Primera, Texas electricity: AEP Texas Central wires, 1 split ZIP code to check
1,325 home meters, 1,471 households, 2 ZIP codes: Primera on AEP Texas Central's wires, ZIP by ZIP.
Reviewed by Brent Ward, founder, on 2026-10-19. Updated .
Primera at a glance: 1,325 Primera-addressed homes, all wired by AEP Texas Central (ERCOT, Oct. 5, 2026). 1 split ZIP code (78552) holds 1,070 of Primera's 1,313 placed homes (81%); those addresses need a lookup.
Primera wires and choice
AEP Texas Central outages: aeptexas.com/outages. AEP Texas Central
1 split ZIP code (78552) holds 1,070 of Primera's 1,313 placed homes (81%); those addresses need a lookup.
Non-choice utilities listed by EIA (2024) for Cameron: 1.
Moving to Primera
Local numbers for setting up a home in Primera, each checked on the official source. More contacts, and a printable list, are on Primera helpful move-in information.
- City hall (ask about water service): City of Primera: City Hall (main line), 956-423-9654.
- Natural gas: Texas Gas Service: customer service, 800-700-2443.
- Public schools: Harlingen CISD.
- Driver license: Texas DPS Driver License Office: Harlingen, 512-424-2600.
You enter your address on the next screen, and we confirm there whether you can choose an electricity provider at that address.
Have a High Light Bill or Electric Bill?
If your electricity bill in Primera came in higher than you expected, upload or enter it and see whether another plan could lower your electricity costs, or whether staying where you are makes more sense.
Primera electricity, in numbers and sources
- Land: 2.8 sq mi; 1,973 residents and 530 households per sq mi; 3.72 people per Primera household. [Gazetteer; PEP; ACS]
- Heating fuel, Primera homes (ACS 2020-2024): electricity 90.8% (±2), utility gas 3.7%, propane 3.5%; Cameron County overall: 89.9% electric. All-electric homes feel winter rates more. [ACS]
- Of Primera homes paying a power bill, 29.4% report $250 or more a month and 10.4% under $100 (Cameron County: 30.9% at $250+). [ACS]
- Housing stock: 77.2% detached houses, 4.2% in 5+ unit buildings, 10.6% mobile homes; median year built 2003, 32.5% built 2010 or later. [ACS]
- ERCOT status split for 1,788 Primera home meters (Oct. 5, 2026): active 1,325, inactive 258, de-energized 205; idle share 25.9%. [ERCOT]
- ACS 2020-2024: 18.2% of Primera housing units vacant (±8). Vacant homes keep meters that are not counted as households. [ACS]
- New home meters, Oct. 7-18, 2026, Primera ZIP codes: 17 (top: 78550, 14); vacant-to-active: 106. [ERCOT]
- 78552 carries 1,070 of 1,313 Primera-addressed homes (81%); ratio across the whole ZIP 0.76, from 10,265 home meters in all and 13,567 households. [ERCOT; ACS]
Primera homes: heating fuel, bills, housing
| Primera | Estimate |
|---|---|
| Heat with electricity | 90.8% |
| Heat with utility gas | 3.7% |
| Bill $250 or more | 29.4% |
| Built 2010 or later | 32.5% |
| Renter households | 24.5% |
| Median year built | 2003 |
ACS 2020-2024, the city (Census boundary). Bill rows are shares of homes that pay an electric bill.
Primera meters and households
| Count | Primera |
|---|---|
| Residents, July 2025 | 5,478 |
| Residents, 2020 base | 5,255 |
| Households (ACS) | 1,471 |
| Active home meters | 1,325 |
| Inactive home meters | 258 |
| De-energized home meters | 205 |
| Active small-business meters | 96 |
| Active large-business meters | 0 |
| Home meters per household | 0.9 |
| ZIP codes listed | 2 |
| Split ZIP codes | 1 |
| County | Cameron |
ERCOT report 203, Oct. 5, 2026 (Primera postal city) and Census. CSV · Method
Primera plan prices, October 19, 2026
Median fixed-rate Power to Choose listings. AEP Texas Central (164 listings): 12.7¢ / 12.1¢ / 12¢ per kWh at 500 / 1,000 / 2,000 kWh, delivery 5.6898¢ + $3.24/mo included. Not a quote.
Primera ZIP codes, row by row
Not every address in these ZIP codes has retail choice; check your exact address.
| ZIP code | Primera homes | All ZIP homes | Primera share | ZIP households | Share of Primera land | Meters per household | Flags |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 78552 | 1,070 | 10,265 | 10% | 13,567 | 100% | 0.76 | split |
| 78550 | 243 | 20,941 | 1% | 19,733 | 0% | 1.06 | none |
Primera split ZIP codes: 78552.
Towns around Primera
| From Primera | Town (2,000+) | Homes vs Primera | Wires | Per household | Competitive homes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 mi | Combes | 0.8× | AEP Texas Central | 0.99 | 1,095 |
| 4 mi | Harlingen | 22.0× | AEP Texas Central | 1.12 | 29,141 |
| 5 mi | Santa Rosa | 0.9× | AEP Texas Central | 1.32 | 1,144 |
| 7 mi | La Feria | 3.7× | AEP Texas Central | 1.88 | 4,945 |
| 9 mi | San Benito | 9.3× | AEP Texas Central | 1.47 | 12,290 |
| 11 mi | Rio Hondo | 0.9× | AEP Texas Central | 1.57 | 1,165 |
Primera businesses
96 Primera-addressed business meters; 11 large-class meters across its main ZIP codes (ERCOT). Request a business rate review.
Compare Primera plans
Primera questions
Do I get to pick my electric company in Primera?
Mostly. ERCOT counts 1,325 competitive Primera home meters, all on AEP Texas Central's system, against 1,471 households. Split: 78552. An address lookup settles it.
Why are some Primera electric bills so high in winter?
90.8% of Primera homes heat with electricity (ACS 2020-2024, margin ±2) and 3.7% with utility gas; 29.4% of bill-paying homes report $250 or more a month. Electric-heat homes should compare plans at winter usage.
Which ZIP code covers most of Primera?
78552 (1,070 Primera homes on the competitive market). Across the full ZIP: 0.76 meters per household, 10,265 home meters in all.
Who handles Primera power outages?
Outages go to AEP Texas Central (aeptexas.com/outages), the wires utility for 1,325 Primera competitive homes.
Moving to Primera: how do I start electricity?
Check the address is on AEP Texas Central's wires, choose a plan and a start date. Primera had 463 idle home meters (inactive or de-energized) on Oct. 5, 2026, so many move-ins reconnect an existing meter.
My Primera home has a Harlingen address. Does that matter?
Not for choice. Harlingen is the postal name on 82% of the 10,265-meter 78552 ZIP; the utility depends on the service address, not the postal name.
Near Primera
Wires and county: AEP Texas Central · Cameron. Nearby pages: Combes (2 mi) · Harlingen (4 mi) · La Feria (7 mi) · Rio Hondo (11 mi) · San Benito (9 mi) · Santa Rosa (5 mi)
No-choice areas · Methodology · Compare plans
Sources
- ERCOT TDSP ESIID Extract (report 203): full extract as of Oct 5, 2026; daily files Oct 7-18, 2026
- Census ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates, tables B25040, B25132, B25024, B25034, B25035, B25018, B19013, B25003, B25002, B25004 (90% margins of error)
- Census Vintage 2025 city and town population estimates
- Census 2020 ZCTA-to-place and ZCTA-to-county relationship files
- EIA-861 (2024) utility service territories by county
- PUCT Power to Choose residential offer export, Oct 19, 2026, 7:59 AM CT
- PUCT: Choosing an Electric Plan
- PUCT broker directory (BR260201)
- AEP Texas (Central Division)
- AEP Texas Central delivery tariff (effective September 29, 2026)
- Census Bureau 2025 Gazetteer Files, Texas places (land and water area)
BJW Ventures LLC d/b/a Power Hopper | PUCT BR260201. PUCT registration is not an endorsement.