Electricity Prices by Region - Cents per kWh - November 2025
Compare electricity prices across 40+ New Zealand towns and cities - official MBIE data shows Wellington cheapest at 34.61c/kWh, Balclutha most expensive at 48.93c.
Updated 27 December 2025
Key Findings – November 2025 - Sourced from MBIE data
Our guide covers:
About This Data
Our View: The QSDEP provides a like-for-like comparison across all regions. It's not perfect - your actual bill depends on your usage, meter setup and retailer - but it's the most transparent benchmark available.
- NZ Average: 39.3 cents/kWh
- Cheapest: Wellington City (34.61c/kWh)
- Most Expensive: Balclutha (48.93c/kWh)
- Price Gap: 14.32c difference (41% more expensive)
Our guide covers:
About This Data
- We source our pricing data from the Ministry of Business, Innovation & Employment's (MBIE) Quarterly Survey of Domestic Electricity Prices (QSDEP).
- It's the only independent, government-published benchmark that compares what New Zealanders actually pay for power across the country. We update this guide after each quarterly release.
- The QSDEP models a household using 8,000 kWh per year (roughly 22 kWh per day) on a low-user plan with controlled hot water - that's a typical New Zealand home and consistent with our power company comparison research.
- All prices include GST and are based on the cheapest publicly advertised rate without locking into a fixed-term contract.
Our View: The QSDEP provides a like-for-like comparison across all regions. It's not perfect - your actual bill depends on your usage, meter setup and retailer - but it's the most transparent benchmark available.
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Electricity Prices by Location
All prices in NZ cents per kWh (including GST). We have sorted the locations from cheapest to most expensive, based on data from MBIE.
| Location | Lines Company | Total Price | Lines | Energy |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wellington City | Wellington Electricity Lines | 34.61 | 11.30 | 23.30 |
| Ashburton | EA Networks | 35.14 | 10.60 | 24.50 |
| Christchurch | Orion NZ | 35.54 | 13.20 | 22.30 |
| Nelson | Nelson Electricity | 36.40 | 10.50 | 25.90 |
| Invercargill | Electricity Invercargill | 36.61 | 12.30 | 24.30 |
| Richmond | Network Tasman | 37.04 | 10.90 | 26.10 |
| Hamilton | WEL Networks | 37.43 | 13.50 | 23.90 |
| Auckland Central | Vector (Auckland) | 38.09 | 14.20 | 23.80 |
| Auckland North Shore | Vector (Northern) | 38.37 | 14.30 | 24.10 |
| Dunedin | Aurora Energy (Dunedin) | 38.75 | 14.00 | 24.80 |
| Napier | Unison (Hawke's Bay) | 38.93 | 14.30 | 24.60 |
| Queenstown | Aurora Energy (Queenstown) | 39.40 | 15.70 | 23.80 |
| Palmerston North | Powerco (Manawatu) | 39.89 | 18.20 | 21.70 |
| New Plymouth | Powerco (Nth Taranaki) | 40.24 | 18.20 | 22.00 |
| Rotorua | Unison (Rotorua) | 40.26 | 13.60 | 26.70 |
| Taupo | Unison (Taupo) | 40.42 | 13.60 | 26.80 |
| Whakatane | Horizon Energy (Urban) | 40.78 | 16.20 | 24.60 |
| Whanganui | Powerco (Whanganui) | 40.82 | 18.20 | 22.60 |
| Timaru | Alpine Energy | 40.80 | 17.10 | 23.70 |
| Thames | Powerco (Thames Valley) | 41.17 | 17.00 | 24.20 |
| Cambridge | Waipa Networks | 41.24 | 16.50 | 24.80 |
| Paraparaumu | Electra | 41.37 | 18.70 | 22.60 |
| Winton | The Power Company (Urban) | 41.38 | 17.10 | 24.30 |
| Oamaru | Network Waitaki | 41.81 | 17.50 | 24.30 |
| Whangarei | Northpower | 42.21 | 16.60 | 25.60 |
| Tauranga | Powerco (Tauranga) | 42.27 | 14.50 | 27.80 |
| Otorohanga | The Lines Company | 42.79 | 18.90 | 23.90 |
| Taumaranui | The Lines Company | 42.79 | 18.90 | 23.90 |
| Pukekohe | Counties Power | 42.85 | 18.20 | 24.60 |
| Dannevirke | Scanpower | 43.62 | 19.60 | 24.00 |
| Kaiapoi | Mainpower (Kaiapoi) | 43.72 | 20.30 | 23.50 |
| Rangiora | Mainpower (North Canterbury) | 44.10 | 20.30 | 23.80 |
| Blenheim | Marlborough Lines | 44.61 | 18.00 | 26.60 |
| Masterton | Powerco (Wairarapa) | 44.70 | 21.30 | 23.40 |
| Hawera | Powerco (Sth Taranaki) | 44.98 | 21.30 | 23.70 |
| Gisborne | Firstlight Network | 45.27 | 18.80 | 26.40 |
| Greymouth | Westpower | 45.45 | 18.00 | 27.40 |
| Cromwell | Aurora Energy (Clyde/Cromwell) | 45.71 | 21.80 | 23.90 |
| Westport | Buller Electricity | 45.72 | 18.60 | 27.20 |
| Waipukurau | Centralines | 47.02 | 23.10 | 23.90 |
| Kerikeri | Top Energy | 48.52 | 22.10 | 26.50 |
| Balclutha | OtagoNet Joint Venture | 48.93 | 22.80 | 26.10 |
Source: MBIE Quarterly Survey of Domestic Electricity Prices (QSDEP), November 2025. All prices in NZ cents per kWh including GST. Based on 8,000 kWh annual usage on cheapest low-user tariff without fixed-term contract.
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​Understanding Your Electricity Price
Your power bill is made up of two parts, and understanding them explains why someone in Wellington pays much less than someone in Balclutha. Cost factors include:
1) Lines Charges (the bit you can't control)
2) Energy & Other Costs (where you can save)
Why the price gap is so big
The difference between the cheapest and most expensive regions is 10+ cents per kWh. What drives that difference includes:
1) Lines Charges (the bit you can't control)
- This is what it costs to get electricity from the power station to your house - the poles, wires, substations and your share of the national grid.
- You don't get to choose your lines company; your address determines it. And this is where the big regional differences come from.
- Maintaining power lines across remote hill country costs a lot more than running cables through central Wellington or Auckland.
- This means that if you live somewhere rural or hard to reach, you're paying for that geography.
2) Energy & Other Costs (where you can save)
- This is the actual power, plus your retailer's margin, meter costs and various levies. It's more consistent across the country - a kilowatt-hour generated at Manapouri costs roughly the same whether you're in Auckland or Invercargill.
- The retailer margin is the bit worth focusing on - this is where competition happens, and where switching providers can genuinely save you money. You can see the differences per city in our power company comparison.
Why the price gap is so big
The difference between the cheapest and most expensive regions is 10+ cents per kWh. What drives that difference includes:
- Geography matters: Stringing power lines through the Far North or the West Coast costs more than dense urban networks. Wellington Electricity serves a compact city; Top Energy in Kerikeri serves a spread-out region with challenging terrain.
- Who's paying for upgrades: Some networks have recently invested heavily in infrastructure and are passing those costs on now. Others are coasting on older, fully paid-off assets.
- Density: More households sharing the same poles and wires means lower costs per home. Auckland and Wellington win here despite having millions of customers.
- Trust distributions: Many lines companies are community-owned and return money to local consumers. Entrust (Auckland) pays out annually; regional trusts offer discounts of 1–5c/kWh. These rebates aren't in the QSDEP figures, so some regions are cheaper than they appear.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Our guide to comparing power prices is more specific to what homeowners pay - we list common questions about QSDEP reporting below:
What is the QSDEP?
The Quarterly Survey of Domestic Electricity Prices is a government report published by MBIE four times a year. It's been running since the 1990s, and it's the only independent benchmark we have for comparing power prices across New Zealand.
Unlike electricity comparison sites, the QSDEP just reports the numbers. We use it because it's transparent and consistent, following the same methodology and household profile every quarter.
Unlike electricity comparison sites, the QSDEP just reports the numbers. We use it because it's transparent and consistent, following the same methodology and household profile every quarter.
Why 8,000 kWh? Is that realistic?
It's the benchmark MBIE uses in their reporting for a "typical" New Zealand household, and it conveniently sits below the low-user threshold everywhere in the country. Whether or not it is realistic depends on your home. A couple in an apartment might use 5,000 kWh. A family of five with a heat pump running all winter could easily hit 12,000 kWh. The point isn't that 8,000 kWh matches your usage - it's that it gives us a consistent number to compare regions. Your actual bill will be different.
Will I pay these prices?
Probably not exactly - the QSDEP shows the cheapest advertised rate for a specific customer profile. Your actual price depends on your retailer, plan, meter type, and any discounts you've been offered. Our power company comparison has the latest retail pricing and explains what you need to know.
Some people pay less (prompt payment discounts, loyalty deals, trust rebates). Plenty pay more because they've never switched, and their provider knows it. For these reasons, it's best to think of these figures as benchmarks, not quotes.
Some people pay less (prompt payment discounts, loyalty deals, trust rebates). Plenty pay more because they've never switched, and their provider knows it. For these reasons, it's best to think of these figures as benchmarks, not quotes.
Can I switch lines companies to get a cheaper rate?
No. Your lines company is a monopoly - it's determined by where you live and you're stuck with them. If you're in a high-cost area like Kerikeri or Balclutha, that's included in your bill, and there's nothing you can do about it. What you can control is your retailer. That's where the competition is, and that's where switching actually saves money. We suggest looking at our power comparison guide to understand what's on offer.
How current is this data?
MBIE publishes the QSDEP in February, May, August and November. We aim to update this guide within a couple of weeks of each release. Keep in mind that lines companies typically adjust their prices around 1 April each year, so the May survey usually captures the biggest changes.
