Xcel Energy’s Time of Use rate is an opt-in plan for Minnesota residential customers that prices electricity by the hour. This page covers the specifics: the hours, the seasons, the approximate prices, and how it compares with Xcel’s other plans. For the general idea behind time-based pricing, see our overview of time-of-use rates in Minnesota.
What are Xcel’s on-peak, base or mid-peak, and off-peak hours?
- On-peak: 6 to 9 p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding holidays
- Off-peak: midnight to 6 a.m., every day of the year
- Base or Mid-peak: all other hours, including weekend and holiday evenings
Weekends never reach the on-peak price, so Saturday and Sunday are open for big loads at any hour.
What does each period cost?
Off-peak is roughly 7 to 8 cents per kilowatt-hour and stays the same all year. Base hours are priced close to Xcel’s standard rate, which runs roughly 11 to 13 cents depending on the season. On-peak runs roughly 17 cents in winter to 21 cents in summer, about two to three times the overnight price.
These figures are approximate, they change when Xcel’s rates change, and your bill also includes fixed charges and other line items. Xcel’s Time of Use page has current pricing.
When does Xcel’s summer pricing apply?
June through September. On-peak and base prices are both higher in those months. From October through May, both drop and the gap between on-peak and off-peak narrows. The off-peak price is the same in every season.
Is the Time of Use rate automatic?
No. Xcel first proposed making it the default, but the version regulators approved it as a opt-in program only. You stay on the standard rate unless you enroll, and Xcel has said customers can move between plans. Customers who were in Xcel’s earlier Flex Pricing pilot were moved to the new rate unless they opted out.
How does it compare with Xcel’s other plans?
Xcel’s older Time of Day rate uses a 12-hour on-peak window, 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. on weekdays, with a very low overnight price. Customers already on it can keep it. If you’re on Time of Day now, compare both against your usage before changing.
Xcel also has a space heating rate with a winter discount for homes heated primarily by electricity, plus separate programs for EV charging. Our posts on time-of-use in a Minnesota winter and the best time to charge an EV cover those.
How do solar homes fit Xcel’s time periods?
Rooftop panels produce mostly during mid-peak hours, so a solar home covers much of its daytime use and can save the overnight window for whatever it still buys. That’s why solar homes are often good candidates. How solar panels change the math on time-of-use rates explains it in detail, and is time-of-use worth it covers homes without solar.
Schedule an energy assessment and we’ll model your home’s energy cost on Xcel’s standard rate and Time-of-Use rate side by side. We serve Xcel customers in Minneapolis and St. Paul and across all surrounding suburbs.
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