Columbus electricity: who sells your power, what it costs and how to shop

It depends on your address. Most homes get delivery from AEP Ohio, also called Ohio Power Company, and choose from three ways to buy the power. A part of Columbus is served by the city's own utility instead.

AEP Ohio delivers the power in the first three cases and sends the bill. Your bill shows which one you have. If you are in the program, it shows the program's supplier on the bill.

Today its price is lower than AEP Ohio's price to compare, and it was below AEP Ohio's average in five of the last six contract years. Type your kWh and an offer you were quoted. The tool shows what each costs a month. It uses the program's price and AEP Ohio's price to compare as of the dates below.

1. 1
   Type your kWh.

   Use the "kWh used" line on your AEP Ohio bill.

2. 2
   Read the two prices.

   The program is 10.01¢ and AEP Ohio's price is 10.19¢.

3. 3
   Add an offer if you have one.

   Type its price and any monthly fee.

4. 4
   Compare.

   The tool names the lowest cost for the month.

The result covers the power price only, not delivery or taxes, and it cannot see a price change after a term ends. Nothing you type is sent or saved.

The program's own page compares its 10.01¢ with 10.97¢, an average of AEP Ohio's price for the same June to May year. Against today's posted price the gap is smaller. At 900 kWh a month, each 0.1¢ is about $11 a year. Our AEP Ohio guide shows how the default price has moved.

The program was below AEP Ohio's average in five of the last six contract years. It was above it once, in June 2021 to May 2022, when its 5.499¢ rate was about 0.30¢ over AEP Ohio's average. The program publishes the AEP Ohio averages. It says figures before 2024 are estimates from PUCO's historical chart.

A past win does not promise a future one. The program's price is set once a year, and AEP Ohio's price changes in blocks. Check both when the new term starts in June.

You may be, if AEP Ohio delivers to your home in Columbus. The program says that if you are an AEP Ohio customer in Columbus, chances are you are already enrolled. Your bill will show the supplier. Call the program at 866-856-5654 or check your address on its site.

It is a utility owned by the City of Columbus. The City says it provides power to industry, business and residential customers through its own distribution system, and uses its profit to fund street lights. It has its own service area, so you can check yours on the City's map. Its customers cannot pick a supplier or join the program.

Call the Division of Power at 614-645-8276 on weekdays from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. For a power outage or a downed wire, the City's after-hours line is 614-645-7627. The City says its residential rates are currently lower than the local commercial provider's. It does not publish a price per kWh on that page, so we do not compare it here.

Leaving is free, the program says. Opt out through the program, then pick a supplier from PUCO's Energy Choice Ohio chart or go back to AEP Ohio's default price. Compare first, because an offer can look lower and cost more once a fee is added.

1. Check your priceThe program's price is 10.01¢ through May 2027.
2. Compare offersUse the chart for AEP Ohio, or the tool above.
3. Opt out if it winsCall 866-856-5654. The program says there is no fee.
4. Watch for the letterAEP Ohio confirms the switch. You have seven days to stop it.

Our Apples to Apples guide explains the chart. Already have a supplier? Our contract ending guide shows the notices you are owed.