Renewable energy plans: what "100% renewable" really buys, what it costs and how to check a claim

It is an electricity plan where the seller buys renewable energy certificates to match what you use. The EPA says a certificate, or REC, is made when one megawatt-hour of power is generated from a renewable source and put on the grid. That is 1,000 kWh. Power on the grid carries no tag that says where it came from, so the certificate is the record of ownership. The EPA says buyers need certificates to back a claim that they use renewable power.

Your utility still owns the wires. Only the company that sells the power changes. Our how to switch guide shows the steps and your cancel days.

The words are not the same, and the rule depends on the state. The FTC's Green Guides, section 260.15, say a marketer should not make an unqualified renewable claim if fossil power runs any part of the product, unless it matches that power with certificates. They also say to qualify the claim, for example by naming the source, such as wind or solar.

The FTC adds a rule that surprises people. A company that makes its own solar power but sells all the certificates for it cannot say it uses renewable energy. The buyer of the certificates gets the claim.

The Texas rule on the word "green" is in our Texas green plans guide.

Answer five questions about the plan's own wording. The checker marks what is clear and lists what to ask the seller for. Then add the green price and the same seller's standard price to see what the label costs a month.

1. 1
   Read the plan page.

   Use the seller's own words.

2. 2
   Answer the five questions.

   Pick "I cannot tell" when it does not say.

3. 3
   Type the prices (optional).

   Use cents per kWh, with fees in the plan terms.

4. 4
   Ask for what is missing.

   Get it in writing.

The checker reads wording, not facts. A plan can answer all five questions and still be a poor price, so test the price against your utility's price to compare too. Nothing you type leaves your browser.

It depends on your area, and in some places it is nothing. The cleanest test is the same seller's standard plan against its green plan, because the gap is what the certificates cost you. Here is what our robots read on each state's own list.

To turn a gap into dollars, multiply it by your kWh and divide by 100. This table does it for you.

A green plan can still be a bad deal if it has a monthly fee, a short teaser price or a high cancel fee. A green plan above your utility's price to compare costs more than doing nothing. Our guides for Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas and New Jersey put today's prices next to each state's default.

Each state makes a seller show something, and it is easy to ask for. The rules below are the ones that matter for a green claim, as we read them on Oct. 24 and 25, 2026.

Illinois has the strongest rule of the five. It also applies to suppliers serving a city's group-buying program. If you shop in Illinois, ask for the yearly note after you sign.

What Green-e adds. Green-e is a certification program run by the nonprofit Center for Resource Solutions. Its own page says certified power must come from approved sources such as wind, solar, geothermal, certain biomass and low-impact hydropower. It says only newer facilities, built in the last 15 years, qualify, and it checks that power is not counted twice, for example toward a state goal. A Green-e seal is not required by law. It is a second check you can ask for, and you can look a seller up in Green-e's certification search.

Not always. A certificate proves renewable power was made somewhere. It does not prove your purchase caused a new wind farm or solar field to be built. The EPA's certificate page does not claim it does.

The age rule helps a little. Green-e says only newer facilities qualify, so a certified plan cannot rest on certificates from old plants alone. Even so, ask where and when the power was made. Also remember that many states already make every seller buy some renewable power. A plan sold as plain may already carry some. Our state guides say how much in Ohio and Pennsylvania.

Green Mountain Energy sells electricity plans that it says are backed by 100% renewable energy from wind or solar. Its website lists service in Texas, Illinois, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York and Massachusetts, as we read it on October 25, 2026. Plans, prices and states change, so use your ZIP to see what it sells at your address.

We track one of its Texas plans each day. On October 24, 2026, its 12-month fixed plan in the CenterPoint Houston area cost 15.2¢ per kWh at 1,000 kWh. The cheapest 100% renewable 12-month plan in that area cost 12.0¢. That is one plan, in one area, on one day. Read the plan's facts label for the real terms.

Our Green Mountain Energy review for Texas scores it 70 out of 100 (Good) from public records. The same questions apply to any seller: what percent, what source, what proof, what price after the term.

Only some states let homes choose who sells them power. The U.S. Energy Information Administration last counted 13 states plus Washington, D.C. with statewide residential choice, not counting Texas (article dated March 15, 2023, so check your own state). Our plan finder shows plans in 5 states: TX, PA, OH, NJ and IL. Enter your ZIP in the finder. It shows nothing outside those states.

If your state does not let homes choose a seller, or you have a city utility or a co-op, you may still have a way to buy green. Ask your utility if it sells a green power program, and ask your city if it runs a group-buying plan. A city program can make a green share the default. Our Cleveland guide shows one that sells a 100% renewable default, a 50% option and a plain option side by side.