Is U.S. electricity consumption rising again after years of flat demand?
Core argument: U.S. annual electricity consumption is forecast to grow an average of 1.7% per year from 2020 through 2026, with 2025 and 2026 consumption surpassing the all-time high reached in 2024.
We forecast U.S. annual electricity consumption will increase in 2025 and 2026, surpassing the all-time high reached in 2024. This growth contrasts with the trend of relatively flat electricity demand between the mid-2000s and early 2020s. From 2020 through the end of our short-term forecast in 2026, we expect electricity consumption to grow at an average rate of 1.7% per year. The commercial [which includes data centers] and industrial sectors grow faster in the forecast, at an average of 2.6% and 2.1% per year, respectively. Forecast electricity sales to the residential sector, which largely depend on year-to-year temperature fluctuations, grow on average 0.7% between 2020 and 2026.

