Budget Busters in Mexico: Electricity
Updated December 2023
“It’s like a meat locker in here!” roared John (a.k.a. Juan John) upon entering my apartment when I lived in north Mazatlán. Electricity, especially air conditioning, is a national obsession in Mexico. I glanced up nervously at the mini-split temperature gauge. I still can't convert Centigrade to Fahrenheit that precisely. “I can’t reeeead,” I told him. Google informed me that the room was a frigid 75 degrees.
The scene reminded me to write to you about electricity billing in Mexico. Electric bills in Mexico are complicated to read. The logic and structure of how they are calculated is even worse. The lack of understanding by most foreign travelers of how electricity is billed in Mexico is a big factor in keeping gorgeous beachfront condos unoccupied during most of the summer.
In hot coastal areas, in their humanity, the Mexican government rewards good conservation habits with a subsidy during the hottest months and lower seasonal rates. The months vary depending on where in Mexico you live. But there’s a catch.
After a certain level of use, however rates goes up punitively. Billing is done on a sliding scale that makes it much more expensive the more you use. Meaning that the last 10% of a bill, if over a certain threshold, can cost 10x more than the first 20% of the bill. Get it?
Many Americans and Canadians, unlike the locals, have lots of electronics. Expat homeowners have pools and air conditioners in every room. Without careful oversight, electric bills can be four times what they pay in the States and eight times what a typical Mexican family pays. The “de alto consumo” rate on a bill is when you’ve crossed over the no-fly zone.
Once there, the homeowner/landlord loses the subsidy, the seasonal rate, and the lower rate they’d been initially given. And it gets worse. Once you are placed at that higher level, it may take a year to establish a better record of less usage and be placed back in the more economical level.
With good conservation habits, my electric bill in the hottest months were rarely over $50 dollars for a 2,000 square foot, two level condo. to give you and idea of how much the subsidy helps; that’s about the same bill I have in November in the same apartment if I use the air conditioner several days.
The fear of coastal property owners is that guests and renters will run the A.C all the time, as they are used to doing at home, not only racking up the bill, but also penalizing the next occupants or them as owners if they use the property since monthly rates are charged based on the prior years annual average use.
As a renter, playing by the rules and showing landlords low electric bills you’ve paid previous summers will give you the opportunity to secure references from realtors who see that you really do “get it.” This will increase your attractiveness as a potential renter and can enable you to bargain for better off-season rental rates.
There are a few precautions you need to take before you rent. If you are entering a rental agreement, make sure you understand what the prior usage was so you will know at what level you are going to get billed at. Make sure your place is billed “domestico,” not as a business. Check that your meter bill matches your address. Make sure your realtor or property manager confirms that the electric bill has been paid before you move in.
What Mexico means by low consumption of electricity
In the U.S, low energy consumption means that people have to set their temperature either or too low for the season, for example 55 in winter and 77 in summer. You’re never truly comfortable and you still likely use more resources than you would by just heating/cooling one room,
I will never forget having dinner with friends in their large home in Denver one winter and shivering the whole night. After a night of wine drinking, they’ll kindly ask me if I want to stay over. I can’t because I’ve come down with a cold every time.
They’d gotten used to setting their thermostat at 55 degrees and it felt like 40 to me (I have a small apartment and can be a little more generous). We are stuck with a system of usage that manage to combine discomfort, high cost, and poor conservation all at once.
I had the good fortune of my receiving tutorage in conserving electricity in Mexico from my housemate my first five months in Mexico which fell during the summer. The Intrepid Elise walked behind me as I unloaded groceries and gave me smoldering looks if I left the air conditioning on while making dinner over a hot stove We Americans have a very poor sense of what conservation really means. I sure didn’t.
Best practices
The behavior modifications you have to develop in Mexico go well beyond turning off the lights when you leave the room. These adjustments are easier for some people than others. Most Americans only really learn by getting that one colossal electric bill. Many an unaware expat who has purchased a home in Mexico has walked into this trap, receiving an electric bill rivaling a mortgage payment.
People do not have central air in their homes in Mexico. Most houses in Mexico's coastal areas and places with real summers have “splits.” Air conditioning units are often located only in bedrooms and living rooms. Splits are turned off when leaving a room.
Doors to rooms not in use are shut off, keeping the cool air where it's being enjoyed. People use fans when they can. Once you get used to new habits, you will feel good about the occasional sacrifices, like cooking in a hot kitchen.
The highest electricity consumers are pool water pumps, air conditioning and refrigerators so monitor how all appliances are used, not just the air conditioning. Be more careful about even leaving refrigerator doors open while you're unloading groceries, even for a few minutes.
Choose energy efficient appliances. Washing machines are almost unheard of in Mexican rentals. Even in wealthier households they wash dishes by hand. Dryers use a lot of electricity and in coastal areas people hang clothes on lines.
If renting an apartment, buy a portable rack to try small amounts of clothing (they usually dry in a few hours). Close curtains during hottest part of the day - all the things you should be doing anyway.
If you use electricity wisely, your bill in Mexico can be much lower than what you pay in the States. If you are careful, you can afford an occasional splurge when you have guests.
My electric bill for a small, one bedroom apartment in downtown Denver is between $80 - $110 a month in the summer. There are no viable lifestyle changes that will lower that to any meaningful degree. In Mexico, you can take a certain pride in your low bill because unlike at home, it’s easier to control.
Related link:
How to maintain a property in a coastal city in Mexico. {blog]
Most recent:
Mexicans Circadian Rhythms are about two hours behind ours as Americans. Just enough to make a difference.
Coming up:
The first decision is to try out Mexico. The second is what to do with all that stuff.
About the author:
Kerry Baker has written four books, including "If Only I Had a Place" for aspiring expats seeking to rent well in Mexico, which includes a listing of rental concierges in Mexico's most popular expat areas. Another is “The Mexico Solution: Saving your money, sanity, and quality of life through part-time life in Mexico” is her second book. Her most recent is a cookbook, The Lazy Expat: Healthy Recipes That Translate in Mexico. (In Mexico, to maintain a healthy diet, you MUST cook.