Cincinnati Business Electricity: Duke Energy Ohio Rates

Electric utility: Duke Energy Ohio · Hamilton County

Updated October 15, 2026Ohio Commercial Energy editorial teamHow we review content Book a free 15-min bill review

Market-reference note: Numerical default-price examples below retain their cited 2026 reference period. They are historical class-level context, not a current account quote. Confirm the applicable business rate, components and effective dates on your bill before comparing an offer. How to establish your benchmark.

Who supplies electricity to businesses in Cincinnati?

Most businesses in Cincinnati (Hamilton County) are served by Duke Energy Ohio, a subsidiary of Duke Energy. Because Cincinnati is in Duke Energy Ohio's territory, a business can buy the generation part of its electricity from any supplier certified by the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio (PUCO), while Duke Energy Ohio keeps delivering the power, reading the meter and restoring outages.

Cincinnati at a glance
Population (2020 Census)	309,317
County	Hamilton County (county seat: Cincinnati)
Electric utility (delivery)	Duke Energy Ohio
Can businesses choose a supplier?	Yes, for accounts on Duke Energy Ohio
Default generation price, small business	Historical class reference: 11.36¢/kWh on the DM (first 2,800 kWh) rate (effective June 1, 2026)
Community aggregation	City of Cincinnati program
Grid operator / capacity zone	PJM Interconnection, DEOK zone
Capacity price, June 2026–May 2027	$329.17/MW-day (up from $28.92 in 2024/25)

Cincinnati's business base

Cincinnati had 309,317 residents in the 2020 Census and the county seat. Hamilton County seat; Fortune 500 HQ hub (Kroger, P&G, Fifth Third). Large employers and institutions include Kroger Company, Cincinnati Children's Hospital, University of Cincinnati, and Procter & Gamble. Hospitals, campuses and plants tend to buy through structured bids with interval data, while offices, shops and restaurants usually fall under Ohio's 700,000 kWh-a-year “mercantile” line and buy standard small-business products.

The price to beat on Duke Energy Ohio

Duke Energy Ohio's default generation price for small businesses on the DM (first 2,800 kWh) rate is about 11.36¢/kWh (effective June 1, 2026), up from about 10.59¢ the year before.

That default — PUCO calls it the price to compare — is what a Cincinnati business pays for generation if it never signs with a supplier. A supplier offer only helps if its all-in generation price, including capacity and any broker fee, beats it on your usage. Statewide, EIA data show the average all-in commercial price rose to about 13.78¢/kWh in the first half of 2026 from 11.07¢ a year earlier, mostly because PJM capacity prices jumped from $28.92 to $329.17 per MW-day.

The delivery utility remains responsible for the wires. Tariff charges can change over time; confirm which transmission and other components are included in a supply offer. Duke Energy Ohio's latest rate-case status: Duke Energy Ohio filed a distribution rate case in March 2026 (Case 26-0132-EL-AIR) seeking about a 3% increase for non-residential customers, which would take effect around May 2027.

Duke Energy Ohio's small-business default price (Rate DM, first 2,800 kWh) rose to about 11.36¢/kWh on June 1, 2026, so the gap between the default price and competitive offers tends to be wider in Cincinnati than in FirstEnergy territory.

Duke's DEOK capacity zone has cleared at the same price as the rest of PJM in the last three auctions, but it cleared higher than the RTO in 2024/25 ($96.24 vs $28.92 per MW-day), a reminder that zonal prices can split.

Is Cincinnati in a community aggregation program?

Cincinnati runs its own aggregation program: Dynegy supplies a 100% green product at 10.44¢/kWh for May–November 2026 under a contract that runs through May 2029, and small commercial locations under 700,000 kWh a year are eligible.

Opt-out aggregation automatically enrolls small accounts (700,000 kWh a year or less) that haven't chosen a supplier; accounts already under contract are excluded and larger “mercantile” accounts join only if they opt in. If your Cincinnati bill names an aggregation supplier you never picked, that is why. You can leave for a commercial offer priced on your own usage — compare the aggregation price with it first. How aggregation interacts with a business contract is covered in governmental aggregation for Ohio businesses.

Cincinnati's neighbors and multi-site buying

If you run locations in more than one town, price them by utility. The nearest cities covered on this site:

City	Distance	Electric utility
Fairfield	15 miles	Duke Energy Ohio
Mason	20 miles	Duke Energy Ohio
Hamilton	21 miles	City of Hamilton Electric Utility — municipal, cannot shop
Middletown	30 miles	Duke Energy Ohio
Centerville	41 miles	AES Ohio

Nearby sites fall under AES Ohio and City of Hamilton Electric Utility as well as Duke Energy Ohio, so expect a separate price per utility even from one supplier — and leave municipal-utility sites out of the bid.

Industry cost guides for Cincinnati

Switching suppliers in Cincinnati

Send 12 months of Duke Energy Ohio bills (interval data for larger sites), the account numbers and the legal name on the account, plus any current supplier's end date. Ask every bidder to show capacity and broker compensation as separate lines (how broker fees work), and compare each offer with Duke Energy Ohio's default price on the same usage. Duke Energy Ohio switches you to a new supplier on a regular meter-read date after the supplier's enrollment is processed — typically within one to two billing cycles. Step-by-step detail is in our Duke Energy Ohio guide.

FAQ: business electricity in Cincinnati

What electric company serves businesses in Cincinnati, Ohio?

Duke Energy Ohio delivers electricity to most businesses in Cincinnati.

Can a business in Cincinnati choose its electricity supplier?

Yes. Businesses on Duke Energy Ohio can buy generation from any PUCO-certified supplier; Duke Energy Ohio keeps delivering power and restoring outages.

What is the price to compare for Cincinnati businesses?

For small businesses on Duke Energy Ohio's DM (first 2,800 kWh) rate it is about 11.36¢/kWh (effective June 1, 2026). Larger accounts on primary-voltage rates see different figures; your bill shows yours.

Is there electric aggregation for businesses in Cincinnati?

How long does it take to switch suppliers in Cincinnati?

Duke Energy Ohio switches you to a new supplier on a regular meter-read date after the supplier's enrollment is processed — typically within one to two billing cycles. Small commercial customers then have 7 days from the utility's confirmation letter to cancel.

Decision worksheet: a business site in Cincinnati

Resolve the account before the price

For an account whose bill names Duke Energy Ohio, check its actual business rate class and current supply arrangement. A nearby municipal or cooperative account can have different options. Start with the delivery company, legal customer and service address; a city name cannot establish those details.

The useful county-level comparison is Hamilton County. Other city guides from that county include the Hamilton County guide. Those links describe related service-area questions, not a promise that every address shares one provider.

Three different decisions can sit behind one bill question

Your Cincinnati situation	First document to check	Appropriate next step
Existing supplier agreement is ending	Signed renewal/termination clause and last complete bill	Use the renewal planner, then confirm the actual contractual notice dates
Building operation or ownership is changing	Lease/ownership responsibility and the expected load change	Ask about assignment, add/delete rights and volume tolerances before quoting
Bill is higher but operations look unchanged	Comparable kWh, demand and charge components for the same period	Separate price, usage and demand effects rather than assuming a supply switch fixes everything

For this local review, the Duke Energy Ohio guide explains the supply-versus-delivery distinction. Keep tax, banking and account identifiers out of the first inquiry. A discussion can establish whether any private document exchange is needed.

Reference: PUCO choice and bill definitions. This decision worksheet adds account-level checks; it is not a new address-level territory survey.