimated utility costs by county. Each county page lists cities and a comparison table of monthly estimates.
Utility providers in Tennessee
In the cities we cover, electric is provided by BrightRidge (Johnson City); CDE Lightband (Clarksville Department of Electricity) (Clarksville); Cookeville Electric Department (Cookeville Tn); Gallatin Department of Electricity (GDE) (Gallatin Tn); Jackson Energy Authority (JEA) (Jackson Tn); Knoxville Utilities Board (KUB) (Knoxville); Memphis Light, Gas and Water (MLGW) (Memphis); Middle Tennessee Electric (MTE) (Franklin Tn, Murfreesboro); Nashville Electric Service (NES) (Hendersonville, Nashville) Most covered cities use municipal or cooperative local power companies supplied by TVA; retail rates include Grid Access and periodic fuel adjustments per each utility’s tariff. Water, sewer, and trash are set by city, county, or regional providers. Our estimates use each utility's published rate at 1,000 kWh. City pages show sources and last-verified dates.
See which electric, water, sewer, and trash providers serve different areas of Tennessee, along with typical residential rate information and sources.
View utility providers in Tennessee →Compare with nearby states
Compare utility costs in Tennessee with neighboring states.
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