Electricity
A kilowatt hour of electricity cost an average of $0.086 in mid-1989 in cities tracked by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), while it more recently averaged $0.139, in mid-2019. That’s an increase of only 62%, reflecting much slower growth than overall prices, which increased by 107% over that period due to inflation.
Many people’s electric bills may have risen by more than 62%, though, because we now have far more electric and electronic devices all around our homes, such as air conditioners, personal computers, phone chargers, cable boxes, and fancier appliances.
Many of those items, such as refrigerators, now come in more energy-efficient models, which you can find by looking for the Energy Star designation.
