The utility minimum charge in Florida: why your bill never reaches $0

Your electric bill never reaches $0 because the utility charges you for being connected, not just for using power. At FPL and Duke Energy Florida that floor is a $30 minimum base bill that applies even when your panels produce more than you use; at TECO it is a basic charge billed per day. With solar, the realistic goal is the minimum bill, not zero.

What exactly is the minimum charge?

It is a minimum monthly amount the utility bills every residential account to cover fixed system costs: meter, poles, transformers and wires that are there whether or not you use power. The Public Service Commission (PSC) approves it inside rate agreements. Short definition at /en/glossary/minimum-charge.

It matters because it changes the solar math: net metering credits every kWh you send to the grid 1 to 1 (/en/learn/net-metering-florida), so the energy portion really can hit zero. The minimum is what is left.

How does it work at each utility?

FPL: the minimum lives inside the “base bill”

FPL explains that the base bill is the base charge ($10.52 a month in 2026) plus the base energy charge. If that sum falls below $30, a “Minimum base bill charge” line appears with the difference. As you use more, that line shrinks until it disappears. What does not count toward the minimum: fuel, storm protection, conservation, capacity, environmental and taxes. So a solar home that buys zero net kWh pays $30 of base bill plus the storm charge on the kWh it did draw at night, plus taxes.

Duke: the minimum is an adjustment at the end

Duke describes it as “a minimum usage charge of $30 per month”. If you are paying the customer charge and your net usage for the month is zero, Duke adds an adjustment to reach $30. Duke states 95% of accounts never see it, and that a modification exists for income-qualified customers (who are not net metering customers) in 2025, 2026 and 2027.

TECO: no minimum line, but there is a floor

Tampa Electric’s 2026 residential rate sheet shows no separate minimum charge. What it has is a basic service charge billed for every day in the period, plus per-kWh charges on whatever you do draw from the grid, plus taxes. With solar, your floor on TECO is lower than on FPL or Duke, but it is not zero.

What happens to the surplus at year-end?

At FPL, leftover kWh accumulate month to month in your “bank” and, if you still have a surplus when the December meter is read, a credit goes on that bill calculated at FPL’s average annual cost of generation, a value recalculated every year that depends mostly on natural gas prices. That generation cost is lower than the full rate you pay. That is why a system that produces far more than you use is not a good deal: they buy cheap what they sold you dear. The full math, including the cases where the December bill comes in negative, is at /en/learn/how-much-solar-really-saves.

Heads up: the pitch “with solar your bill goes to zero” is false at all three utilities and whoever uses it knows it. We design at ~110% of usage and offer the Minimum Bill Guarantee: if the system produces less than promised in any month, we pay the difference. The key word is “minimum”, not “zero”.

How much does the minimum weigh in your decision?

It depends on the size of your bill. At 1,000 kWh a month on FPL (about $136 in August 2026), a $30 minimum leaves plenty of room for solar to make sense. At 400 kWh a month, the minimum and taxes are nearly half of what you pay, and no system removes them. That is why our subscription partner disqualifies very low bills and why in the diagnosis we look at kWh before dollars (/en/learn/what-is-a-kwh-home-usage).

In our partner’s solar subscription, the 30% savings guaranteed by contract is calculated on the total bill including the minimum charge; it is one of the few offers on the market that puts it in the promise instead of hiding it. Even so, make sure the contract says so in writing.

When NOT to worry about the minimum

• If you use more than 800 kWh a month: the minimum is a small fraction and does not change the decision.
• If you do not have or plan solar: the minimum is already inside what you pay and you will not notice it.
• If your problem is a summer spike: the lever there is the air conditioner, not the bill’s floor.

When it does matter: bills under $100, second homes with empty months, and any solar proposal showing “$0” as the projected bill.

What to check before deciding

• Look for the minimum line on your bill (FPL: “Minimum base bill charge”; Duke: adjustment to $30). If it shows up, your usage is low and solar yields less.
• Ask that any solar proposal show the projected bill month by month with the minimum, storm charges and taxes.
• Ask how the contract treats the minimum charge if they promise a savings percentage.
• If you are on Duke and qualify by income, ask about the minimum bill modification.
• Compare your utility: /en/florida/fpl, /en/florida/duke-energy, /en/florida/teco.