Understand your electricity bill

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Understand your electricity bill

What every line on your bill actually means: supply charges, usage rates, tariffs, feed-in and more.

By EnergySorted Editorial Team（https://energysorted.com.au/about） · Updated 27 July 2026 · 6 min read

The two charges on every bill

Every electricity bill is built from two things: a daily supply charge and a usage charge. The supply charge is a fixed amount you pay for every day you are connected (typically 90c to $1.30 a day), whether you use any power or not. The usage charge is what you pay for the electricity you actually consume, measured in cents per kilowatt-hour (c/kWh)（https://energysorted.com.au/resources/what-is-a-kwh）.

A cheap-looking usage rate paired with a high daily supply charge can easily cost more than a plan with a slightly higher usage rate and a low supply charge. That is exactly the trap EnergySorted is built to see through. It costs both together against your real usage.

Key terms, in plain English

Supply charge A fixed daily fee for being connected to the grid (c/day), independent of how much power you use.

Usage rate The price of the electricity you use, in cents per kilowatt-hour (c/kWh).

kWh (kilowatt-hour) The unit electricity is sold in. A 1000W heater running for one hour uses 1 kWh.

Single rate tariff One flat usage rate at all times of day. Simple and predictable.

Time-of-use (TOU) tariff Different rates for peak, shoulder and off-peak periods. Rewards shifting use to off-peak (usually overnight).

Controlled load A separately metered circuit (often hot water or slab heating) charged at a lower rate because the network controls when it runs.

Feed-in tariff (FiT) What your retailer pays you per kWh for solar power you export to the grid.

Demand charge An extra charge based on your highest 30-minute power draw (in kW) during a period. Common on some plans; hard to predict.

Discount (guaranteed vs conditional) Guaranteed discounts always apply; conditional ones (e.g. pay-on-time) only apply if you meet the condition.

Why your bill can jump

Bills rise for four common reasons: seasonal usage (heating and cooling), a benefit period ending (many market offers discount for 12 months, then step up), a rate change from your retailer, or a change in your tariff type. If your bill jumped without your usage changing, your rate almost certainly did. That is the moment to compare the whole market on your real usage（https://energysorted.com.au/compare）.

Frequently asked questions

What is the daily supply charge and can I avoid it? It is a fixed fee (often 90c to $1.30 a day) for being connected to the grid, and no, you cannot avoid it while you have a connection. It is charged every day even if you use no power, which is why a low-usage home should weigh the supply charge as heavily as the usage rate when comparing plans. What does c/kWh mean on my bill? It is cents per kilowatt-hour, the price of the actual electricity you use. A kilowatt-hour is the unit power is sold in, the same way petrol is sold in litres, and dividing your usage charge by the kWh used gives your real cost per unit. Why did my bill go up when my usage did not change? Almost always because your rate changed: a 12-month benefit period ended and stepped your prices up, or your retailer lifted its rates. If your kWh used is roughly the same as last year but the dollars are higher, the price moved, and that is the moment to compare it against the rest of the market on your real usage.