South Carolina Electricity Prices

South Carolina sits mid-pack — 16.18¢ per kilowatt-hour in May 2026, 27th-highest of 51 and 16.6% below the national benchmark.

At South Carolina's May 2026 average of 16.18¢/kWh, 10,500 kWh of annual use works out to $1,699 a year — around $142 a month. Running the same 10,500 kWh calculation at the May 2026 national benchmark rate gives $2,038 — a $339 gap between the two published averages, less for South Carolina, not a bill either way.

Over the full EIA series the South Carolina jurisdiction average has risen 120% since January 2001, from 7.36¢ to 16.18¢ in May 2026 — a compound 3.2% per year. Month-to-month movement has been about typical for a reporting jurisdiction.

April 2026, at 17.06¢ per kilowatt-hour. The May 2026 reading of 16.18¢ sits 5.2% below that peak. The lowest monthly average on record was 7.31¢ in December 2002.

October. Measured over the 25 complete calendar years the EIA series covers for South Carolina, 2001 through 2025, October runs highest relative to its own year and January runs lowest — a swing of roughly 8.4 percentage points.

Among South Carolina and its land-border neighbours in May 2026, North Carolina posts the lowest average at 15.09¢ and Virginia the highest at 17.61¢. South Carolina ranks 4th of 5 in the group, at 16.18¢.

Almost certainly not exactly, and this is the one caveat that governs every figure on this page. The published value is the EIA residential average across every utility and residential rate class in South Carolina for May 2026 — a benchmark, never a billed amount. Even the jurisdiction figure is not one number — across the trailing year it moved between 14.70¢ in July 2025 and 17.06¢ in April 2026. Your own rate depends on your utility, tariff, usage tier, time-of-use schedule, and fixed monthly charges, none of which this index models. Read your bill for the rate that applies to you.