Utility Default Supply Rates, Explained
Published October 2026 · Reviewed October 2026 · PowerRelief
When you've never shopped for electricity, your utility buys supply on your behalf and passes the cost through. Every state names this default product differently, sets it differently, and changes it on a different schedule. This guide covers how each of the seven choice markets works.
What "default service" is
Default service is the supply product your utility provides when you haven't chosen a competitive supplier. The utility doesn't profit on it — it procures electricity through a state-supervised process and passes the cost through to you at whatever that process produces. That's precisely why the number moves: it reprices on a schedule, and each repricing can raise or lower the supply line on your bill. Delivery charges are separate, regulated, and unchanged in every case.
The same idea, seven different names
| Market | Default product | Major utilities | Reprice behavior |
|---|---|---|---|
| Maryland | Standard Offer Service | BGE, Pepco, Delmarva Power, et al. | Standard Offer Service resets June 1 |
| Pennsylvania | Price to Compare | PECO, PPL Electric, Duquesne Light, et al. | Price to Compare resets December 1 |
| Washington, D.C. | Standard Offer Service | Pepco | Pepco's Standard Offer Service resets December 1 |
| Massachusetts | Basic Service | Eversource, National Grid, Unitil | Basic service resets February 1 |
| New Jersey | Basic Generation Service | PSE&G, JCP&L, Atlantic City Electric, et al. | Basic Generation Service resets June 1 |
| Ohio | Default generation rate | AEP Ohio, Duke Energy Ohio, Ohio Edison, et al. | Default generation rate resets June 1 |
| New York | Default service (market pass-through) | Con Edison, National Grid, NYSEG, et al. | Moves with the market — no fixed number |
Reset schedules above reflect the schedule each utility follows; individual utilities within a state can differ. See each state page for current detail.
How each market sets it
- Maryland & D.C. — Standard Offer Service (SOS). Procured on rolling schedules; several utilities reset twice a year. See Maryland electricity rates or D.C. electricity rates.
- Pennsylvania — Price to Compare (PTC). The default supply number you're meant to compare supplier offers against; PECO resets it twice a year while PPL and Duquesne follow their own schedules. See Pennsylvania electricity rates.
- Massachusetts — Basic Service. Set in six-month blocks; the DPU deliberately splits January and February across two blocks to soften the winter spike. See Massachusetts electricity rates.
- New Jersey — Basic Generation Service (BGS). Set annually at the BGS auction, effective June 1. See New Jersey electricity rates.
- Ohio — default generation. Set by auction and auction-based mechanisms; AEP Ohio's rate holds for a year at a time. The state's program is Energy Choice Ohio. See Ohio electricity rates.
- New York — default service. No fixed number at all: utilities buy in competitive markets and pass through a price that varies with weather, demand and market prices. Residential ESCO offers must be fixed or renewable. See New York electricity rates.
How to use this in a decision
The default rate is your comparison baseline: any supplier offer is worth considering against what your utility is currently charging for the same electricity. Two cautions. First, the default rate changes — a comparison against last June's number can be stale. Second, compare structure, not just price: the term, the post-term rate and any cancellation fee belong in the comparison alongside the headline rate. See fixed vs variable rates for why the structure question so often decides it.
Sources
- U.S. Energy Information Administration — electricity data
- PA Power Switch — Pennsylvania's official shopping site
- Energy Switch Massachusetts — official DPU shopping site
- Power to Choose New York — official NY shopping site
- Energy Choice Ohio — official PUCO shopping site
- State public utility commissions — Maryland PSC, D.C. PSC, NJ BPU — default-service procurement rules
PowerRelief is a marketing service, not a utility or licensed electricity supplier. Educational content is reviewed periodically; rate and schedule data is dated and re-verified.
Want the current numbers for your utility?
Rates are quoted on the call — never published here.
About 2 minutes • No obligation to switch
