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A NorthWestern Energy bill for 1,000 kWh on Schedule REDS-1 is $162.48 in November 2026 (16.2¢ per kWh, before tax). This calculator uses the NorthWestern Energy Residential Electric Delivery Service (with Electricity Supply Service) tariff (Schedule REDS-1) and its riders. Type the kWh from your bill. The result shows each charge on a different line.
A NorthWestern Energy bill for 1,000 kWh on Schedule REDS-1, with all charges, at the rates in effect at our last check on October 16, 2026:
| Billing month | Bill | Average price per kWh |
|---|---|---|
| November | $162.48 | 16.25¢ |
| Charge | Rate |
|---|---|
| Monthly service charge | $4.20 per month |
| Distribution energy | 4.4983¢ per kWh |
The average price includes the base rates and the riders. See all rates and riders, the example bills and the sources.
In 2025, the average NorthWestern Energy home that bought its power from NorthWestern Energy used 707 kWh a month and paid $101.97 a month (14.4¢ per kWh). The average for all homes in Montana was $110.80 (853 kWh, 13.0¢ per kWh). These are yearly averages from the EIA-861 data of the U.S. Energy Information Administration, at the rates of 2025. See the average electric bill in Montana and in each state. To turn the watts of an appliance into dollars, use the electricity cost calculator.
For an apartment: with the EIA average kWh of small homes in the West, a 1-bedroom apartment (447 kWh) costs about $74.94 a month on REDS-1 and a 2-bedroom apartment (663 kWh) about $109.13 (November rates, before taxes). See the apartment electric bill at each utility.
See all 5 NorthWestern Energy bill help programs, with who qualifies, how to apply, state energy assistance and the shutoff rules.
Rate cases of NorthWestern Energy that are pending or were decided since 2025, from the official documents. The calculator above uses the rates in effect now; a pending request is not in it.
Decided
Charging an electric car for 1,000 miles a month (300 kWh) overnight on weekdays adds this much to a 1,000 kWh November bill:
| Plan | A month | Per 100 miles | Charging period |
|---|---|---|---|
| REDS-1Residential Electric Delivery Service (with Electricity Supply Service) | $47.47 | $4.75 | All hours |
Use your own miles, car and charging time in the EV charging cost calculator.
No account needed: all rate changes (RSS feed) · a monthly reminder for your calendar · save your bills in this browser. Each month, the bill comparison shows what 1,000 kWh costs at every utility.
With the solar output of Butte (PVWatts), a 6 kW system makes about 7,829 kWh a year. On a home that uses 1,000 kWh a month, it cuts the yearly bill by:
| Plan | Bill a year without solar | Savings a year |
|---|---|---|
| REDS-1Residential Electric Delivery Service (with Electricity Supply Service) | $1,949.76 | $1,239.24 |
If each solar kWh replaces a kWh bought at the full price within the month (monthly net metering). A lower credit for the power you send to the grid, or a solar fee, makes the savings smaller. Use your own kWh, city and system in the solar savings calculator.
NorthWestern Energy rebates and energy-saving programs: the page lists home energy audit, solar. See also the home energy rebates in Montana. Checked October 22, 2026.
Official links and phone numbers from the NorthWestern Energy website, checked October 20, 2026. This site is not part of NorthWestern Energy: for an outage or a question about your account, use these links.
If you see a downed power line, stay away from it and call NorthWestern Energy at 888-467-2669 or 911.
Terms on this tariff: Deferral, Distribution charge, Service charge, System benefits charge, Transition charge, Transmission charge. See the electric bill glossary.
Do you want solar panels or an electric vehicle? The US solar calculator and the EV charging from solar calculator on ProSolarCalc estimate the savings and the payback. Also read what changed in the federal solar tax credit in 2026. Sri Murugan Systems also makes ProSolarCalc.
Do you have your hourly usage file? Compare NorthWestern Energy plans with your Green Button data.
Why is my NorthWestern Energy bill so high? Check your bill against NorthWestern Energy REDS-1. How does NorthWestern Energy compare? See the monthly bill comparison.
What does an appliance cost to run on this tariff? Use the appliance cost tool with NorthWestern Energy REDS-1.
These values come from the official tariff documents of NorthWestern Energy. The Montana Public Service Commission approves these tariffs.
| Charge | Rate |
|---|---|
| Monthly service charge | $4.20 per month |
| Distribution energy | 4.4983¢ per kWh |
| Item | Rate | Applies to | Schedule |
|---|---|---|---|
| Supply Electricity Supply Service rate without the tax portion. The total supply rate is $0.067939 per kWh. Of this, $0.005201 is the tax portion (the supply taxes line). |
6.2738¢ per kWh | All kWh | Schedule No. ESS-1, 234th Revised Sheet No. 60.1 |
| Deferred supply The supply deferred charge of ESS-1. It amortizes the deferred balance of the power costs and credits adjustment mechanism (PCCAM, Schedule EPCC-1). |
1.2176¢ per kWh | All kWh | Schedule No. ESS-1, 234th Revised Sheet No. 60.1 |
| Supply taxes The tax portion of the ESS-1 supply rate: state and local taxes and fees. NorthWestern shows it as a separate line on the bill. |
0.5201¢ per kWh | All kWh | Schedule No. ESS-1, 234th Revised Sheet No. 60.1 |
| Competitive transition charge, qualifying facilities (CTC-QF) Recovers the out-of-market costs of qualifying facility power contracts. NorthWestern changes it each July 1. |
0.3187¢ per kWh | All kWh | Schedule No. CTC-QF-1, 24th Revised Sheet No. 61.1 |
| Transmission Residential transmission rate without the tax portion. The total rate is $0.015752 per kWh. |
1.269¢ per kWh | All kWh | Schedule No. ESS-1, 80th Revised Sheet No. 60.2 |
| Distribution tax The tax portion of the REDS-1 energy rate: state and local taxes and fees. |
1.2217¢ per kWh | All kWh | Schedule No. REDS-1, 78th Revised Sheet No. 10.1 |
| Transmission tax The tax portion of the ESS-1 residential transmission rate. |
0.3062¢ per kWh | All kWh | Schedule No. ESS-1, 80th Revised Sheet No. 60.2 |
| BPA residential exchange credit Credit from the Bonneville Power Administration for regional residential customers. |
−0.2133¢ per kWh | All kWh | Schedule No. REDS-1, 78th Revised Sheet No. 10.1 |
| Wildfire protection charge (WMBA-1) Wildfire mitigation balancing account. It recovers the cost of the wildfire mitigation plan and wildfire insurance. |
0.2815¢ per kWh | All kWh | Schedule No. WMBA-1, 2nd Revised Sheet No. 87.2 |
| Universal system benefits charge (USBC) Recovers the cost of energy conservation, low-income weatherization and low-income bill assistance programs. |
0.1334¢ per kWh | All kWh | Schedule No. E-USBC-1, Original Sheet No. 50.1 |
Minimum monthly bill: Schedule REDS-1 does not state a minimum charge. The monthly service charge of $4.20 applies each month.
A bill that crosses a season or rate change: The rates are the same all year. The sheets apply to services rendered on or after their effective date. The calculator uses the current rates for the full billing period. It does not split a billing period that crosses a rate change.
These examples use 1,000 kWh. Each column uses the rates of the billing month in its heading. The examples do not include taxes.
| Line | All year (November) |
|---|---|
| Monthly service charge | $4.20 |
| Supply | $62.74 |
| Deferred supply | $12.18 |
| Supply taxes | $5.20 |
| Competitive transition charge, qualifying facilities (CTC-QF) | $3.19 |
| Transmission | $12.69 |
| Distribution energy | $44.98 |
| Distribution tax | $12.22 |
| Transmission tax | $3.06 |
| BPA residential exchange credit | −$2.13 |
| Wildfire protection charge (WMBA-1) | $2.82 |
| Universal system benefits charge (USBC) | $1.33 |
| Total before tax | $162.48 |
The calculator rounds each line to the cent. Each percentage uses the rounded lines.
We read each value from the official documents below. The approval column shows the docket, order or advice number that is printed on each sheet. Last check: October 16, 2026.
| Document | Used for | Effective | Approval |
|---|---|---|---|
| Schedule No. REDS-1, 78th Revised Sheet No. 10.1 | Monthly service charge, distribution energy, Distribution tax, BPA residential exchange credit | October 15, 2026 | Docket No.: 2024.05.053; Staff Approved: October 14, 2026, Pursuant to Delegated Authority |
| Schedule No. ESS-1, 234th Revised Sheet No. 60.1 | Supply, deferred supply, supply taxes | October 15, 2026 | Docket No.: 2024.05.053; Staff Approved: October 14, 2026, Pursuant to Delegated Authority |
| Schedule No. CTC-QF-1, 24th Revised Sheet No. 61.1 | Competitive transition charge, qualifying facilities (CTC-QF) | July 1, 2026 | Docket No.: 0097.07.090; Staff Approved: June 30, 2026, Pursuant to Delegated Authority |
| Schedule No. ESS-1, 80th Revised Sheet No. 60.2 | Transmission, Transmission tax | October 15, 2026 | Docket No.: 2024.05.053; Staff Approved: October 14, 2026, Pursuant to Delegated Authority |
| Schedule No. WMBA-1, 2nd Revised Sheet No. 87.2 | Wildfire protection charge (WMBA-1) | October 15, 2026 | Docket No.: 2024.05.053; Staff Approved: October 14, 2026, Pursuant to Delegated Authority |
| Schedule No. E-USBC-1, Original Sheet No. 50.1 | Universal system benefits charge (USBC) | July 1, 2002 (rate table: on and after January 1, 1999) | Docket No. D2001.1.5 (Order 6353c) |
Values read from the NorthWestern Energy Montana electric tariff sheets REDS-1, ESS-1, CTC-QF-1, E-USBC-1 and WMBA-1, linked from the NorthWestern Montana electric rates and tariffs page. The sheets are scanned images, so we read them by OCR and checked each value on the page image. For each sheet, the tax portion plus the rate without tax equals the printed total rate. NorthWestern's rate summary workbook (Rates at a Glance, dated October 15, 2026) shows the same 12 residential lines for 750 kWh. The calculator gives the same lines and the same total ($122.90). The other test bills are hand calculations. NorthWestern Energy Montana rate summary workbook (Rates at a Glance), October 15, 2026.
Commission check (2026-10-16): not confirmed. Montana PSC staff approved the October 15, 2026 sheets under delegated authority (Docket No. 2024.05.053). Schedule EPCC-1 says that the annual power costs and credits filing gives interim rates from October 1. We could not open the PSC record, so we did not compare with it. Montana Public Service Commission.
In 2025, the average NorthWestern Energy home that bought its power from NorthWestern Energy used 707 kWh a month and paid $101.97 a month, 14.4¢ per kWh (EIA-861 data). That is less than the Montana average of $110.80. Your bill depends on your kWh: use the calculator on this page with the kWh from your bill.
Montana law lets NorthWestern recover state and local taxes and fees in its rates. The tariff shows the tax portion of each rate. The bill shows the supply taxes, the distribution tax and the transmission tax as separate lines.
It is a per-kWh charge that recovers the difference between the forecast and the actual power costs of earlier periods. It is part of Schedule ESS-1.
It is a credit from the Bonneville Power Administration. Residential customers in the Pacific Northwest region get a share of the benefits of the federal hydro system.
NorthWestern says that the supply rate and the state and local taxes change next on January 1, 2027. The supply rate usually changes each quarter. CTC-QF changes each July 1.
The most common reason is more kWh: heating and air conditioning use much electricity. More days in the billing period also add kWh and daily charges. To see which reason applies to your bill, use the Why is my bill so high tool on this site: type your bill and an earlier bill, and it shows each reason in dollars.
Your bill can include sales tax, a city fee, a discount, a late fee or a different number of days. Type the number of days from your bill. To add tax, type the tax rate from your bill in the tax field. If your tariff has a discount program, select it in the options.
Your bill shows the kWh for the billing period. Look for the meter reading section or the usage section.
To report a power outage to NorthWestern Energy, call 888-467-2669, or use the outage map on the NorthWestern Energy website. If you see a downed power line, stay away from it and call the utility or 911.
utilityratecalc.com is not part of NorthWestern Corporation, doing business as NorthWestern Energy or the Montana Public Service Commission. For the official values, use your bill and the tariff of NorthWestern Energy.