picture of a smart meter for electricity

Smart Meter Texas – Information To Manage Your Electricity Usage

  • Written By: Rebecca Bridges
  • Edited By: Kelly Bedrich

  • With energy bills climbing, consumers and business owners alike are looking for ways to cut back. One way to do this is to better understand your electricity usage.

    Smart meters, installed by local utilities across Texas, can help you do that. Tap into Smart Meter Texas, the free website where you can access your meter information, to start your energy savings journey!

    What is a Smart Meter?

    Before automation, utilities had meter readers that would travel to your home or business to record the usage information off your meter. Smart meters measure and digitally transmit your data directly to your local utility company and to Smart Meter Texas.

    Smart meters also help automate turning power on or off at a location. And they automatically notify your utility if there’s a power outage.

    What is Smart Meter Texas?

    Smart Meter Texas is jointly operated by the Texas utility companies, with oversight by the Public Utility Commission.

    Your Texas smart meter records 96 15-minute intervals of consumption each day. The smart meter transmits that data to your local utility company and to Smart Meter Texas each day at midnight. Your utility company then sends the meter read information to your Retail Electricity Provider.

    As a consumer, you can access all of this data directly. Doing so can give you insights into how you use power at home. And that can help you cut your electricity bill.

    How Can Your Smart Meter Help You Cut Your Electric Bills?

    To write this article, I signed up for Smart Meter Texas to see the process. The Smart Meter Texas official site is SmartMeterTexas.com.

    Once I looked at the data, I could see patterns. I could actually see a spike when I make my morning coffee! It was also easy to see my night vs. day power usage. And in comparing my year over year usage, I feel good knowing my investment in attic insulation paid off this summer.

    With your smart meter data, you can see the impact of different thermostat settings on your usage; track weekend and evening usage to see if a free nights and weekends plan works for you; or check-in mid month to see if you’re on track with your energy budget.

    How to Sign Up for Smart Meter Texas

    It’s easy to access the Texas Smart Meter portal. Here are the steps to follow to create an account and log-in.

    TIP: Grab a copy of your latest electricity bill before you start. You’ll need your ESID (Electricity Service Identifier) and Meter Number to complete your Smart Meter Texas sign-up.

    Time needed: 10 minutes

    How to Set Up a Smart Meter Texas Account

    1. Go to SmartMeterTexas.com

    2. Select “Sign Up”

    3. Select “Residential” or “Business” from the drop down.

      smart meter texas signup process

    4. Enter User Information including your name, phone number and email address.

    5. Enter Security Information, including your ESID and your meter number.

      Your ESID, or Electric Service Identifier, is a unique number assigned to your location. You’ll find this on your bill or use our free look-up tool to find your ESID.

      Your Meter Number is different than your ESID. You’ll find this number on your bill or you can look on your physical meter. The image below shows how to find the meter number, if you don’t have your bill handy.
      oncor meter showing how to find the meter number

    6. Receive confirmation email with a temporary password.

      Upon completing the information, you’ll receive a confirmation email with a temporary password.

    7. Set account password.

      Log back in to SmartMeterTexas with your temporary password and set a new password.

    8. Begin exploring your Texas smart meter data!

    What Data is Available on SmartMeterTexas?

    Accessing your data on SmartMeterTexas can give you insight into when and how you use power.

    There are three report options in SmartMeterTexas. All data is presented in both chart and table format.

    • Energy Data 15 Minute Interval: Your smart meter records electricity consumption and surplus generation data (if you have solar panels) at 15-minute intervals. Use this data to find when your electricity usage spikes and find the root cause.
    • Daily Meter Reads: A daily reading of your electric meter recorded at midnight. Use this information to easily see any difference in usage each day.
    • Monthly Billing Information: Your total monthly electricity information, as provided to your REP for billing purposes. There are 24 months of data available. Use this information to see seasonality year over year.
    example of daily meter read graph from smart meter texas

    You can also export your energy usage data for more analysis. Download your report as a CSV file, which you can then analyze in Excel or Google Sheets. Or you can download data in an industry-standard format known as Green Button Data.

    You can also set up a subscription to get daily usage emails or authorize a third party to access to your data in the Manage Agreements section. This lets you give data access for things like electricity usage reports, home energy management automation or sizing and financing rooftop solar panels.

    Frequently Asked Questions About Texas Smart Meters

    Texas utilities introduced smart meters in 2003. Despite them being in place for over 20 years, there are still questions and confusion about smart meters. This section attempts to answer those questions.

    Do smart meters use my internet?

    No, smart meters do not use your internet or wi-fi. Instead, they use a radio-frequency network, transmitting data in just one to two seconds.

    Can smart meters control your thermostat?

    No, smart meters can not control your thermostat. However, if you have a connected wi-fi thermostat or smart thermostat, you may want to opt-in to programs that reward you for conserving energy when asked to do so. These are called demand response programs. If you opt-in, your retail electricity provider will control your connected thermostat over the internet.

    Is Smart Meter Texas a scam?

    Smart Meter Texas is not a scam. The Public Utility Commission of Texas and the local Texas utility companies established Smart Meter Texas to store data on electricity usage from every meter location in the state.

    Can I opt-out of having a smart meter in Texas?

    Yes, you can opt-out of having a smart meter in Texas. Contact your utility company to request an analog meter. Just be aware that you may need to pay for the new meter, and pay an additional fee each month for a manual meter read.

    Do I need a new smart meter when I switch providers?

    You’ll keep the same smart meter if you switch electricity providers.

    What’s to keep someone else from accessing my Texas smart meter data?

    To set up your Smart Meter Texas account, you must have two unique numbers. One of them, the ESID number, is publicly available for every meter in Texas. However, you can only find the meter number on your bill or on the physical meter.

    Who pays for smart meters in Texas?

    Every utility customer pays for smart meter installation, maintenance and operations as part of the delivery fees on their bill.

    About Rebecca Bridges

    Rebecca Bridges has worked in deregulated energy markets since 2001. As chief marketing officer for ElectricityPlans, she focuses on helping consumers save on their electricity bills and find the best electricity plans. Outside of work, Rebecca uses her marketing experience to support dog rescue and can often be found hiking or biking local trails.

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