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Free Nights Electricity in Texas: Plans, Prices, Catch

· Updated

A free nights electricity plan charges you nothing for the energy you use during set night hours — usually from 9 or 11 p.m. to 6 a.m. — and makes up for it with a higher price the rest of the day. What “free” covers depends on the plan: on Chariot’s Bright Nights you still pay the delivery charge from your utility (CenterPoint in Houston, Oncor in Dallas) at night, 6.53 to 6.87 cents per kWh on October 21, 2026; Reliant says its Free Overnight plan charges “no energy charge ($0) and no delivery fee ($0)” during the free hours. Either way, the math is the same: a free-nights plan only beats the cheapest simple fixed plan if about 40% of your monthly use happens during the free hours.

Free nights and free weekends plans in Texas today

Time-of-use plans listed on Power to Choose, the state’s official shopping site, on October 21, 2026. Average price per kWh at 1,000 kWh a month, including delivery, as the site shows it:

Plan Free hours Houston Dallas Term Complaint score
Chariot Energy Bright Nights 12 11 PM to 6 AM, every day 12.3¢ 12.4¢ 12 months 1 of 5
Champion Energy Free Weekends-24 Midnight Friday to 11:59 PM Sunday 14.7¢ not listed 24 months 5 of 5
TXU Energy Free Nights & Cool Summer 12 Nights (see the plan’s label) 19.1¢ 19.5¢ 12 months 5 of 5
For comparison: cheapest simple 12-month fixed plan none 11.8–12.0¢ 12.0–12.2¢ 12 months 1–2 of 5

The complaint score is the Public Utility Commission’s scorecard shown on Power to Choose: 5 circles means the fewest complaints. Chariot also lists 8-, 24- and 36-month versions of Bright Nights. TXU’s plan has a minimum usage charge, per Power to Choose — a fee if you use less than a set amount.

There are also free days plans (free from 9 AM to 4 PM) from Amigo, Tara and Just Energy at about 10.5 cents. They are 3-month plans and require a $49.99 one-month bundle to sign up, per their Power to Choose listings.

What time do free nights start?

It depends on the plan. Always confirm in the plan’s Electricity Facts Label (EFL):

Plan Free hours Hours free per week Source
Chariot Energy Bright Nights 11 PM to 6 AM 49 Plan EFL, Oct. 15, 2026
Reliant Free Overnight 9 PM to 6 AM 63 reliant.com, Oct. 21, 2026
Champion Free Weekends Midnight Friday to 11:59 PM Sunday 48 Power to Choose listing
TXU Free Nights plans Varies by plan — TXU’s label was not available to us; check it on Power to Choose

Is free nights electricity really free?

The energy is; the bill isn’t. Chariot’s Electricity Facts Label (EFL) for Bright Nights 12 shows how the bill is built, for Houston:

In Dallas, the daytime charge is 6.4¢ and Oncor’s delivery is $4.06 a month plus 6.8673¢ per kWh. So even at 3 AM you pay about 6.5 to 6.9 cents per kWh. “Free nights” means free energy, not a free bill.

The label also says the average price “assumes that 35% of the Average Monthly Use occurs during the Bright Nights hours,” and that your actual price “will differ” if you use more or less at night.

Is a free nights plan worth it? The math

With the Houston figures above, at 1,000 kWh a month:

Share of use at night Bright Nights bill Simple plan at 12.0¢
20% about $133 $120
35% (what the label assumes) about $123 $120
40% about $120 $120
50% about $113 $120

Breakeven is about 40% at night in Houston and about 42% in Dallas. Below that, a simple fixed plan is cheaper. Above it, free nights wins.

Who reaches 40%? Homes that can move big loads to after 11 PM: charging an electric car, running the dryer, dishwasher and pool pump at night, or night-shift workers who sleep during the day. A family that runs the air conditioning all afternoon and evening usually won’t. Your smart meter’s data, on Smart Meter Texas, shows your use in 15-minute intervals, so you can check before switching.

Free nights or free weekends: which is better?

They give almost the same free time — 49 hours a week on Bright Nights, 48 on Free Weekends — so the question is when you use power. If you’re home on weekends and out on weekdays, free weekends fits better. If you can run big loads late at night every day, free nights does. Neither helps much if most of your use is the air conditioning on weekday afternoons.

Free weekends: same logic

Champion’s Free Weekends-24 makes energy free from midnight Friday to 11:59 PM Sunday — two of every seven days — with “no monthly fee or minimum usage requirement,” per its listing. At 14.7 cents on average, it only pays off if you shift a lot of use to the weekend. It is a 24-month contract with a $250 cancellation fee.

Free nights with no deposit, or prepaid?

On October 21, 2026, no prepaid plan with free hours was listed on Power to Choose for Houston (77002) or Dallas (75201). Free-nights plans are regular postpaid plans, so a deposit depends on your credit history or a letter of credit from your previous provider. Ways to avoid it legally: no-deposit electricity in Texas. Prepaid options and prices: prepaid electricity in Texas.

Free nights with solar panels

Solar panels produce by day, when a free-nights plan charges you the most, so the two can fit together: the panels cover part of your expensive daytime use and the free hours cover the night. What matters is how the plan pays for the solar power you send back to the grid. Champion’s Free Weekends listing says it includes an “Indexed Solar Buyback”; ask any other provider for its buyback terms in writing.

Before you sign a free nights plan

Will Venezuelan oil lower electricity bills in Texas?

With the new U.S.-Venezuela oil contracts, many expect energy in Texas to get cheaper. For electricity, the direct effect is small: the Texas grid (ERCOT) makes almost all its power from natural gas (43%), wind and solar (36%), coal and nuclear, per the EIA for January to September 2025; oil is barely used to generate electricity. Venezuelan crude does reach Texas Gulf Coast refineries, and through them gasoline, which hasn’t fallen yet either: will Venezuelan oil lower U.S. gas prices?. What lowers your bill today is picking the right plan.

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