What’s in Your Energy Wallet?
Why EPRI’s New Metric Matters for Affordability, Electrification, and Policy
When most people think about their “energy costs,” they’re really thinking about a single bill—usually electricity or gas. EPRI’s new Energy Wallet research flips that perspective on its head and asks a much bigger question:
How much are households really spending on all the energy it takes to live and get around?
That includes electricity, natural gas, heating fuels, gasoline, and even distributed solar and EV charging. By looking at the whole wallet instead of just one bill, EPRI is trying to give utilities, regulators, and policymakers a clearer picture of affordability—and a better way to evaluate the impacts of decarbonization and electrification.
What is the Energy Wallet?
EPRI defines the Energy Wallet as a metric that captures direct household energy expenditures across:
- Electricity (utility bills, including behind-the-meter solar costs)
- Natural gas and other heating fuels (propane, fuel oil, etc.)
- Gasoline and other transportation fuels
- Distributed solar and EV charging costs
Instead of looking at each category in isolation, the Energy Wallet adds them up into one annual dollar figure per household, and then tracks how that changes over time and across states.
According to EPRI’s 2024 analysis:
- The average U.S. household Energy Wallet in 2024 was about $5,530 per year.
- At the national level, gasoline is the single largest line item in that wallet (about $2,930), with electricity around $1,850.
So even though electricity prices get most of the political and media attention, transportation fuels are still where many households bleed the most cash.
Why did EPRI build this metric?
EPRI’s Energy Wallet effort is fundamentally about affordability in a net-zero transition. It tries to answer questions that single-bill metrics can’t:
- What happens to total household energy spending when we electrify vehicles and buildings?
- Where is the affordability problem actually coming from—home heating, gasoline, or electricity?
- How do these patterns differ by state, climate, and fuel mix?
- Can electrification lower total energy spending even if certain bills (like electricity) go up?
To do this, EPRI combines historical data on household energy spending with its US-REGEN energy-economy model, which simulates technology adoption and energy prices under different scenarios through 2050.
What did EPRI find?
1. Electrification can make the Energy Wallet smaller by 2050
Across two price scenarios (higher and lower), EPRI projects that average U.S. household energy spending could fall by 36–42% by 2050, even as we electrify vehicles and buildings.
The big drivers:
- EVs are far more energy-efficient than gasoline cars, so even with higher electricity use, fuel savings dominate.
- Building electrification (heat pumps, better envelope efficiency) can reduce heating fuel costs, especially in regions currently relying on expensive oil or propane.
- Continued efficiency improvements in appliances and vehicles compound over time.
In other words: more electrons, fewer dollars.
2. Gasoline is the dominant cost today—but that changes
Right now, the Energy Wallet is heavily skewed toward gasoline (over half of the average wallet).
As EV adoption grows:
- The gasoline slice shrinks sharply.
- Electricity’s share grows, but not enough to offset the fuel savings.
- In many states, the total wallet gets lighter, even if an electric bill looks bigger on paper.
This reframes debates that focus narrowly on “electric rates going up” without acknowledging gasoline and heating fuel costs going down.
3. Affordability is highly regional
EPRI’s public interactive map shows state-level Energy Wallet values for 2024 and projections out to 2050.
Some patterns:
- States with cold climates and heavy oil/propane use can have high wallets today but also strong savings potential from heat pumps and weatherization.
- States with milder climates or low-cost power tend to have lower current wallets but still see gains from EVs and efficiency.
- Differences in income, vehicle miles traveled, and fuel prices all shape how big the savings are and who benefits.
This is critical for regulators and utilities talking about equity and energy burden—a flat national story hides a lot of local nuance.
Why the Energy Wallet matters for ESG and policy
Moving beyond “rate my bill”
A big contribution of the Energy Wallet is conceptual: it shifts the conversation from “my electric bill” to “my total energy life.”
That matters because:
- A program that raises electric bills slightly but slashes gasoline and propane spending can still be a win for affordability.
- Regulators focused only on electricity rates may undervalue electrification if they don’t see the cross-fuel savings.
- ESG reporting and utility strategy can start referencing total household energy burden, not just one line item.
Better tools for designing assistance and incentives
EPRI has also connected the Energy Wallet concept to broader work on energy affordability and low- and moderate-income (LMI) customers. Their 2024 energy affordability materials highlight:
- LMI households spend a larger share of income on energy and implement efficiency retrofits less often than the national average.
- Households already facing energy insecurity are less able to front the capital for heat pumps, EVs, or insulation—even when those investments would shrink their wallet in the long run.
By quantifying the Energy Wallet, utilities can:
- Target bill assistance and efficiency where they deliver the biggest wallet reduction per dollar.
- Design rate structures and incentives (e.g., EV charging rates, on-bill repayment) that improve the whole wallet, not just a single bill.
- Evaluate DER/VPP programs partly on how they change customer wallets over time, not just system costs.
How utilities and communities can use Energy Wallet insights
Here are a few practical ways this research can be turned into action:
- Scenario planning for affordability
Use state-level Energy Wallet projections to stress-test integrated resource plans and electrification pathways:- How do different EV adoption trajectories change customer wallets?
- Which combinations of grid investment + customer programs keep wallets flat or declining in real terms?
- Targeted electrification programs
Focus incentives on households whose wallets are dominated by expensive fuels (gasoline, oil, propane). For many of those customers, EVs and heat pumps are affordability strategies as much as climate strategies. - Rate design that matches the wallet story
As time-of-use or demand rates roll out, pair them with clear Energy Wallet messaging: not just “your kWh price changed,” but “here’s how this rate, plus EV or heat pump adoption, changes your total annual energy wallet.” - ESG and regulatory filings
Utilities and regulators can use Energy Wallet metrics as evidence that certain portfolios or pilots improve affordability over time—especially important when justifying capital spending or new programs to commissions, consumer advocates, or investors.
Where to explore EPRI’s Energy Wallet work
If you want to dig deeper:
- Energy Wallet microsite & interactive map – definitions, charts, and state-level data with future projections.
- Energy Affordability 2024 interactive – broader context on LMI customers, arrearages, and efficiency opportunities.
- Energy Central & EPRI Current podcast – accessible explainers and discussion of implications for planning and policy.
Closing thought
EPRI’s Energy Wallet research doesn’t magically solve affordability, but it gives us a better scoreboard.
Instead of arguing over individual tariffs in isolation, we can ask: Is this policy or investment making the total energy wallet lighter or heavier for households–especially those already under strain?
In a world where electrification, climate targets, and affordability are colliding, that’s exactly the kind of metric we need.