Frequently Asked Questions

Time-of-Use (TOU) rates have different electricity prices based on the time of day electricity is used. Customers can manage their bills by shifting tasks that require electricity to off-peak hours when electricity costs are the lowest. Learn more about Time-of-Use rates here. 

Unitil supports the adoption of Time-of-Use Rates as a method to both increase electric vehicle usage and reduce greenhouse gas emissions in our service territories.

Time-of-Use Rates are designed to drive consumer behavior to use the majority of their energy during off-peak hours. This change in energy consumption patterns is a great way for customers to save money on their monthly electric bills – and also provides a larger benefit to the entire distributed energy system at a time when energy use continues to grow at an exponential rate and utilities are finding ways to continue to meet demand.

To take full advantage of the Time-of-Use Rates, we encourage any subscribers to shift their large energy usage habits to off-peak times. A consumer who does not reduce their on-peak usage may see no savings.

If you don't feel confident you can shift your heavy usage from 3 - 8 pm to after 8 pm or onto weekends, continuing with the standard rate may be your best choice. 

Visit our rate comparison calculator to see if these rates are a good fit for your lifestyle.

We aren't able to combine net metering and Whole House Time-of-Use. We suggest that customers who generate their own power continue to benefit from their solar panels and remain on net metering rather than forgoing their solar panels and switching to Time-of-Use.

A current solar-generation customer can choose an Electric Vehicle Time-of-Use rate as long as the generation from the solar is not attached to the dedicated EV Time-of-Use meter. This may only make sense if you generate just enough power for your home and plan to charge your EV from the grid. Give us a call if you are on the fence. 

All holiday* and weekend hours are billed at the off-peak rates no matter the time of day. All non-holiday weekdays follow the schedule below:

• Mid-Peak: 6 am - 3 pm: Rate is typically around the standard rate
• On-Peak: 3 pm - 8 pm: Rate is typically higher than the standard rate
• Off-Peak: 8 pm - 6 am: Rate is typically lower than the standard rate.

* Holidays:

New Hampshire customers adhere to holidays observed by the State of New Hampshire pursuant to NH RSA 288:1. Find the full holiday list at www.gencourt.state.nh.us.

Massachusetts customers adhere to holidays observed by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Find the full holiday list at www.sec.state.ma.us.

Time-of-Use rates are available to electric customers only.

Electric Vehicle Time-of-Use rates: are now available to Massachusetts & New Hampshire residents and New Hampshire business customers. However, we are working to make Electric Time-of-Use rates available to our Massachusetts business customers.

Whole House Time-of-Use rates: are currently available to New Hampshire residential customers only.

Please let us know if you're interested in Time-of-Use rates whether or not you fit our current criteria.

Customers opting-in to the Time-of-Use Rates will be charged three different electric rates, depending on the time of the day the electricity is consumed. The link to the current rates, including Default service and the Time-of-Use Rates, is below. Generally speaking, consumption during ‘On-Peak’ hours is going to be charged a higher rate than current Default service, consumption during ‘Mid-Peak’ will be about the same cost as current default service, and usage during ‘Off-peak’ hours will be charged at a lower rate than current default electric rates.

Find current rates here

Yes, electric customers who have opted to take supply service from a third-party supplier are eligible for Time-of-Use rates. 

Due to the nature of a time-based rate, a number of the charges that make up the rate change throughout the year to reflect seasonal ratios. 

The hours that are designated as on-peak, mid-peak, and off-peak may need to be adjusted in the future but are not expected to change frequently.

Keep an eye on your bill messages for any upcoming changes.

Typical rate change dates for NH Time-of-Use rates are as follows:

Delivery-related Rates:

• External Delivery Charge – June 1, August 1, December 1
• Distribution Charge – June 1, December 1

Supply-related Rates:

• Energy Service Charge - February 1 (beginning in 2024), June 1, August 1, December 1

Typical rate change dates for MA Time-of-Use rates are as follows:

Delivery-related Rates:

• Transmission – January 1, June 1, December 1
• Distribution Charge – January 1, June 1, December 1
• Distributed Solar Charge (SMART) – January 1

Supply-related Rates:

• Basic Service Charge - February 1 (beginning in 2024), June 1, August 1, December 1

Both Whole House* and Electric Vehicle Time-of-Use Rates utilize the same time periods and the same on-, off- and mid-peak electric rates. The difference is that the Whole House rate applies to all the energy consumption in your home, where the EV Time-of-Use rate applies only to the consumption used for EV charging.

Customers do not need to get EV Time-of-Use to charge their EV if they have Whole House Time-of-Use, but they may choose to keep their home on the standard rate and charge their EV on a separate EV Time-of-Use meter.

*Whole House Time-of-Use Rates are currently only available to New Hampshire residential customers.