Who does what

Texas opened retail electricity to competition on January 1, 2002. Since then, most customers in the state, including the city of Dallas, choose a retail electric provider: the company that sells the power and sends the bill. The exceptions are customers of electric cooperatives and of city-owned utilities that have not opted in (Texas Utilities Code §39.102).

The poles, wires and meters in Dallas belong to Oncor, the largest transmission and distribution utility in Texas, whose service area includes Dallas and Fort Worth. Oncor does not sell you power, but it is the number to call when the lights go out: 888-313-4747, or text OUT to 66267 (Oncor, checked October 2, 2026).

The Public Utility Commission of Texas regulates the market and runs Power to Choose, its website for comparing electricity rates in the areas open to competition.

Outside Dallas, check first

Some places in Dallas-Fort Worth are served by a city-owned utility or a cooperative instead. Denton is one: its electric utility, Denton Municipal Electric, has operated since 1905. Before you shop for a plan, ask the leasing office which company serves the building.

What to ask before you sign the lease

Utilities start with the lease, not with the electric company. Ask which services will be in your name, which ones the community bills you for, and which are included in the rent.

Water is the one that surprises people. Dallas Water Utilities serves the city, but in an apartment community you may pay for water through the landlord, either by a submeter on your unit or by a formula that splits the building’s bill.

Texas sets rules for both. With a submeter, the owner may not charge more than the utility’s cost per gallon plus the taxes and surcharges the utility charges, and has to keep the records open for you to inspect (Texas Water Code §13.503). With a split bill, the lease must describe how your share is calculated and state the average monthly bill per unit for the previous calendar year (§13.5031).

Ask to see that average before you sign. It is the closest you will get to a real number for water.

Electricity billed by the landlord

Some buildings submeter electricity as well. If the landlord bills your electricity, the lease sets the rules, and Texas law allows a cutoff for nonpayment only if the lease provides for it, only after the bill has gone unpaid for 12 days, and only after a separate written notice (Property Code §92.008).

If you pay the electric company directly, your landlord may not interrupt that service except for bona fide repairs, construction or an emergency (§92.008).

Reading an electricity plan

Every residential plan comes with three documents: the Electricity Facts Label (EFL), the Terms of Service, and Your Rights as a Customer (16 Texas Administrative Code §25.475).

Start with the EFL. It shows the average price per kilowatt-hour at three levels of use: 500, 1,000 and 2,000 kWh a month. Compare plans at the level closest to your own use, not only at 1,000.

Then check the product type the label names. A fixed rate product keeps the same price for its whole term, at least three months, except for changes in delivery charges, ERCOT fees or new laws. A variable price product can change from month to month, and for a home it can only be sold as a month-to-month contract.

A month-to-month contract runs 31 days or less and may not carry a termination fee.

When you move

If you leave a term contract early because you are moving, the provider may ask for evidence of the move, but it may not charge an early termination fee if you give a forwarding address (§25.475).

Set the start date at the new apartment for the day you get the keys, and the stop date at the old one for the day after you leave, so there is no gap and no overlap you pay for twice.

Deposits

A provider can ask for a deposit before it starts service. The total it may require from a residential customer is capped at the greater of one-fifth of your estimated annual bill or the estimated bills for the next two months (16 TAC §25.478).

If the provider keeps the deposit more than 30 days, it owes interest from the day you paid. It must refund the deposit once you have paid 12 monthly bills in a row with no late payment.

Every provider has to accept two ways to skip the deposit: being 65 or older and not behind on any electric account, or a certification letter for victims of family violence. It must mention them whenever it asks for a deposit, and it may offer other ways too, so ask what proof of past payments it takes.

Internet

Internet is not set up like electricity, and your choices depend on the building. Ask the leasing office which providers are wired to your unit, and whether the community includes internet in a package billed with the rent.

To check an address yourself, the FCC’s National Broadband Map, at broadbandmap.fcc.gov, lists the providers that report service at each location.

If cost is the concern: the federal Affordable Connectivity Program, which gave eligible households a monthly internet discount, ended in June 2024. The FCC’s Lifeline program still takes $9.25 a month off phone or internet service for eligible low-income households, and Texas checks Lifeline eligibility itself rather than through the national verifier.

A budget that includes utilities

When you compare rents, know what the Census counts. The rent figures on our city pages are Census “gross rent,” which adds the estimated monthly cost of electricity, gas, water and sewer, and fuels when the renter pays them (U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 2024 subject definitions).

So the rent on a listing and a city’s gross rent are not the same number. Add your own estimate for utilities before you compare, then try the total in the rent calculator. Our first 30 days guide covers the other errands of a move.