# Roma, Texas electricity: AEP Texas Central wires, 1 split ZIP code to check

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

**In short:** ERCOT counts 4,222 active residential meters with a Roma address, all on AEP Texas Central's wires (October 5, 2026). 1 of Roma's ZIP codes is split, so most addresses can shop, but yours needs a check.

## Moving to Roma

Local numbers for setting up a home in Roma, each checked on the official source. More contacts: https://powerhopper.energy/texas-electricity/roma/move-in-information

- **City hall (ask about water service):** City of Roma: City Hall (main line), 956-849-1411.
- **Public schools:** Roma ISD.
- **Driver license:** Texas DPS Driver License Office: Rio Grande City, 512-424-2600.

## Who delivers electricity in Roma?
ERCOT counts 4,222 active residential meters with a Roma address, all on AEP Texas Central's wires (October 5, 2026).

## Can every address in Roma choose?
Split ZIP codes holding Roma homes: 78584. They carry 4,204 of the 4,204 competitive homes with a Roma address (100%); on those streets a neighbor's utility can differ from yours.

## What is different about Roma?
- Roma counted about 11,543 residents in the Census Bureau's 2025 estimate, against 11,524 in the 2020 base, a change of +0.2%. The largest one-year change was +57 people, from July 2022 to July 2023. July 1 estimates in between: 11,494 (2021), 11,458 (2022), 11,515 (2023), 11,566 (2024). (Source: https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest/datasets/2020-2025/cities/totals/sub-est2025_48.csv)
- Roma covers 5.9 square miles of land and 0.1 square miles of water (Census 2025 Gazetteer). That works out to about 1,969 residents and 563 occupied households per square mile of land, with roughly 3.5 residents for every Roma household. (Source: https://www.census.gov/geographies/reference-files/time-series/geo/gazetteer-files.html, https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest/datasets/2020-2025/cities/totals/sub-est2025_48.csv, https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2024/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/)
- Of the 810,296 homes AEP Texas Central serves on the competitive market, 0.5% have a Roma mailing address. (Source: https://www.ercot.com/misapp/GetReports.do?reportTypeId=203)
- Move-ins show up as vacant-to-active switches in ERCOT's daily files: 11 of them in the ZIP codes most Roma homes use, Oct. 7-18, 2026. (Source: https://www.ercot.com/misapp/GetReports.do?reportTypeId=203)
- On October 5, 2026, ERCOT showed 692 home meters switched off (de-energized) in the ZIP codes most Roma homes use, against 4,544 switched on; that 13.2 percent is mostly vacant houses and apartments between occupants. (Source: https://www.ercot.com/misapp/GetReports.do?reportTypeId=203)
- One ZIP code, 78584, holds almost every Roma-addressed competitive home (4,204); it also carries 307 Fronton addresses and 32 Escobares addresses. Taken whole, 78584 has 0.84 competitive meters per Census household: 4,544 meters, 5,402 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/)
- Roma is 2 of 4 on a Starr County list of cities and towns ranked by postal-city competitive homes; the next one up is Rio Grande City, at 10,253. (Source: https://www.ercot.com/misapp/GetReports.do?reportTypeId=203)
- By the Census Bureau's 2025 estimates, Roma is the number 2 city or town by population among the 4 that reach into Starr County, one place ahead of Escobares (2,585 residents). (Source: https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest/datasets/2020-2025/cities/totals/sub-est2025_48.csv)
- Mailing cities on the 4,544 competitive home meters in 78584, Roma's main ZIP code: Roma 4,204, Fronton 307, Escobares 32. A mailing city is not a city limit, so the service address, not the postal name, settles which utility serves a home. (Source: https://www.ercot.com/misapp/GetReports.do?reportTypeId=203)
- Renting is most common in 78584, where the ACS 2020-2024 counts 39.6 percent of households as renters; in that part of Roma, electricity accounts change hands with each lease. (Source: https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2024/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/)
- Electric bills over $250 a month: 28.3 percent of households in 78584, Roma's main ZIP code, per the ACS 2020-2024; the same survey puts median household income there at $27,056. (Source: https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2024/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/)

## By the numbers
- Population (July 1, 2025 estimate): 11,543
- Population (2020 estimates base): 11,524
- Occupied households (ACS 2020-2024): 3,299
- Active residential meters with a Roma address: 4,222
- Active business meters with a Roma address: 607
- Residential meters per Census household: 1.28
- Delivery utilities (homes): AEP Texas Central 4,222
- Counties: Starr
- ZIP codes touching Roma: 1
- Split ZIP codes (flagged below): 1

## 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 78584 | Roma 93%, Fronton 7% | 3% | 4,544 | 5,402 | 0.84 | Split. Most homes, not all. Mostly outside Roma city limits. |

## Business electricity in Roma
607 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 Roma have electricity choice?** Most Roma homes can. ERCOT's October 5, 2026 extract has 4,222 Roma-addressed homes on AEP Texas Central's competitive system, compared with 3,299 households in the Census survey. Addresses in 78584 (split) need an exact-address check before you shop.
**Which Roma ZIP code has the most homes on the competitive market?** That is 78584, home to 4,204 of the competitive meters with a Roma address. ZIP-wide: 4,544 ERCOT meters, about 5,402 Census households, 0.84 per household.
**What is the average electricity rate in Roma?** On October 19, 2026, the median fixed-rate Power to Choose listing on AEP Texas Central's wires was 12.1¢ per kWh at 1,000 kWh a month (164 listings); AEP Texas Central's delivery charge of 5.6898¢ per kWh plus $3.24 a month is included. A median is not a quote.
**How do I start electric service at a new Roma address?** Start with the address check: AEP Texas Central-delivered Roma homes choose among the plans offered there and set a start date. Turnover is real in 78584, where 6.4% moved in the past year (ACS); ERCOT logged 11 vacant-to-active meters in 78584 Oct. 7-18, 2026.
**How many households in Roma can shop for electricity?** ERCOT's October 5, 2026 extract lists 4,222 competitive residential meters with a Roma mailing address and 607 business meters; ACS 2020-2024: 3,299 occupied Roma households.
**Where do I report a Roma power outage?** AEP Texas Central, at aeptexas.com/outages: it carries power to all 4,222 Roma-addressed competitive homes, whatever retail provider bills them.

## 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
- Census Bureau 2025 Gazetteer Files, Texas places (land and water area): https://www.census.gov/geographies/reference-files/time-series/geo/gazetteer-files.html
- 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
- 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 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/
- Census ACS 2020-2024 5-year, table B25003: https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2024/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/

BJW Ventures LLC d/b/a Power Hopper | PUCT BR260201