4Change Energy Rates and Plans for Houston, Dallas, and the Rest of Texas.

About 4Change Energy

From its start in 2012, 4Change Energy set out to provide cheap electricity to its customers while giving back to their Texas communities. Headquartered in Dallas, the company contributes 4% of their profits on their customers' behalf to the American Red Cross, American Cancer Society, Heroes for Children and Feeding Texas. In 2016, the company came under the control of Vistra Energy and is now part of its Value Based Brands subsidiary.

Over the years, 4Change Energy has consistently won numerous customer trust and satisfaction awards. Most recently its high ratings for customer satisfaction with billing, payment and customer service got it named to the top ten in Escalent's 2020 and 2021 Texas REP Trusted Brand survey and in 2019 was rated the #2 Most Trusted Provider.

Does 4Change Energy Service My Texas City?

4Change Energy offers plans and products throughout Texas. Browse plans for your city.

4Change Energy Plans for Houston

Dallas 4Change Energy Plans

4Change Energy Plans in Fort Stockton

4Change Energy Electricity in Corpus Christi

Abilene 4Change Energy Plans

4Change Energy In The Community

4Change Energy was founded on the idea to do something that's good for your wallet and your neighbors. That's why the company contributes 4% of its profits to charity. After its founding in 2012, the company polled a large group of local electricity customers to find the four stand-out causes to contribute to: the American Red Cross, American Cancer Society, Heroes for Children, and Feeding Texas.

Feeding Texas is a network of 21 member food banks that provide over 5 million Texans annually with food and resources. In 2016, 4Change Energy delivered its first contribution check to the North Texas Food Bank. In 2022, the company helped sponsor the Nourish North Texas Telethon hosted by North Texas Food Bank. It's estimated, one in every five children in the North Texas region being food-insecure. The event helped raise funds to provide 2.1 million meals in the region.

Since 2004, Heroes for Children has provided $7 million to over 7000 Texas families in need to help their children battle cancer. 4Change started participating as a booth sponsor for Heroes for Children Heart of Gold 5k and Fun Run in 2016. In 2021, 4Change joined other corporate sponsors at the $10,000 + level to help increase hospital budgets.

When hurricanes and other disasters hit Texans, the the American Red Cross is there to help. As a Ready 365 Giving Circle Member, 4Change Energy supports the Red Cross North Texas Region with about $10,000 per year.

The American Cancer Society is the largest private, nonprofit funder of cancer research in the United States. 4Change Energy is committed to supporting the American Cancer Society to fund innovative cancer research to find a cure. The company has partnered for several years with the American Cancer Society to sponsor fund raising events, including the annual Making Strides Against Breast Cancer event.

Understand Your 4Change Energy Bill

Unsure about how to decipher your 4Change Energy bill?

We can help.

Check out our How to Understand your 4Change Energy Bill page where you can get information on what the various charges and fees mean.

Bill Period or Cycle

The dates this bill covers. Your Texas utility company will read the meter at their discretion. This will not always be a month or 30 days. If you are on a plan that has "monthly" fees, that fee will appear on your bill, regardless of how many days were within the period.

What is the Difference Between Energy Rate and Average Rate?

the 'Energy Rate' is the price in cents that you pay your electricity provider for the actual electricity that you consumed. The 'Average Rate' is the total you paid for electricity service (including all TDSP fees, bill credits, taxes, etc) divided by the number of kWhs you used that month.

What is the average 4Change Energy electricity bill in Texas

Most customers in Texas use about 1050-1400 kWh of electricity per month. According to various sources, the average electricity rate in Texas is about 11 cents. This would make the average Texas electricity bill about $115 to $154 per month.

Of course, if you have a higher electrical load than normal you will use more energy, and thus your bills can easily be higher than that. High load items would be things like a swimming pool or electric heat in the winter.

Your home size will have an impact on your usage. A smaller 600 sqft apartment might use 500-600 kWh, while an expansive 3,000 sqft. home could easily use 2,200 to 3,000 kWh.

About TDSPs (Utilities)

The utility is the company that maintains the power poles and lines in your area. They are also in charge of generating the electricity and delivering it to your home. In Texas, there are five deregulated TDSPs: CenterPoint (Houston), Oncor (Dallas), TNMP, AEP-North and AEP-Central.

TDSPs charges and fees will show up on your bill in a couple ways - monthly fixed amounts, and per kWh amounts. These TDSP fees will be applied to your bill no matter who your provider is. 4Change Energy doesn't really have any control over these fees at all, and if you change providers, you'll still have to pay them.

What are the TDSP Fees / Charges on your 4Change Energy bill?

These are fees charged by your utility, and are present regardless of which electricity provider you have chosen.

Fees from the utility, not the retail electricity provider

TDSP fees can be a fixed charged per bill, or a variable charge based on how much electricity you used during that period. There are a few providers that offer "bundled" rates, which include these fees in their Energy Charge. In bundled rates, your actual average rate will not change during the course of your contract (assuming the plan has no monthly charge).

Some of the TDSP fees you may be charged are:

• Customer Charge
• Distribution Cost Recovery Factor
• Distribution System Charge
• Energy Efficiency Cost Recovery Factor
• Metering Charge
• Nuclear Decommissioning Fee
• PUC Assessment
• System Restoration Charge
• Transition Charge (1-5)
• Transmission Cost Recovery Factor
• Transmission System Charge

The TDSP fees charged and their amounts will vary depending on which TDSP services your area. As of May 2018, Oncor has the lowest per-bill charge at $5.25, while AEP-North has the highest, at $10.53 per bill. TNMP has the lowest average usage charges, at around 3.3¢/kWh, and CenterPoint is the highest, around 4.1¢/kWh.

Electric companies generally have the same energy charge applied, no-matter which TDSP the plan is in. The difference in the TDSP fees are the reason the same plan can cost around a penny higher in CenterPoint vs TNMP.

ESI ID (Electric Service Identifier)

This is the unique identifier of the electricity meter for your address. If you have multiple meters (one for the house, one for the shed) you will have multiple ESI IDs. Each ESI ID will generally get it's own bill, unless your current provider offers some sort of combined billing.