Eversource Massachusetts: Boston Electric Service & Rates

Eversource is the big player here. We're talking 1.4 million electric customers across eastern and western Massachusetts^[1]. That's the largest utility in the state.

The company came together when NSTAR (you might remember it as Boston Edison) merged with Northeast Utilities. Basically took a bunch of old New England utilities and slapped one name on them.

Here's the thing people get confused about: Eversource doesn't make the electricity. They just deliver it. Think of them as the postal service for power. They own the poles, the wires, the transformers. All that infrastructure stuff. But the electricity itself? That comes from somewhere else.

You've got two choices for where your power comes from. Option one is Eversource Basic Service. That's the default. Option two is picking a competitive supplier licensed by the state. Either way, Eversource still delivers it to your house. Oh, and they handle natural gas too in some areas.

Eversource runs two separate territories in Massachusetts. Each one has its own rates, which throws people off sometimes.

Eastern Massachusetts covers the Greater Boston area. Think Cambridge, Somerville, Quincy. It stretches south through Plymouth down to Cape Cod. Goes all the way up to the New Hampshire border too. This used to be NSTAR or Boston Edison if you remember those names.

Western Massachusetts is your Connecticut River Valley region. Springfield, Chicopee, Westfield, Greenfield. All those towns. This was WMECO back in the day.

Now here's why it matters: these two territories have different Basic Service rates. They buy power at different times, pay different wholesale prices. So your neighbor in the next town over might be paying a different rate than you.

Both areas let you pick competitive suppliers. Eversource delivers the power either way.

Eversource Basic Service is what you get if you don't pick a competitive supplier. It's the default.

As of August 2025, here's what you're paying: 14.884¢/kWh in Eastern Mass (that's up 12.3% from 13.241¢). Western Mass is around 13.49¢/kWh.

These rates change twice a year. Usually February and August. The price reflects what Eversource pays for wholesale electricity. They're not making money on this part. It's a straight pass-through of their costs.

What does Basic Service cover? Generation costs, transmission charges, regulatory stuff. You know, all the costs of producing and moving the electricity around.

One thing to remember: delivery charges are separate. Those are for maintaining the actual poles and wires. You pay those no matter who supplies your electricity.

Why do Eversource rates jump around? Because they're tied to wholesale electricity prices in ISO-NE (ISO New England), the regional grid operator.

Every six months, Eversource goes to competitive auctions and buys electricity. Whatever they pay is what you pay. No markup. They're not allowed to profit from the supply side.

So what makes wholesale prices move? Natural gas prices are huge. Most New England power plants run on gas. When gas gets expensive, electricity follows. Seasonal demand plays a role too. Transmission problems. And all those renewable energy requirements the state mandates.

Winter's usually worse. You've got power plants and home furnaces competing for the same natural gas supply. Prices spike.

That August 2025 rate jump? Higher wholesale prices when they bought the power. That's the deal with this pass-through model. Sometimes competitive suppliers can't beat it because they're buying from the same market.

Massachusetts lets you shop around. Eversource customers can buy electricity from competitive suppliers licensed by the state.

ElectricRates.org makes this easier. We compare rates from all the licensed suppliers. Show you which plans save you money. No games. Massachusetts customers do find lower competitive rates sometimes.

You've got options: Fixed rates lock in your price. Variable rates bounce around month to month. Green energy plans if you want renewable power.

But here's the catch: the Attorney General's office found that many people end up paying more with competitive suppliers than they would've with Basic Service. So don't just switch blindly. Compare the numbers. Use tools like ElectricRates.org that show your real savings potential.

Good news is you can bail anytime. No penalty for going back to Basic Service.

Lots of Massachusetts towns have Community Choice Aggregation programs. That's where your city or town negotiates electricity rates for everyone in bulk.

Over 150 cities and towns are doing this now. Pretty popular.

How it works: if you're an Eversource customer in one of these towns, they automatically enroll you in a bulk contract they've negotiated. Usually gets you rates below both Basic Service and what you'd find shopping on your own. Plus a lot of these programs include more renewable energy than the state requires.

Don't worry, you can opt out. They'll send you a notice before enrolling you. And you can leave whenever you want to pick your own supplier or go back to Basic Service.

Call your town clerk to see if your community's in one of these programs.

Your Eversource bill splits everything into supply and delivery.

Supply charges are for the actual electricity. This is either the Basic Service rate or whatever your competitive supplier charges.

Delivery charges you always pay. No matter what. These cover the power lines, substations, transformers. All the physical infrastructure. Plus meter reading.

Then you've got other stuff: a customer charge which is just a fixed monthly fee. Transmission charges for those big high-voltage lines that move power around New England. And various adjustments for energy efficiency programs, renewable compliance, storm recovery costs.

If you pick a competitive supplier, their charges replace the Eversource supply charges. That's it. Delivery stays the same. Eversource still sends you one bill for everything.

Your usage shows up in kilowatt-hours or kWh.

Eversource handles all power outages. Doesn't matter who your supplier is.

When your power goes out, report it online at Eversource.com, through their mobile app, or call 1-800-592-2000.

Their outage map shows which areas are affected, estimated restoration times, where the crews are working. Pretty useful during storms.

They spend money on grid reliability. Trimming trees, upgrading equipment, burying power lines in vulnerable spots. When big storms hit, they coordinate with other New England utilities for mutual aid.

Your supplier choice makes zero difference for outages. Eversource crews treat everyone the same.

If you see a downed power line, call immediately. That's a safety emergency.

If you're struggling with your Eversource bill, there are programs that can help.

LIHEAP is federal money for bill assistance. Goes through the state housing department. Discount Rate gives you 25-32% off delivery charges if you qualify based on income. Arrearage Management Program gives you monthly credits to chip away at past-due balances. Budget Billing spreads your annual costs into equal monthly payments so you're not hit with huge winter bills.

Call customer service at 1-800-592-2000. They'll set up payment plans or extensions.

Massachusetts won't let them shut off your power November 15 through March 15 if you can show financial hardship. There are also medical protection certificates for households with serious illness.

Shopping for suppliers is one thing. But Eversource customers can cut bills through efficiency too.

Mass Save programs at masssave.com are worth checking out. Free home energy assessments. Rebates on efficient appliances. Help with weatherization. You're already paying for these programs through your utility bill, so you might as well use them.

Smart thermostats can cut heating and cooling costs 10-15%. LED bulbs use 75% less energy than those old incandescent ones. Air sealing makes a huge difference in New England's older homes.

For rate shopping: see if your town has community aggregation. Compare Basic Service against competitive offers when rates change in February and August.

But be careful. The Attorney General found that lots of people end up paying more with competitive suppliers. Fixed-rate contracts give you predictability, but they don't always save you money.