Budget 2022 saw government subsidies introduced for electricity bills following a spike in energy prices in 2021 which left households paying hundreds more on their annual bills. Two payments of €200 in 2022 and 2023 and a one-off payment of €150 in December 2023 had a substantial effect on electricity bills, with the median bill dropping below €1,000 in all but 3 counties in 2022, and all but 2 counties in 2023. In 2021, all counties in the State had a median bill of more than €1,000.

The highest median household electricity bills by county in 2023 were:

1. Kildare (€1,020)
2. Meath (€1,011)
3. Wicklow (€976)

The lowest median domestic bills were:

1. Donegal (€726)
2. Leitrim (€753)
3. Mayo (€799)

In Co. Carlow, the median electricity bill rose steadily in the mid to late 2010s, peaking in 2021 at €1,324. The median decreased in the county to €967 in 2022 and again to €951 in 2023. Throughout 2015 to 2023, Carlow’s electricity bills have fluctuated, with prices soaring during the first months of the war in Ukraine. Government subsidies in 2022 and 2023 have resulted in the lowest bills in a number of years.

After years of fluctuating electricity prices, 2021 saw the highest median electricity bill in Cavan at €1,279, which was significantly higher than previous years. The median bill in the county fell by around €300 in 2022 to €927, and to €900 in 2023. 

After a slight decline from 2015 (€1,064) to 2016 (€980), County Clare saw its electricity bills rise steadily, reaching a peak in 2021 following the invasion of Ukraine at €1,237. There is a notable decrease in bills in the years following the peak due to subsidies – with the median dropping to €876 in 2022 and €849 in 2023 in the Banner County.

There was a general upward trend in median electricity bill costs in Co. Cork from €1,098 in 2015 to its height at €1,264 during the first year of the war in Ukraine. It has since receded, with government intervention, and bills are currently lower than they have been in years. In 2023, the median electricity bill in the Rebel County was €884.

Bills in the Hills decreased from 2015 to 2016, with median costs of €965 and €843 respectively. Costs then fluctuated before reaching their highest point in 2021 when the median reached €1,066. Electricity bills in Co. Donegal are the lowest in the State, with 2023 seeing the median bill decrease to €726.

The median electricity bill has fluctuated in Dublin over the past 9 years, from €1,096 in 2015 to €844 in 2023. Bills during the years in between varied, other than the outlier of €1,237 in 2021 when prices rose across Europe. 

Between 2015 and 2020, the median electricity bill in Galway hovered around the €1,100 mark, with small annual changes. This changed in 2021 when energy bills soared – but the median bill in Co. Galway is now under €1,000, in line with the vast majority of counties. The median residential electricity bill remains €137 higher than in Co. Mayo.

Co. Kildare is one of only two counties in Ireland where the median household electricity bill is over €1,000. The median electricity bill in Kildare fell from €1,197 in 2015 to €1,157 in 2016, and has not fallen below €1,000 in recent years even with subsidies.

Electricity bills in Kilkenny have fallen for two years in a row after the price of electricity went through the roof in 2021. During that year, the median electricity bill for Cats was €1,354 – the 3rd highest in the State. In 2022, the median fell below €1,000 to €974, and it was €944 last year.

The median electricity bill cost for households in Co. Laois has fluctuated over the past nine years, with the highest bills recorded in 2021 when the median hit €1,312. In 2022, this fell by more than €300, and 2023 saw a further reduction in the average household bills in the county with the median dropping to €950.

Leitrim has among the lowest household electricity bills in Ireland, with median costs below €1,000 except in 2021 when prices were abnormally high. In 2023, Leitrim had the second lowest median bill in the State at €753.

The average electricity bills in Limerick have risen and fallen consistently over the past decade, with the highest energy costs hitting households in 2021 when the median bill was €1,257. Thankfully, costs have decreased since because of supports for households, with the median bill falling to €890 in 2023.

The median electricity bill in Longford fell below €900 in 2023 for the first time in recent years. Like the rest of the country, Longford households paid more in 2021 than any other year, when the median household bill was €1,258, which was around the national average for that year. The median cost fell by €19 between 2022 and 2023 in Longford.

There was a substantial decrease in electricity bills in Co. Louth in 2022, when the median bill dropped below €900 for the first time in many years to €897. Last year saw further a decrease, when the median fell to €874, which was around the national average.

For 4 of the past 9 years, the median electricity bill in Co. Mayo was above €1,000 – with 2021 seeing the highest median bill at €1,176. In 2023, Mayo was one of only 3 counties, along with Donegal and Leitrim, where the median household electricity bill was under €800. The median bill in 2023 in Mayo was €137 lower than in Galway.

Meath consistently has the 2nd highest median electricity bills in Ireland. In 2023, it was one of only 2 counties (with Kildare) with a median household bill of more than €1,000. At €1,011, this was €131 higher than the national median electricity bill.

After fluctuations in the median electricity bill over a number of years in Monaghan, a spike in prices led to much higher bills in 2021 when the median bill was slightly above the national average. Since then, bills have been on a downward trend with two €200 subsidies paid to households in 2022 and 2023.

The median electricity bill in Offaly is higher than the Irish average each year – however there has been a significant decrease in costs since 2021. In 2015, the median was €1,116, and Offaly households experienced slight increases and decreases until 2021 when the median reached €1,338 – one of the highest in the State. In 2023, the median fell to €939.

The median household electricity bill in Co. Roscommon in 2023 was €813. Bills were lower in 2023 than they had been in a number of years, and with government payments, they are much lower than 2021 when energy bills went through the roof across the country.

Like the rest of the country, households in Sligo saw their bills skyrocket in 2021. Since then, they’ve fallen by almost €400, due to 2 payments of €200 for Sligo electricity customers in the past 2 years. Solar PV adoption in Sligo has also been increasing steadily, resulting in savings of hundreds of euros for households across the county.

Between 2015 and 2023, the median household bill in Co. Tipperary has decreased by €192. Other than 2021 which was an outlier across Ireland, the median domestic electricity bill was between 1,000 and 1,500. This fell to €943 in 2022, and again to €905 in 2023.

Electricity bills in Waterford are almost identical as the national average, and have been for many years. Prices remained relatively steady between 2015 and 2020, with the median bill in Waterford being between €1,026 and €1,101. This shot up to 1,276 in 2021, just above the national median bill. By 2023, this had fallen to €880.

CSO data for Westmeath shows the median electricity bill was €944 in 2023, the lowest it has been in many years. Subsidies have slashed bills across Ireland since 2021, when energy prices were sky high when compared to other years.

Wexford electricity bills were among the highest in Ireland three years ago – and significantly higher than Ireland’s national average. While bills in the county are still above most of the country, they have decreased below €1,000 thanks to support payments to households and a high number of households adopting solar PV panels to generate their own power.

The median electricity bill for homes in Co. Wicklow is €96 higher than the State average – and this has been a trend which has sustained over many years. 2023 was the first year in Wicklow with an average bill of under €1,000 – but at €976, it was still the 3rd highest in Ireland.