Everybody’s mad about the rate hike.Almost nobody has done the math.
The comment sections are full. The inboxes are quiet. That gap costs Southwest Florida homeowners and business owners real money every month, because anger doesn’t lower a bill and neither does waiting.
So here’s the useful version. What the increase actually is, what it does to your bill, and five things you can do this week that cost nothing. No email required for any of it.
Three things about this rate hike that aren't in the posts
The scary number and your bill are two different numbers
FPL's approved settlement raises base rates by roughly $945 million in 2026 and $705 million in 2027. That's the number in the headlines. The typical 1,000 kWh residential bill moved about $2.50 for 2026, because fuel costs dropped at the same time. Both are true. The later years are where it gets heavier, and that's the part worth planning for.
Half the people sharing it aren't FPL customers
If you're in Cape Coral or most of Lee County, you're on LCEC. It's a member-owned cooperative with its own board and its own rates, and it isn't governed by the same Public Service Commission rules. LCEC's 2026 residential schedule runs about $145.67 at 1,000 kWh. Check the top of your bill before you decide who to be angry at.
About $15 of your bill happens before you turn anything on
Customer charges, minimum charges, and on a business account demand charges. Nothing you do at home touches that part. Knowing which part of your bill is actually movable is the whole difference between frustration and a plan.
Figures are current as of September 2026 and come from the Florida PSC’s approval of the FPL 2026–2029 settlement and LCEC’s published 2026 rates. Rates change. We re-verify these and date every article we publish.
What the climb costs you, specifically
Move the slider to your bill and pick your utility. Nobody can predict future rates, so this shows three scenarios instead of pretending to know one.
Who bills you?
LCEC's 2026 residential schedule runs about $145.67 at 1,000 kWh, including the $20 monthly customer charge and the September 2026 power cost adjustment.
Roughly $20 of that bill is fixed charges you pay before you use a single kilowatt-hour. The other $200 is energy. That’s about 1,591 kWh a month.
Only the energy part responds to anything you do. The fixed part doesn’t.
If rates keep climbing, here’s the bill you inherit
| If rates rise | Extra next year | Bill in 10 yrs | Paid over 25 yrs |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2% a year | $48 | $264/mo | $82,873 |
| 4% a year | $96 | $316/mo | $105,950 |
| 6% a year | $144 | $378/mo | $137,675 |
The number that matters
$105,950
That’s what you hand your utility over 25 years at a 4% climb, starting from today’s $220. Nobody knows the real rate. That’s the middle guess.
Estimates for illustration, not a forecast or a quote. Nobody can predict utility rates, which is why this shows three scenarios instead of one. The split between fixed and variable charges is approximate until we read your actual bill. Utility figures are current as of September 2026 and change.
Five things that cut your bill this week and cost nothing
We sell energy advice for a living and we're telling you to do these before you talk to us. If they solve it, good. That's a real outcome and it costs you nothing.
Move your thermostat, on a schedule
The Department of Energy puts the savings at up to 10% a year on heating and cooling from setting it back 7–10°F for eight hours a day. In Florida that's the hours nobody's home. A schedule beats willpower, and almost every thermostat already does this if someone programs it.
Turn the water heater down to 120°F
DOE recommends 120°F, and puts the savings at roughly 3–5% for every 10°F you drop. Most tanks ship set to 140°F. It takes about four minutes and a screwdriver.
Run the pool pump fewer hours
Pool pumps are one of the largest loads on a Florida home and most run far longer than the water needs. Cut the daily runtime and see whether the water still stays clear. If you're still on a single-speed pump, that's the one appliance upgrade that usually pays for itself.
Read the middle of your bill, not the total
Find the kWh, then divide the total by it. That's what you actually pay per kilowatt-hour, and it's almost never the number in the ad you saw. Also find the fixed charge. Those two numbers tell you more than any sales conversation will.
Change the air filter, then look at the outdoor unit
A loaded filter makes the system work harder for the same cooling. While you're at it, clear the grass and shrubs off the condenser outside. Air conditioning is about 28% of Florida home energy use, so anything that makes it work harder is expensive.
Find the things running all night
Second refrigerator in the garage, well pump short-cycling, an old dehumidifier, a hot tub. In a Florida house the garage fridge is usually the quiet winner. Unplug what you don't need for two weeks and compare the bill.
Longer versions with the sources: cut your power bill without solar and how to read your Florida power bill.
Send one bill. Get a straight read back.
That’s the whole ask. One recent power bill, a photo or a PDF. We’ll send back what you’re paying per kilowatt-hour, which part of your bill is fixed, how your usage compares to similar properties nearby, and whether anything we do would help.
If the answer is “your bill is already reasonable, fix the pool pump and leave it alone,” that’s what you’ll get. We’d rather be the people who told you the truth than the people who sold you a system you didn’t need.
Prefer a human? Call (239) 450-2639 or send a text.
What you get back, and what you don’t
- You getYour real cost per kWh and your fixed charges, in writing
- You getWhether your usage is high, normal, or low for a property like yours
- You getA plain answer on whether solar, a battery, efficiency, or nothing makes sense
- You don't getA salesperson at your door because you clicked something
- You don't getA 90-minute presentation before anyone says a number
- You don't getA guaranteed-savings promise, because nobody can make one honestly
Your rate hike is a different, larger problem.
A commercial account often pays for demand as well as energy, and a single fifteen-minute peak can set a floor under the next eleven bills. Solar alone rarely touches that. The tax side is also completely different from a home: a business that buys the system stacks a 30% federal credit with 100% first-year depreciation.
What's actually being reported
Links go to the publishers. We don't republish anyone's reporting, and we don't only pick the stories that help us.
The ones people actually ask us
How much is my bill actually going up?+
It depends who bills you, and the answer is usually smaller in year one and bigger by year four than the headline suggests. FPL's approved settlement raises base rates by roughly $945 million in 2026 and $705 million in 2027, with more in 2028 and 2029 for new solar and storage — but the typical 1,000 kWh residential bill moved from about $134.14 to about $136.64 for 2026, because fuel costs moved the other way. If you're on LCEC, none of that is your bill at all.
Am I even on FPL?+
Most of Cape Coral and a lot of Lee County is LCEC, a member-owned cooperative with its own board, its own rates, and its own net-metering rules. Look at the top of your bill. A great deal of the outrage being shared around Southwest Florida is about a utility that doesn't serve the person sharing it.
Isn't solar just a different bill?+
Sometimes, yes, and we'll say so. A lease or loan payment replaces part of the utility payment. Whether that's better depends on your usage, your roof, your rate schedule, and the terms. If it isn't better for you, you should hear that from us before you hear it from a contract.
What does this cost me to find out?+
Nothing. Tell us how to reach you and we go over one bill with you. You get a written read on what you're paying per kilowatt-hour, what's fixed, and what your options actually are. No one comes to your house unless you ask.
Two minutes now beats another year of this
Leave a phone, email, or address and find out where you actually stand. If there's nothing worth doing, we'll tell you that and you'll have lost two minutes.
We compare the numbers. You decide. If solar isn't right for your property, we'll say so.