Just got signed up for electric moving into a rental house. We used Energy Ogre and are wondering if we got a deal - our cost will be between 14.9 and 13.9 cents per kWh. It's a 12 month contract. Here are more details.

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You're paying $10/mo to Energy Ogre when there are free services like https://honestgorilla.com who do the same exact thing...for free..and without the need for you to give them your SSN and credit card information. The slight difference is Energy Ogre does the shopping for you, whereas with Honest Gorilla you have to do it - but they've made the energy comparison shopping so easy, it's not really that hard to find the best deal for yourself. Right now, they're cheapest price is 9.4¢ for an average of 1000 kWh - haven't found anything anywhere else cheaper than that!

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smokybbq90@reddit

I see multiple at 13.7 on powertochoose.org for 12 months. Not to mention the cost of EnergyOgre. You didn't "get a deal", but you didn't get screwed and it's fine especially if you'll be gone all summer. Toss all the food, unplug the fridge with the door open, leave the air at 82 so it doesn't get excessively humid inside.

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Wonderful-Run-1408@reddit (OP)

That's a good point. They signed me up for a 12 month with a $200 termination fee. Grrrrr..

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jb4647@reddit

Ignore these folks. I’ve been using energyogre for years. My electric bills are about $100 cheaper than what they were before I started using them. These power to choose fanboys get so excited about saving a half a cent or something like that. No one’s got time for that bullshit.

Just set it and forget it. For me, the big benefit of energy ogre is the fact that they handled the billing and the switching for me. They always run by the proposed plan before they do so however and I always have final say whether or not I wanna stay or switch.

Here’s some other really good information that compares energy Olger to power to choose

https://www.energyogre.com/energy-ogre-vs-power-to-choose

“REPs advertise their current rates, listing the price per kWh at three discreet disclosure levels of 500, 1000, and 2000 kWh. Power to Choose Texas also provides plan information, such as the delivery charges and all associated fees, in a document called the Electricity Facts Label (EFL).

A Power to Choose plan can be structured to seem competitive at the advertised price points, but the price per kWh in between those exact points can fluctuate significantly.

In reality, the average rate per kWh is not a very good way of judging an electricity plan. Most of the offers are actually offer curves. The price is almost always different for each kWh of consumption. Additionally, the rates are often structured with energy or consumption credits (free nights & weekends). That results in a low point on the price curves. This all adds up to lower than realistically achievable rates. For this reason, the credits and breakpoints often happen at exactly 500, exactly 1000, or exactly 2000 kWh.

The problem is that virtually no one consumes exactly 500, 1000, or 2000 kWh during a month, let alone for 12 consecutive months. So in reality, the rate you think you are buying isn't exactly what you end up buying.”

“Now you may think, "Is there a Power to Choose pay bill button too?" and the answer is no. Once you've signed up with your REP, everything is up to you as far as keeping up with your invoices and payments. Power to Choose simplifies the plan picking process but that's where their service ends. Energy Ogre not only goes through all the REP plans to pick the best one for you, but we also register you on the REP's website and handle all of your billing chores too.”

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Wonderful-Run-1408@reddit (OP)

Here's the issue. They put me on a 12 month plan with a $200 termination fee. I'm moving into a house that has been empty for 7 months. So there's no history on real electric usage. And now I'm locked in and they didn't give me the option of doing it or not. I just was sent a "you're now enrolled and you can't cancel unless you pay $200". I'm pissed. Now, why would I need to continue my membership with Energy Ogre since I'm locked in for 12 months?

I sent them an email to cancel my membership just now. They are tricky in that there is no way to cancel your membership online with them. I tried to call and it asks me to leave a voice mail message.

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magnoliablues@reddit

I had same situation. I moved somewhere that had been empty and they put me on a 12 or 14 month plan with a larger cancellation fee. I had been really happy with energy ogre when I was in my previous place. I cancelled energy ogre and am going to be shopping for service for the first time in years in the coming month.

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Starsgirl97@reddit

They’re also difficult to get the refund with their satisfaction guaranteed.

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jb4647@reddit

It’s not energyogre. That’s the electric provider that has the cancellation fee. This is how they work. Even on power to choose. Electric provider choice was a gimmick instituted by our legislature 20 years ago. All it did was set up a bunch of middlemen looking for their cut.

What’s you’re paying now is about what the market is supporting. It’s not like you’re gonna go out and power to choose and find someone that’s offering you a five cent a kilowatt rate. They’re all within a half a sense of each other or more.

You’re really not gonna get that better of a deal.

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smokybbq90@reddit

Definitely an unbiased link /s

It's pretty easy to avoid tiered plans. There is literally a checkbox you have to check if you wish to include them. The per kWh on the 500, 1000, 2000 then barely changes based on set fees like the Oncor monthly charge, or if the plan has a base monthly charge.

Every time I've entered my plan details into EnergyOgre it's told me no better rate was found. It's great for people who don't want to think about it ever and are fine paying $120/yr for the convenience.

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KitchenPalentologist@reddit

Yes, the reps aren't stupid, their plans involve credits right at those advertised rate tiers, which make the overall/average rates appear to by much lower than what they really are.

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jb4647@reddit

That’s why it’s always ridiculous to chase kWh price

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AgentBlue14@reddit

I was just going through this, and found a plan through PowerToChoose with Budget Power with an energy charge at .08221¢/kWh

The best way to estimate a future bill if you have ANY historical use numbers would be:

( {kWh use * energy charge} + {kWh use * Oncor delivery charge} + Oncor monthly charge + monthly base fee (if necessary ) = monthly subtotal )

Personally, anything around 8¢/kWh is a deal in this market. Don't let energy companies screw you by charging you a monthly base fee (separate from the Oncor fees) or getting a plan that has "time of use" discounts like free nights or weekends because they'll balance that "free time" with overpriced energy at all other times.

For example, TXU has a plan that charges THREE DIFFERENT energy charge rates depending on use, insane.

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Wonderful-Run-1408@reddit (OP)

Who is the company that offers the rate you found?

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AgentBlue14@reddit

Budget Power.

I read in a previous post somewhere on r/Texas that most of these companies are just middlemen who charge you, so I went for the cheapest I found.

I did see a slightly cheaper one with Southern Federal (they have a bison logo) but they charge $5/mo. just because and eh, I didn't like that.

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8P8OoBz@reddit

Looks crazy high. powertochoose.org I'm about to renew and 3 month range is 10cents then slightly more over

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whistle6900@reddit

Thanks for posting that link.

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HashKing@reddit

The 13.7¢ includes the oncor delivery fee, so his actual energy price is like 8.7¢, this is a good deal.

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smokybbq90@reddit

And when you renew in the dead of summer it's gonna be 16+

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jb4647@reddit

That’s if they remember to renew. Most people forget and that they get locked into a higher rate plan. That’s the trick of power to choose.

By using an energy ogre, I never have to worry about that bullshit

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YaGetSkeeted0n@reddit

You know what really grinds my gears with these providers? When it's time to renew, they offer you some terrible plans that are way more expensive than anything they advertise to new customers. Where's the damn loyalty lol

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Q_N1NJA@reddit

Fell into that trap once during a move. Went month to month until 12 month rates dropped in the fall.

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Rude-Athlete-8149@reddit

You don't want to be signing up on a 3 month plan right now

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therealradberry@reddit

Who are your top choices? I'm about to get out of a 3 year deal and want some cheap electricity

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Financial_Strength93@reddit

In the Oncor service area, there are better rates, but they're not far off from what you got, so I wouldn't stress about the rate too much.

Let me break the other stuff down for you...

Where you're losing out is paying a $2 base charge every month where other providers may not charge you one at all. Then, you're also paying $10 a month to Energy Ogre. Both of these charges can be realistically avoided. During your 12-month contract, you're spending an extra $144 right off the bat. Depending on your energy consumption, this is either a decent chunk of one month's energy cost or equivalent to one month energy cost. Just to put that into perspective.

Energy Ogre might be a good thing for you if:

You don't want to rummage through the plans on powertochoose.org every time your contract expires to find your next contract.
You can't keep track of your contract expiration dates even after the several emails that your current energy provider sends you in regards to your expiration and you unknowingly end up on a variable rate plan.
You don't want to or don't understand how to compare plans and calculate costs based off of EFLs on powertochoose.org
You're okay with paying energy ogre $120 a year to find and sign you up with the "best" 12-month contract they could find (not always the lowest).

If you're okay with all of this, then by all means go ahead. No judgements here.

I don't use energy ogre because I don't see the need to pay a company or a middleman $120 a year to sign me up for a 12-month contract. I will more than likely not communicate or contact energy ogre while I'm in that contract. Ultimately, it ends up being a very expensive fee when I can use power to choose to filter plans and do the math after the calendar reminder I have set up on my phone tells me I need to look for a new plan. 🤷🏻‍♂️

I'm willingly to do the work, which normally doesn't take too much time at all. I'd rather save the $120, which for me is equivalent to one month's worth of energy.

Energy Ogre is a lifesaver for a lot of people, but at the end of the day it's a business. They found a niche market that was willing to sign up for their subscription model for the use of their services. I wouldn't doubt what they are doing is very lucrative.

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CapitanShinyPants@reddit

If you don’t work from home look for free nights plans from Green Mountain or TXU; you may pay a higher base price but be able to make up for it if you’re primarily using electrify between 8pm and 6am.

Supercool the house at night during the Summer and it should keep things fairly cool during the daytime.

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truth-4-sale@reddit

Through the free Smart Meter Texas website, you should be able to see the past year's monthly usage amounts for the meter associated with that house. You can than project what you monthly bills might be.

SmartMeterTexas.com

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truth-4-sale@reddit

I just saw where the OP posted this in a later response. If you had put his in your original post, I could have answered you better...

Here's the issue. They put me on a 12 month plan with a $200 termination fee. I'm moving into a house that has been empty for 7 months. So there's no history on real electric usage. And now I'm locked in and they didn't give me the option of doing it or not. I just was sent a "you're now enrolled and you can't cancel unless you pay $200".

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migs_003@reddit

Remember... every single person here will get a completelt different rate.

Even neighbors will get different rates from same companies.

So comparing energy prices with others is useless.

Kinda sucks but it is what it is.

And price isnt bad... especially right now coming into summer.

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diptripflip@reddit

Why is that?

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migs_003@reddit

Its the way texas power grid is set up.

Oncor has a baseline fee and even thst chsnges depending on area/company you use.. But they will always charge you a fee.

The company you choose is meaningless too. Oncor is who runs ann power systems and every company we have access to basically borrows some to sell to us for whatever number they can think of. When power goes out reñiant energy aint gonna do shit. They tell you to call oncor.

Everyone outside texas is more standardized. Less guess work. Less "choice" too though.

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Rude-Athlete-8149@reddit

The energy charge isn't bad, but base charges are a waste of money. Luckily this one isn't $10 like a lot of other plans out there.

There are plans as cheap as 13.7 cent at 1000 kWh with the same term length and no base charges on powertochoose, such as Frontier, Budget, and Gexa.

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forte99@reddit

I just renewed today at 12.9 @ 2000 kWh

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Wonderful-Run-1408@reddit (OP)

Who's your provider?

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forte99@reddit

Frontier

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psilent@reddit

Been fairly happy with octopus. Their normal rates are competitive but if you hook up an ev or thermostat and let them control the charging /temp they give you a huge deal. Like my rate is 40% lower because I let them control the ev

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MrsPatty-C@reddit

We pay 11 here

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Wonderful-Run-1408@reddit (OP)

Who is your carrier?

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MrsPatty-C@reddit

Gexa

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Starsgirl97@reddit

As another person said, powertochoose.org has rates for 12 months at about a penny cheaper per kWh. I dropped energy ogre when they put me on a plan that wasn’t the best available. Not worth paying them $10 a month for a higher rate.

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Wonderful-Run-1408@reddit (OP)

Let me know if you've got questions on this - but also, please let me know if this is a good price for electric. One note... we'll be gone most of the summer.

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Flashy_Lobster_4732@reddit

It’s not bad but it’s not good either. I pay 07 cents just fyi

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Wonderful-Run-1408@reddit (OP)

who's your provider?

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