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Why is my electricity bill so high?

Bills above ৳5,000 a month are usually one of nine things, not bad luck. We walk through each cause and how to confirm it on your own bill.

11 min read·Published 2025-12-08
Diagnostic

Why is my electricity bill so high? 9 real causes

A sudden bill jump almost always traces to one of nine specific things. Walk through them in order — the first three explain most cases.

Typical bill-jump patternBill amount (৳)Jan1,800Feb1,950Mar2,100Apr2,050May2,300Jun5,400

Most common causes, ranked

  • Crossing a tariff slab boundary (the single biggest cause)
  • AC use compounded across the month — even a 2-hour daily increase matters
  • Old or oversized refrigerator silently doubling background load
  • Water heater left switched on at the wall

Cause 1

You crossed a slab boundary

The Bangladesh residential tariff has hard slab boundaries: 75, 200, 300, 400, 600. Cross 600 by one unit and every unit after that prices at ৳17.35 instead of ৳15.01.

A household running an AC for an extra two hours a day during a heatwave can easily move from the 401–600 slab into the >600 slab — and the marginal cost of those extra 60 units is dramatic.

Cause 2

AC use compounded

A 1.5-ton inverter AC averaging 1,200 W run for 8 hours a day uses ~288 units a month. Run it 12 hours a day during a hot spell and that becomes 432 units — an extra 144 units, which at ৳15.01 = ৳2,161. Over a summer that’s typically the entire bill increase right there.

Cause 3

Old or oversized refrigerator

Refrigerators are the largest always-on appliance in most homes. A 10-year-old non-inverter fridge can pull 250–350 W average vs 100–150 W for a modern inverter unit. The difference: 100–200 W × 24 hours × 30 days = 72–144 units a month.

Causes 4–9

The rest of the suspect list

4

Water heater left on at the wall

A 2,000 W storage geyser run all day uses ~25–40 units a day — a single forgotten switch can add ৳5,000+ to a month’s bill.
5

Wrong or estimated meter reading

Meter readers sometimes record from memory or estimate. The next month corrects it and your bill spikes. Check the meter face vs the bill.
6

Tariff revision

BERC adjusts the tariff occasionally. If the increase is uniform across all your slabs, this is probably it.
7

Hidden phantom load

Set-top boxes, old TVs, gaming consoles, desktops in standby — collectively 30–100 W, or 22–72 units a month.
8

New appliance you forgot

Water purifier with hot function? A second freezer for Eid? Each adds 30–80 units.
9

Neighbour tapping your line

Rare in metered urban areas, common at the edge of BREB rural lines. Bill jumps without behavioural change — file a complaint.

Self-diagnose

How to figure out which cause is yours

1

Compare units

Note the unit difference between this month and last (current − previous reading).
2

Add up appliances

Open the appliance cost calculator and total your AC, fridge, geyser, water pump, lights, fans, TV.
3

If the totals match

You have a use-pattern issue. Causes 1, 2, 3, 4, or 8.
4

If the totals don't match

You have a meter, phantom-load, or theft issue. Causes 5, 7, or 9.

Frequently asked questions

Three likely causes: (1) BERC just revised the tariff schedule, (2) the meter reading is wrong or estimated, or (3) you've crossed into a much higher slab — common after adding an AC or water heater.

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