Insights / Calculators

How is your electricity bill calculated? Item by item

Enter your consumption and the unit prices on your bill. We show the energy charge, distribution charge, consumption tax and VAT one by one, and which items change if you switch supplier.

Tariff group

Consumption (kWh)

Energy price (TL/kWh)

Distribution charge (TL/kWh)

Unit prices are on your bill. The energy fund and TRT levy were removed from bills on 1 January 2022.

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Offered energy unit price (TL/kWh)

Your bill

49,800.00 TL 4.98 TL per kWh including all items

Active energy charge 30,000.00 TL Set by your supplier or tariff %60.2

Distribution charge 10,000.00 TL Set by EPDK, same for all suppliers %20.1

Electricity consumption tax 1,500.00 TL %5 of the energy charge %3

VAT 8,300.00 TL %20 of the subtotal %16.7

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Illustrative calculation using the rates in force. Reactive energy, late fees and connection charges are excluded.

Method

Which items make up the bill and which rules apply

Consumption tax, industry

Consumption tax, residential and commercial

20%

VAT, commercial and industrial

10%

VAT, residential and agricultural irrigation

An electricity bill is not a single price. Network charges, the municipal consumption tax and finally VAT are added to the cost of the energy consumed. Some of these items are set by your supplier, some by EPDK and some by law.

Which items make up an electricity bill

Table 1 Bill items

ItemSet byCalculated on

Active energy charge Supplier or EPDK tariff Consumption × unit price

Distribution charge EPDK Consumption × unit charge

Electricity consumption tax Law No. 2464 Active energy charge

VAT VAT legislation Sum of all items

The active energy charge is the price of the electricity itself. If you are an eligible consumer with a bilateral contract, you set it with your supplier. The distribution charge pays for carrying power to your site and is the same whichever supplier you choose.

The formula

Subtotal = Energy + Distribution + Energy × Tax Bill = Subtotal × (1 + VAT)

Energy consumption × active energy unit price Dist. consumption × distribution unit charge Tax industry 1%; residential, commercial 5% VAT residential and agricultural irrigation 10%; others 20%

The consumption tax is calculated only on the active energy charge, not on distribution. VAT applies to the total of all items, including the consumption tax.

Rates by tariff group

Table 2 Tax rates by tariff group

Tariff groupConsumption taxVAT

Residential 5% 10%

Commercial 5% 20%

Industrial 1% 20%

Agricultural irrigation 5% 10%

Your distribution company sets your tariff group, shown on your bill. Industrial sites pay 1% consumption tax, which for the same consumption means tax 4% of the energy charge lower than for a commercial user.

An illustrative calculation

Take a commercial business consuming 10,000 kWh a month, with an active energy unit price of 3.00 TL/kWh, and a distribution charge of 1.00 TL/kWh.

Figure 1 Monthly amount by item

Active energy

30,000

Distribution

10,000

Consumption tax

1,500

VAT

8,300

TL. Total 49,800 TL; 4.98 TL per kWh. Illustrative calculation.

Assumptions: commercial, 10,000 kWh, active energy 3.00 TL/kWh, distribution 1.00 TL/kWh, consumption tax 5%, VAT 20%. Unit prices are examples; use your bill for current values.

What changes when you switch supplier

Switching supplier directly changes the active energy charge. Because the consumption tax and VAT depend on it, they move in the same direction. The distribution charge does not change.

Figure 2 Monthly bill when the energy unit price falls 10%

Current price (3.00 TL/kWh)

49,800

Offer (2.70 TL/kWh)

46,020

TL. Difference 3,780 TL, or 7.6% of the bill. Illustrative calculation.

Every cut in the energy unit price reaches the bill together with the tax and VAT linked to it; the distribution charge stays fixed.

Table 3 Energy charge by tariff

SituationEnergy chargeDistribution charge

National tariff EPDK tariff EPDK tariff

Last resort tariff (PTF + YEKDEM) × KBK EPDK tariff

Bilateral contract Contract price EPDK tariff

Other items on the bill

Reactive consumption above set limits is charged separately and depends on your compensation system. Late fees and disconnection-reconnection charges are added depending on payment and service status. The TRT levy and the energy fund were removed from electricity bills from 1 January 2022 by Law No. 7346.

What it means for businesses

Reading the bill item by item shows which part is negotiable. A business can influence two things: the active energy unit price and consumption itself. Distribution charges, tax rates and VAT are set by regulation.

When comparing offers, look beyond the unit price: whether the price is fixed or indexed, and the contract term.

In short

01 A bill has four main items: active energy, distribution, consumption tax and VAT.

02 The consumption tax is 1% for industry and 5% for residential and commercial users, on the energy charge.

03 VAT is 10% for residential and agricultural irrigation and 20% for others, on the sum of all items.

04 The distribution charge is set by EPDK and does not depend on the supplier.

05 Switching supplier changes the energy charge and therefore the consumption tax and VAT linked to it. The energy fund and TRT levy have not appeared on bills since 2022.

At Frekans we supply eligible consumers through bilateral contracts. We can review your bill item by item with you and agree the right price structure for your energy charge.

Sources Municipal Revenues Law No. 2464, art. 34 (electricity and gas consumption tax) Presidential Decisions on VAT rates EPDK-approved tariff tables (distribution charge) Electricity Market Consumer Services Regulation (invoice content) Law No. 7346 amending Law No. 3096 (removal of the energy fund and TRT levy, 1 January 2022) Last updated: 6 October 2026

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