During a viewing, the landlord mentions "electricity is NT$5 per unit." It sounds high, but is it? Electricity is one of the most common disputes renters in Taiwan run into after moving in: unlike rent, the real cost hides in how the billing works, and you usually find out when the first summer air-conditioning bill doubles.
Quick answer: Taipower's residential rates are progressive, starting at NT$1.78 per kWh and topping out at NT$8.86 in summer (June 1 to September 30). A single renter using 250 to 350 kWh a month pays an average of only about NT$2 to 2.4 per kWh. For leases signed on or after July 15, 2024, landlords who bill by usage cannot charge more per kWh than the average price on the actual Taipower bill. In short: whatever the landlord pays Taipower is the most they can pass on to you. One look at the bill settles the question.
How Taipower bills work: progressive tiers plus summer rates
Residential electricity in Taiwan is billed in progressive tiers: your monthly usage is split into six brackets, and each additional bracket costs more per kWh. From June 1 to September 30, every bracket above the first is priced higher. That is why summer bills jump.
Current rates as of 2026 (effective October 1, 2025, source: Taipower's official rate table):
| Monthly usage | Summer (Jun 1–Sep 30) | Non-summer |
|---|---|---|
| First 120 kWh | NT$1.78 | NT$1.78 |
| 121–330 kWh | NT$2.55 | NT$2.26 |
| 331–500 kWh | NT$3.80 | NT$3.13 |
| 501–700 kWh | NT$5.14 | NT$4.24 |
| 701–1000 kWh | NT$6.44 | NT$5.27 |
| Above 1000 kWh | NT$8.86 | NT$7.03 |
Two examples make the stakes clear:
- A studio with its own meter using 350 kWh in a summer month (air conditioning on): the Taipower bill is about NT$825, an average of roughly NT$2.4 per kWh.
- The same studio billed by the landlord at NT$5 per kWh: 350 × 5 = NT$1,750, more than double what Taipower actually charges.
The difference goes into someone's pocket.
Which setup is your apartment? Three billing situations
Almost every electricity dispute comes down to the billing setup. Figure out which one applies before you sign:
1. Independent meter, billed by Taipower
The unit has its own Taipower meter and you pay Taipower directly. The most transparent option and the only one where you control which tier you land in.
2. Shared meter, split by the landlord (common in subdivided units and shared rooms)
The whole floor or building shares one Taipower meter, and the landlord splits it using sub-meters or per-person shares. This is where disputes concentrate: the per-kWh price is whatever the landlord says, and most tenants do not know a legal cap exists (next section).
3. Electricity included in rent
Convenient, but make sure the lease spells out "utilities included" and whether there is a usage cap (for example, "usage above X kWh billed separately") so a hot summer does not turn into a surprise charge.
The 2024 rule: landlords can no longer profit on electricity
This is the change most renters have not heard about. Under the Ministry of the Interior's amended standard residential lease terms, leases signed on or after July 15, 2024 are subject to new rules:
- Billing by usage: the per-kWh price cannot exceed the average price per kWh on the property's actual Taipower bill for that period. Whatever the landlord pays is the most they can pass through.
- Billing by fixed shares: the total the landlord collects from all tenants cannot exceed the total on the Taipower bill.
- Penalties: a landlord who ignores a government correction order faces a fine of NT$30,000 to 300,000, rising to NT$50,000 to 500,000 for continued violations.
Two details worth knowing:
- NT$5 per kWh is not automatically illegal. The cap is the bill's average price, and a large building on a shared meter uses enough power to land in the high tiers, so its summer average can genuinely reach NT$5 to 6. The test is not the number itself but whether the landlord can show you the bill. Asking for a copy or a photo is a reasonable, legitimate request.
- Older leases keep the old rules. Contracts signed before July 15, 2024 follow the previous cap (Taipower's top summer-tier price). Renewal is your opportunity to move onto the new terms.
RentOn data: a third of group listings are not on Taipower billing
We track rental listings across Facebook rental groups in Taipei and New Taipei. Over the past three months (April to July 2026), of 2,375 listings where the billing method could be determined, 861 (about 36%) were not billed directly at Taipower rates. That is one in every three listings where the per-kWh price is set by the landlord.
The share is higher among subdivided suites and shared rooms. In other words, the tighter your budget, the more likely you are renting somewhere with opaque electricity billing. Asking about electricity at the viewing matters as much as negotiating the rent.
Five questions to ask before signing
- Is the meter independent or shared? If shared, how is it split?
- What is the per-kWh price, and how was it set? (For new leases, ask directly: is it the average price on the Taipower bill?)
- Can I see the most recent Taipower bill?
- Is the price the same in summer and non-summer months?
- Is the billing method written into the lease? (Verbal promises are worthless; get it in writing.)
These five questions belong on your pre-signing checklist alongside the items in our rental contract checklist; for the full picture of monthly costs beyond rent, see the complete cost breakdown.
Already moved in and being overcharged?
- Check the numbers: compare your lease against the Taipower bill (ask the landlord for it).
- Negotiate first: many landlords are following old habits rather than acting in bad faith. Showing them the current rule plus the bill usually resolves it.
- Escalate if needed: file a complaint with the city or county consumer protection or land administration office, which can order corrections and issue fines.
Keep your LINE conversations, payment records, and bill copies. They are your strongest evidence.
The best time to protect yourself on electricity is before you sign. Rather than arguing over bills after moving in, make the billing method one of your screening criteria while you search. One extra question at the viewing beats six months of disputes.
You do not have to scroll rental groups every day to find those options. Set up LINE notifications with RentOn for your target area and budget, and matching listings come to you, so you can ask about electricity before deciding which places are worth your time.