Revealed: the most and least expensive areas for household energy in Wales

New analysis has revealed a striking divide in household energy costs across Wales, with Ceredigion facing the highest effective price per unit and Merthyr Tydfil the lowest.

Households in Ceredigion face the highest effective energy price anywhere in Wales, according to new analysis of household energy costs across Great Britain.

Ceredigion has a modelled blended energy price of 22.84p per kWh, compared with just 13.96p per kWh in Merthyr Tydfil.

That means the effective price per unit in Ceredigion is around 64% higher, a difference of 8.88p for every kWh of household energy used.

Ceredigion also ranks among the most expensive areas in Great Britain, taking fifth place nationally under the study’s dense-ranking system.

It is followed in Wales by Isle of Anglesey at 21.09p per kWh, Powys at 20.33p and Gwynedd at 20.21p.

The research by Alan Boswell Group analysed all 350 local authorities in England, Scotland and Wales, combining the latest available local household energy-consumption figures with Ofgem’s regional price-cap rates for October to December 2026.

The findings point to a strong divide between areas with widespread access to mains gas and those where households rely more heavily on electricity.

Under the October price cap, the average electricity unit rate is 26.32p per kWh, compared with 7.97p for gas.

The 10 most expensive areas in Wales per unit

Rank	Local authority	Effective price per kWh	Homes on mains gas	Modelled annual bill
1	Ceredigion	22.84p	26.30%	£1,641.12
2	Isle of Anglesey	21.09p	47.00%	£1,825.31
3	Powys	20.33p	46.10%	£1,763.11
4	Gwynedd	20.21p	51.30%	£1,866.59
5	Pembrokeshire	18.27p	58.40%	£1,721.83
6	Carmarthenshire	17.30p	61.80%	£1,717.82
7	Denbighshire	16.91p	78.00%	£1,930.53
8	Conwy	16.50p	82.60%	£1,934.05
9	Monmouthshire	16.28p	75.30%	£1,920.01
10	Flintshire	16.27p	84.50%	£1,935.80

Ceredigion tops the Welsh ranking at 22.84p per kWh. Just 26.3% of homes are estimated to be connected to mains gas, the lowest rate in Wales, while its modelled annual household bill is £1,641.12.

The Isle of Anglesey ranks second at 21.09p per kWh, with an estimated 47.0% of homes connected to mains gas. Its modelled annual bill is £1,825.31.

Powys is third at 20.33p per kWh, with an estimated mains-gas connection rate of 46.1% and a modelled annual bill of £1,763.11.

Gwynedd follows closely in fourth at 20.21p per kWh. Just over half of homes – 51.3% – are estimated to be connected to mains gas, while its modelled annual bill is £1,866.59.

Pembrokeshire ranks fifth at 18.27p per kWh, with an estimated 58.4% of homes connected to gas and a modelled annual bill of £1,721.83.

Carmarthenshire is sixth at 17.30p per kWh. Its estimated mains-gas connection rate is 61.8%, while the modelled annual household bill is £1,717.82.

Denbighshire comes seventh at 16.91p per kWh, with 78.0% of homes estimated to be on mains gas and a modelled annual bill of £1,930.53.

Conwy ranks eighth at 16.50p per kWh, with an estimated gas-connection rate of 82.6% and a modelled annual bill of £1,934.05.

Monmouthshire is ninth at 16.28p per kWh, with 75.3% of homes estimated to be connected to mains gas and a modelled annual bill of £1,920.01.

Flintshire completes Wales’s ten most expensive areas per unit at 16.27p per kWh, with 84.5% of homes estimated to have mains-gas access and a modelled annual bill of £1,935.80.

At the other end of the ranking, the cheapest areas generally have much higher estimated levels of mains-gas connection.

The 10 cheapest areas in Wales per unit

Rank	Local authority	Effective price per kWh	Homes on mains gas	Modelled annual bill
1	Merthyr Tydfil	13.96p	98.00%	£2,024.60
2	Blaenau Gwent	13.99p	98.10%	£1,986.44
3	Rhondda Cynon Taf	14.22p	97.80%	£1,939.32
4	Caerphilly	14.33p	98.10%	£1,969.78
5	Bridgend	14.57p	97.10%	£1,924.61
6	Torfaen	14.67p	98.30%	£1,895.99
7	Swansea	14.79p	90.70%	£1,869.89
8	Neath Port Talbot	14.82p	93.90%	£1,879.09
9	Newport	15.02p	93.20%	£1,886.04
10	Cardiff	15.04p	88.40%	£1,853.39

Merthyr Tydfil has the lowest effective energy price in Wales at 13.96p per kWh. An estimated 98.0% of homes are connected to mains gas, while its modelled annual bill is £2,024.60.

Blaenau Gwent is second cheapest at 13.99p per kWh, with an estimated 98.1% of homes connected to mains gas and a modelled annual bill of £1,986.44.

Rhondda Cynon Taf ranks third cheapest at 14.22p per kWh, with 97.8% estimated mains-gas coverage and a modelled annual bill of £1,939.32.

Caerphilly follows at 14.33p per kWh. Its estimated mains-gas connection rate is 98.1%, while its modelled annual bill is £1,969.78.

Bridgend ranks fifth cheapest at 14.57p per kWh, with 97.1% of homes estimated to be connected to gas and a modelled annual bill of £1,924.61.

Torfaen comes sixth at 14.67p per kWh and has the highest estimated gas-connection rate of any Welsh local authority in the study, at 98.3%. Its modelled annual bill is £1,895.99.

Swansea ranks seventh cheapest at 14.79p per kWh, with an estimated 90.7% of homes connected to mains gas and a modelled annual bill of £1,869.89.

Neath Port Talbot follows at 14.82p per kWh, with 93.9% estimated mains-gas coverage and a modelled annual bill of £1,879.09.

Newport ranks ninth cheapest at 15.02p per kWh, with an estimated gas-connection rate of 93.2% and a modelled annual bill of £1,886.04.

Cardiff completes the ten cheapest Welsh areas at 15.04p per kWh, with 88.4% of homes estimated to be connected to mains gas and a modelled annual bill of £1,853.39.

The data also highlights the additional pressure faced by households in parts of north and mid Wales from fixed charges.

Isle of Anglesey, Powys and Gwynedd have the three highest effective standing-charge burdens in the entire Great Britain study, at 3.45p, 3.43p and 3.28p per kWh respectively.

All three are priced within Ofgem’s Merseyside and Northern Wales region.

Under the October price cap, households in this region face the highest electricity standing charge in Great Britain.

The figures also show why having the most expensive energy per unit does not necessarily mean having the largest annual bill.

Despite Ceredigion having the highest effective price per kWh in Wales, its modelled annual bill is just £1,641.12.

Meanwhile, Merthyr Tydfil has the lowest effective price per unit in Wales, but a modelled annual bill of £2,024.60.

The difference reflects how much energy households use as well as the underlying price they effectively pay. For this reason, the study ranks areas primarily by their blended effective price per kWh rather than simply comparing final annual bills.

Heath Alexander-Bew, Personal Lines Director at Alan Boswell Group, said:

“Where you live can have a surprisingly big impact on what your household effectively pays for energy, particularly if mains gas simply isn’t available to large numbers of homes.

“The figures in Wales show a really clear divide. Areas with lower gas-grid coverage dominate the expensive end of the table, while many of the cheapest areas have connection rates close to 100%.

“For households facing higher energy costs, reducing the amount of heat a home loses can make a meaningful difference. We’d recommend starting with the fabric of the building – looking at loft insulation, draughts and poorly insulated walls – before automatically assuming the answer has to be replacing the heating system.”

From 1 October 2026 to 31 March 2027, VAT on domestic electricity in Great Britain will temporarily fall to 0%, while gas remains at 5%.

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Methodology

The study by Alan Boswell Group models household energy costs across all 350 local authorities in Great Britain, including all 22 Welsh local authorities.

The research uses 2024 Department for Energy Security and Net Zero subnational consumption figures, the latest available, priced using Ofgem’s levelised price-cap rates for 1 October to 31 December 2026.

Each local authority is priced using its applicable Ofgem region rather than a single Great Britain average.

The headline measure – blended effective price per kWh – is the total modelled annual bill divided by total modelled annual energy consumption.

The annual bill calculation includes electricity and gas consumption, applicable unit rates and standing charges.

The gas-connection percentage is a proxy calculated from domestic gas meters as a share of domestic electricity meters.

The resulting figure is an effective blended rate, not the individual electricity or gas tariff printed on a household bill. It is designed to allow areas with different property sizes and consumption levels to be compared more consistently.

The model assumes households are charged at the Ofgem price cap. Actual bills may differ, including for customers on fixed tariffs.

Consumption figures are from 2024 and are modelled using 2026 prices.

Sources: Department for Energy Security and Net Zero; Ofgem.