Texas is Deregulated. Why Can’t I Choose My Electricity Provider?

Texas is deregulated. That means that most — but not all — Texans have a choice of electricity supplier. If you live in an area served by an electrical cooperative, a municipal owned utility, or a utility that’s not part of ERCOT, you can’t choose your electricity provider.

Electric cooperatives (“co-ops”) and municipally-owned utilities (“munis”) don’t have to take part in deregulation. Texas law also includes exceptions for certain investor-owned utilities.

What does this mean for you?

Texas Electricity Deregulation – Who Can Switch?

About 85% of Texans live in areas open to electric competition.

In areas like Houston, Dallas, Corpus Christi, Brownsville and Waco, you can shop for your electricity plan.

You have a choice of supplier. You can use our Texas electricity rates chart to find the cheapest electricity rate from the best electric company near you. And you can take advantage of electricity plans like 100% Renewable Energy, Free Nights and Weekends, or a Fixed Rate electricity plan.

The other 15% of Texans live in areas with co-ops, munis, or smaller investor-owned utilities. These are all places where you can’t choose your supplier.

Here are the deregulated areas of Texas (shown in color, below.) Or refer to this list of deregulated cities in Texas.

Shopping for a new provider? Read our step-by-step guide to shopping for Texas electricity.

Cities in Texas with no Electricity Choice

Here are some of the cities in Texas where electricity is still regulated, and you must get your electricity from the local utility company.

• Austin (Austin Energy)
• Brownsville (Magic Valley Electric Coop)
• Bryan (Bryan Texas Utilities)
• Brenham (Bluebonnet Electric Coop)
• Burnet (City of Burnet)
• College Station (City of College Station)
• Conroe (Entergy)
• Denton (Denton Municipal Electric)
• El Paso (El Paso Electric)
• Fredericksburg (Central Texas Electric Coop)
• Garland (Garland Power & Light or Oncor)
• Georgetown (City of Georgetown Electric Utility)
• Huntsville (Entergy)
• Kerrville (Kerrville Public Utilities)
• New Braunfels (New Braunfels Utilities)
• San Marcos (SMTX Utilities)
• San Antonio (CPS Energy)
• The Woodlands (Entergy)