J.D. Power: Utilities Face Affordability, Outage and Digital Pressures Heading into 2026

Electric, gas and water utilities across the U.S. are entering 2026 under mounting pressure from customers facing higher bills, more service disruptions and rising expectations for digital communication and transparency, according to new data from J.D. Power’s Utilities Intelligence program.

Researchers say utilities are increasingly functioning as consumer-facing brands and, as a result, are encountering higher levels of scrutiny when prices rise or outages occur. A combination of record-high rates, extreme weather events and growing demands for self-service digital tools is shaping the operating environment for the year ahead.

Affordability Becomes Central Issue

Rising monthly bills are at the forefront of customer concerns. In 2025, the average electricity bill reached $189, the average gas bill $122 and the average water bill $101, according to the report. Twenty-two percent of electric utility customers surveyed said they could not pay their full bill or had an outstanding balance.

Affordability has also emerged as a political talking point, with rate cases drawing public attention ahead of midterm elections. The research suggests that communication plays a role in how rate changes are perceived: when utilities score high on “brand appeal,” 37% of customers say they trust the utility to set fair rates, compared with 10% among utilities with weaker brand perceptions.

Data Centers and AI Enter Public Debate

The report highlights a new factor influencing consumer sentiment: the rapid build-out of data centers to support artificial intelligence workloads. While rising materials costs, disasters and load growth remain the primary drivers of higher rates, data centers accounted for roughly 4% of U.S. electricity demand in 2025.

Sixteen percent of surveyed electric customers said they believe data centers and AI contributed to their higher bills over the past year—an indication that utilities may need to provide more context around local load drivers and capacity planning to avoid misunderstandings.

Outages and Extreme Weather Drive Urgency

Service disruptions remain widespread. Nationwide, 55% of customers experienced a power outage in 2025, nearly half of which were attributed to severe weather events, including hurricanes, wildfires, tornadoes, snow and ice storms. Seventeen percent of those affected by natural disasters reported having to evacuate their homes.

The data suggests that proactive communication during emergencies significantly boosts customer satisfaction. Utilities that provided timely outage information scored, on average, 52 points higher on J.D. Power’s 1,000-point scale than those that did not. Early updates on infrastructure investment and grid improvements correlated with an 82-point satisfaction boost.

Digital Channels Gain Ground

Customer engagement is shifting toward utility apps and websites as the first point of contact for billing questions, outage updates and service issues. Nearly one-third of utilities, however, still do not offer mobile apps, and 19% of customers say they encounter slow or confusing digital interfaces.

Among water customers surveyed, only 20% recently contacted their utility by phone, compared with 37% who accessed digital platforms. Satisfaction scores for customers using digital channels were 43 points higher than those relying on phone support.

Analysts say utilities will need to continue investing in digital self-service platforms and outage communication tools as expectations rise and extreme weather events become more frequent.