Peak electricity hours: How to find and avoid them

Tired of seeing your electric bill climb? You can slow a rising electric bill without dialing back your comfort or sacrificing power. The secret lies in understanding time-of-use (TOU) rates and shifting your energy consumption to off-peak periods.

In this guide, we'll break down how peak hours work, how major utilities set their rates, actionable strategies to help you save, and how TOU could actually cost you. Here’s how it all intersects with home solar panels, home batteries, or an EV charger.

Time-of-use plans and peak electricity hours

Time-of-use (TOU) plans set the price per kilowatt-hour you pay for electricity based on when you use that electricity. Typically, electricity is most expensive when demand is highest or energy is most expensive to produce and least expensive when demand is lowest.

Peak electricity hours are those hours when electricity demand is typically highest and power most expensive. These hours vary by electricity company and season.

When people shift electricity use to avoid expensive electricity, they reduce peak demand on the electricity grid. If demand exceeds the supply of electricity, blackouts can occur. Reducing demand makes that easier to avoid.

Off-peak electricity hours are when the electricity demand is low and electricity is cheaper. During these times, it’s easier (and often cheaper) to generate enough electricity to meet demand.

Some electric companies create time-of-use plans with a third level called super off-peak hours. During these hours, electricity prices and demand are at their lowest.

Super off-peak hours are even more of an incentive to shift energy usage.

Why do companies use peak and off-peak hours for electricity?

Time-of-use rates aim to shift when energy is consumed and level out the overall peaks and valleys of demand on the grid.

In some cases when demand surges too high, utilities may have to institute rolling blackouts: shutting off power to part of the grid to forcibly reduce demand. Time-of-use rates, which encourage voluntary demand reduction, can help avoid those more drastic measures.

Even before that stage, TOU rates can help keep electricity cleaner and cheaper. Utilities often rely on small power plants to meet the last portion of the highest peak demand. These “peaker plants” are often the most expensive and dirtiest power plants to run. Shifting demand can allow utilities to avoid using these peaker plants, reducing expenses and pollution.

Credit: EIA

Battery storage, which can store cheap clean solar energy and use it to meet peak demand later in the day, is an increasingly valuable way to balance supply and demand. Home batteries, smart thermostats, and EV chargers, when they're joined together in a virtual power plant, are delivering huge amounts of energy during peak hours, especially in California.

Common hours for peak and off-peak electricity

Peak and off-peak electricity hours can vary with season and utility company.

Summer peak hours are often late in the afternoon, when people get home from work, high temperatures still require a lot of air conditioning, and solar production starts to wane for the night. Think any time from 1 p.m. to 9 p.m., but usually not that whole time. Off-peak hours are typically overnight. 

Winter peak hours are often in the morning and evening, when electric heating is needed and people are getting ready for or winding down from their day. Think any time from 6 a.m. to 10 a.m. and 5 p.m. to 9 p.m.

Saturdays and Sundays often count as off-peak periods no matter the season, and some utility companies also include holidays occurring during the week in their off-peak rates.

Here are a few examples from some of the largest utility companies in the country:

Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E) peak and off-peak hours

PG&E offers different options for time-of-use plans.

E-TOU-C: Peak hours are from 4 p.m. to 9 p.m. every day. Off-peak hours are from 9 p.m to 4 p.m.

E-TOU-D: Peak hours are from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. Monday-Friday. Off-peak hours are weekends, most holidays, and all other hours Monday-Friday. 

E-ELEC: Peak hours are 4 p.m. to 9 p.m. every day. Partial-peak hours are 3-4 p.m. and 9 p.m.-12 a.m. every day. Off-peak hours are midnight to 3 p.m. every day.

Southern California Edison (SCE) peak and off-peak hours

SCE offers three different options for time-of-use plans, with super off-peak, off-peak, mid-peak, and on-peak rates.

TOU-D-4-9PM: In the summer, 4 p.m. to 9 p.m. are peak hours (mid-peak on the weekends) and all other hours are off peak..

In the winter (October to May), 4 p.m. to 9 p.m. becomes mid-peak, with off-peak hours from 9 p.m. to 8 a.m., and super off-peak hours from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. 

TOU-D-5-8PM: In the summer, on-peak hours are 5 p.m. to 8 p.m (mid-peak on the weekends).

In the winter, 5 p.m. and 8 p.m. is mid-peak, 8 p.m. to 8 a.m. is off-peak, and 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. is super off-peak.

TOU-D-PRIME: From 4 p.m. to 9 p.m. SCE charges peak hours during the week and mid-peak on the weekends. In the winter, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. shifts to super off peak and 4 p.m. to 9 p.m. stays mid-peak.

Duke Energy peak and off-peak hours

Duke Energy operates in North Carolina, South Carolina, Ohio, Florida, Kentucky, and Indiana, so check all plans and rates by state.

R-TOU: In its Duke Energy Carolinas territory in North Carolina, Duke Energy has three rate categories: on-peak, discount, and off-peak. On weekdays from May-September, on-peak rates are from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. On weekdays the rest of the year, on-peak rates are from 6 a.m. to 9 a.m.

Duke Energy has discount rates on all days from May-September from 1 a.m. to 6 a.m. and from October-April from 1 a.m. to 3 a.m. and 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Florida Power & Light (FPL) peak and off-peak hours

FPL has electricity peak hours Monday through Friday from 6 a.m. to 10 a.m. and 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. from November through March except for Thanksgiving, Christmas Day, and New Year’s Day. From April through October, peak hours are from 12 p.m. to 9 p.m. on weekdays except for Memorial Day, Independence Day, and Labor Day. All other hours including weekends and holidays are considered off-peak and are billed at the off-peak rate.

Georgia Power peak, off-peak, and super off-peak hours

Georgia Power has several rate plans that have on-peak periods between 2 p.m. and 7 p.m., Monday through Friday from June through September, and then off-peak rates at all other days and hours, including weekends and holidays.

Georgia Power also has the Overnight Advantage plan, which employs the same peak hours, but has a super off-peak period from 11 p.m. to 7 a.m. every night, when electricity is discounted.

Saving money with a time-of-use plan

To save money with a time-of-use plan you need to shift your electricity use away from peak hours. Generally, these are your biggest opportunities to save:

HVAC scheduling: Pre-cooling your home, or scheduling your heating and cooling to set back during peak hours. Cooling and heating are the biggest energy consumers in the typical home, but savings typically require good insulation and air sealing.

EV charging: Schedule your electric vehicle to charge on off peak hours. Most EVs have this ability.

Shift heavier electricity use: Schedule your washer, dryer, or dishwasher to run after peak hours have passed. 

Should you sign up for a time-of-use plan?

It can pay to look into your utility’s TOU plans. Should you sign up? It depends on your family, your schedule, and your current bill. 

Switching to a time-of-use plan may be a good idea if you can schedule your appliances to run during off-peak hours, especially heat pumps or air conditioners, dryers, water heaters, and dishwashers. The same may be true if your schedule means you and your family aren’t home often during the peak hours anyway or you have a home battery or electric vehicle.

If you’re interested in seeing if solar panels can deliver a lower electric bill for you, get started with a free solar savings estimate. Or find out what you could save at home with other energy upgrades by exploring our Savings Maximizer. 

Frequently asked questions

Is electricity cheaper at night?

Oftentimes yes. Because fewer people are using electricity at night, off-peak hours often occur overnight. This encourages people to shift electricity use from day time hours when demand is high.

What are time-of-use rates?

Time-of-use rates are electric rates based on the time a consumer uses electricity. Typically, electricity is most expensive when demand is highest or energy is most expensive to produce. 

Will I save money with time-of-use rates?

The answer depends on the habits of the people living in your home. If you can shift larger energy uses to off-peak hours, you can save.

How can I avoid using electricity during peak hours?

There are many ways to shift electricity use away from peak hours. You may be able to do some chores a little earlier or a little later than usual, especially if you can schedule your washing machine, dryer, dishwasher, or EV charger, and automatically adjust your smart thermostat.

Disclaimer: This content is for educational purposes only. Palmetto does not provide tax, legal, or accounting advice. Please consult your own tax, legal, and accounting advisors.