# Rio Grande City, Texas electricity: AEP Texas Central wires and 10,253 competitive homes

_Updated October 19, 2026. Data: ERCOT Oct 5, 2026; Power to Choose Oct 19, 2026, 7:59 AM CT._

**In short:** ERCOT counts 10,253 active residential meters with a Rio Grande City address, all on AEP Texas Central's wires (October 5, 2026). Nearly every Rio Grande City address in our data is on AEP Texas Central's wires and can pick a retail provider.

## Moving to Rio Grande City

Local numbers for setting up a home in Rio Grande City, each checked on the official source. More contacts: https://powerhopper.energy/texas-electricity/rio-grande-city/move-in-information

- **Water and utility billing:** utility billing (start, transfer or stop water service), 956-487-2702.
- **Public schools:** Rio Grande City Grulla ISD.
- **Driver license:** Texas DPS Driver License Office: Rio Grande City, 512-424-2600.

## Who delivers electricity in Rio Grande City?
ERCOT counts 10,253 active residential meters with a Rio Grande City address, all on AEP Texas Central's wires (October 5, 2026).

## Can every address in Rio Grande City choose?
None of the ZIP codes holding Rio Grande City's 10,251 competitive homes is flagged split, so most Rio Grande City streets can shop.

## What is different about Rio Grande City?
- Rio Grande City counted about 15,451 residents in the Census Bureau's 2025 estimate, against 15,303 in the 2020 base, a change of +1.0%. The largest one-year change was +95 people, from July 2022 to July 2023. (Source: https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest/datasets/2020-2025/cities/totals/sub-est2025_48.csv)
- The Rio Grande City mailing area is bigger than the city: ERCOT lists 10,253 competitive homes under the Rio Grande City postal city, 2.27 for each of the city's 4,525 Census households. (Source: https://www.ercot.com/misapp/GetReports.do?reportTypeId=203, https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2024/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/)
- AEP Texas Central share: 1.3% of its 810,296 competitive residential meters carry a Rio Grande City address. (Source: https://www.ercot.com/misapp/GetReports.do?reportTypeId=203)
- New construction shows up in the meter data: 14 residential meters were added in Rio Grande City's main ZIP codes from Oct. 7 to Oct. 18, 2026, including 14 in 78582, and 39 more switched from vacant to active. (Source: https://www.ercot.com/misapp/GetReports.do?reportTypeId=203)
- 2,124 of the 14,807 home meters in Rio Grande City's main ZIP codes (14.3%) were de-energized on October 5, 2026, typically a vacant unit awaiting its next account. (Source: https://www.ercot.com/misapp/GetReports.do?reportTypeId=203)
- Rio Grande City's biggest ZIP code for electricity customers is 78582, with 10,164 of the 10,251 competitive homes that carry a Rio Grande City address and a ZIP-wide ratio of 0.99 meters per household. (Source: https://www.ercot.com/misapp/GetReports.do?reportTypeId=203, https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2024/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/)
- Starr County context: Rio Grande City ranks 1 of 4 touching cities and towns for postal-city competitive homes, ahead of Roma (4,222). (Source: https://www.ercot.com/misapp/GetReports.do?reportTypeId=203)
- In 78582, the ZIP holding most Rio Grande City homes, the ACS 2020-2024 survey finds a median household income of $42,626, 27.7% renters and 35.8% of households with $250+ monthly electric bills. (Source: https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2024/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/)
- Of Rio Grande City's six nearest towns, Roma has the most competitive homes (4,222, 12 mi away) and Roma the fewest per household (1.28). (Source: https://www.ercot.com/misapp/GetReports.do?reportTypeId=203, https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2024/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/)

## By the numbers
- Population (July 1, 2025 estimate): 15,451
- Population (2020 estimates base): 15,303
- Occupied households (ACS 2020-2024): 4,525
- Active residential meters with a Rio Grande City address: 10,253
- Active business meters with a Rio Grande City address: 1,852
- Residential meters per Census household: 2.27
- Delivery utilities (homes): AEP Texas Central 10,253
- Counties: Starr
- ZIP codes touching Rio Grande City: 2
- Split ZIP codes (flagged below): 0

## Plan prices (median ¢/kWh at 500 / 1,000 / 2,000 kWh)
- AEP Texas Central: 12.7 / 12.1 / 12; delivery 5.6898¢/kWh + $3.24/mo

## ZIP codes
**Not every address in these ZIP codes has retail choice; check your exact address.**

| ZIP | Postal cities | Land in city | Competitive homes | Households | Ratio | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 78582 | Rio Grande City 80%, Escobares 10%, La Rosita 4% | 2% | 12,683 | 12,795 | 0.99 | Near-full coverage. 14 new residential meters Oct 7-18, 2026. Mostly outside Rio Grande City city limits. |
| 78548 | La Grulla 97%, Rio Grande City 3% | 0% | 3,060 | 410 | 7.46 | Near-full coverage. Mostly outside Rio Grande City city limits. |

## Business electricity in Rio Grande City
1,852 active business meters. Power Hopper compares offers from retail electric providers and direct suppliers; for high-consumption businesses we can run a competitive bid. No savings or bidder count is promised. Businesses in Texas retail-choice areas can request a rate review online.

## Questions
**Does Rio Grande City have electricity choice?** Yes, where AEP Texas Central's wires reach the house, which in Rio Grande City is most of the city: 10,253 homes with a Rio Grande City mailing address were on the competitive market on October 5, 2026, 2.27 for each Census household. None of Rio Grande City's ZIP codes is flagged split, though an address check is still the only sure answer.
**Which Rio Grande City ZIP code has the most homes on the competitive market?** 78582, with 12,683 competitive homes in ERCOT's data (10,164 addressed to Rio Grande City) against roughly 12,795 Census households, a 0.99 ratio.
**How many businesses in Rio Grande City are on the competitive electricity market?** Yes, where AEP Texas Central delivers: 1,852 Rio Grande City-addressed business meters are on the competitive market in ERCOT's data, and large accounts can also buy from commercial suppliers directly.
**I'm moving to Rio Grande City. How do I set up electricity?** 9.0% of 78582 residents moved within a year (ACS), and 39 78582 meters turned from vacant to active Oct. 7-18, 2026. Check that your Rio Grande City address is on AEP Texas Central's wires, then choose a plan and start date.
**Why are there more electric meters than households in Rio Grande City?** 10,253 Rio Grande City-addressed meters against 4,525 city households is 2.27 per household: the Rio Grande City postal area extends past city limits, and new homes get meters before the Census counts them. It doesn't mean every nearby address can choose.
**Who restores power in Rio Grande City after an outage?** Call AEP Texas Central (aeptexas.com/outages), the wires utility for Rio Grande City's 10,253 competitive homes; a retail provider can't fix lines.

## Sources
- ERCOT TDSP ESIID Extract (report 203): full extract as of Oct 5, 2026; daily files Oct 7-18, 2026: https://www.ercot.com/misapp/GetReports.do?reportTypeId=203
- Census ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates (B25003 households, B01003 population): https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2024/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/
- Census Vintage 2025 city and town population estimates: https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest/datasets/2020-2025/cities/totals/sub-est2025_48.csv
- Census 2020 ZCTA-to-place and ZCTA-to-county relationship files: https://www2.census.gov/geo/docs/maps-data/data/rel2020/zcta520/
- EIA-861 (2024) utility service territories by county: https://www.eia.gov/electricity/data/eia861/
- PUCT Power to Choose residential offer export, Oct 19, 2026, 7:59 AM CT: https://www.powertochoose.org/en-us/Plan/ExportToCsv
- PUCT: Choosing an Electric Plan: https://www.puc.texas.gov/consumer-help/electricity/electric-plan/
- PUCT broker directory (BR260201): https://www.puc.texas.gov/industry/electric/directories/brk/alpha_brk/
- AEP Texas (Central Division): https://www.aeptexas.com/
- AEP Texas Central delivery tariff (effective September 29, 2026): https://www.aeptexas.com/lib/docs/ratesandtariffs/Texas/AEP_TEXAS_TARIFF_Eff_Sept_29_2026v1.pdf
- Census Bureau Vintage 2025 city and town population estimates: https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest/datasets/2020-2025/cities/totals/sub-est2025_48.csv
- ERCOT TDSP ESIID Extract (report 203), Oct 5, 2026: https://www.ercot.com/misapp/GetReports.do?reportTypeId=203
- Census ACS 2020-2024 5-year, table B25003: https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2024/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/
- ERCOT TDSP ESIID Extract (report 203), Oct 5, 2026: https://www.ercot.com/misapp/GetReports.do?reportTypeId=203
- ERCOT daily TDSP ESIID Extract files, Oct 7-18, 2026, via Power Hopper's Oct 18 ZIP study: https://www.ercot.com/misapp/GetReports.do?reportTypeId=203
- ERCOT TDSP ESIID Extract (report 203), Oct 5, 2026: https://www.ercot.com/misapp/GetReports.do?reportTypeId=203
- ERCOT TDSP ESIID Extract (report 203), Oct 5, 2026: https://www.ercot.com/misapp/GetReports.do?reportTypeId=203
- Census ACS 2020-2024 5-year, table B25003: https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2024/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/
- ERCOT TDSP ESIID Extract (report 203), Oct 5, 2026: https://www.ercot.com/misapp/GetReports.do?reportTypeId=203
- Census ACS 2020-2024 5-year, table B25003: https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2024/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/
- ERCOT TDSP ESIID Extract (report 203), Oct 5, 2026: https://www.ercot.com/misapp/GetReports.do?reportTypeId=203
- Census ACS 2020-2024 5-year, table B25003: https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2024/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/

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