"Lowest ¢/kWh wins" is the wrong test for TXU.
Most reviews of TXU rank plans by their headline rate at 1,000 kWh and stop there. That works for a flat fixed plan. It badly misreads everything else TXU sells.
A "Free Nights & Weekends" plan, for example, charges zero ¢/kWh from 8 pm to 6 am and on weekends, then prices weekday daytime kWh several cents above a normal fixed rate. The shape of your usage decides which side wins. A day-shift worker who runs the AC at 4 pm pays one of TXU's higher effective rates. A night-shift nurse or an EV owner who charges at 1 am can pay one of the lowest.
Same provider, same tariff sheet, different verdict. The honest question is not "how cheap is TXU's lowest rate" but "which TXU plan matches my hours, and what does that work out to in dollars at my real kWh?"
Three lines. Every TXU bill. Always.
Whatever TXU plan you sign, your monthly total is built from the same three pieces. The marketing changes; the math does not.
Layer 1, TXU sets it
Energy charge
The ¢/kWh price for the electricity itself. This is what TXU markets and the only line they actually control. On Free Nights it splits into a "day" price and a 0¢ "night" price.
Layer 2, Fixed
Base monthly charge
A flat fee TXU bills every month, often $9.95, on top of a smaller fixed line from your wires utility. You pay it even at zero usage.
Layer 3, Pass-through
TDU delivery
The wires charge from Oncor, CenterPoint, AEP or TNMP. TXU collects it for them. You pay the same TDU rate at every REP in your area; switching providers does not change it.
A switch from TXU to another REP only changes Layer 1 and Layer 2. Layer 3 follows the meter, not the brand.
Every TXU plan family, mapped.
TXU sells five recurring plan shapes plus a rotating cast of promotional names. The shape is what matters; the marketing label changes every year.
| Plan family | When it wins | When it loses | Typical ETF |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fixed Rate (12 to 36 mo) | Stable usage; you want a predictable bill. | Rates fall during your term; you pay more than market. | $150 to $295 |
| Free Nights & Weekends | 35%+ of kWh used 8 pm to 6 am or on weekends. | Day-shift household at home 9 to 5; daytime kWh price is high. | $295 |
| TOU / Smart Deals | Smart thermostat + flexible loads (EV, pool pump, dishwasher). | No way to shift load; peak windows hit you full. | $150 to $295 |
| Solar Days (solar buyback) | You own rooftop solar and export to grid. | No solar; energy charge runs above a plain fixed plan. | $295 |
| EV (Free EV Pass) | You charge an EV mostly overnight at home. | No EV, or you charge on the go; you pay a small premium for nothing. | $295 |
| Cash Money / Smart Deals (promo) | Usage close to the $100 bill-credit band (e.g. 1,000 to 2,000 kWh). | Use 999 kWh: no credit, headline rate disappears. | $150 to $295 |
Always pull the live EFL for your ZIP code before signing. EFL numbers change weekly; this table shows the plan shapes, not a promise of rate.
Free Nights only beats fixed if 35%+ of your kWh is overnight.
For a typical TX household using 1,176 kWh/month, a flat 12-month TXU fixed plan at 12¢/kWh works out to roughly $165 all-in, including TDU delivery and base fees.
The same household on TXU "Free Nights" pays 0¢ for kWh used between 8 pm and 6 am, but typically 18¢/kWh on day kWh. To match the fixed plan, you need to push at least ~35% of your monthly kWh into the free window. Most day-shift households sit between 15% and 25% overnight, which is why Free Nights loses for them.
EV owners flip the math. A single EV charging at 1 am can add 250 kWh/month at 0¢, putting overnight share above 50% and turning Free Nights into the lowest effective rate TXU offers.
TXU Fixed 12 at ~12¢/kWh (baseline)
How TXU got this big, and who owns them now.
TXU is the only Texas REP with a continuous brand presence from before deregulation. That history shapes both their rate book and their churn rate.
1882 to 2002: the regulated monopoly era
TXU traces back to Dallas Electric Lighting (1882) and Fort Worth Electric Light & Power. They merged into Texas Utilities Electric in 1984, renamed TXU Corp in 1999, then split into a wires company (Oncor) and a retail company (TXU Energy) when Texas opened to retail competition in 2002.
2007: $45B private-equity buyout
KKR, TPG and Goldman bought TXU's parent for ~$45 billion (still the largest LBO in US history). The deal was financed on bets that natural gas prices would rise; shale changed that, and the parent company Energy Future Holdings filed for bankruptcy in 2014.
2016 to 2017: Vistra spinoff and NYSE listing
TXU emerged from bankruptcy as part of Vistra Energy in October 2016. Vistra began trading on the NYSE under ticker VST in May 2017. TXU is now Vistra Corp's retail brand in Texas; sister generation assets feed the grid.
2026: largest by customer count, not by lowest rate
TXU still holds about 1.7 million residential customers, more than any other Texas REP. Their pricing tends to sit at or slightly above the cheapest plans on Power to Choose, because the brand carries a name premium that newer REPs cannot charge.
Why this matters: TXU is unusually likely to still be in business at the end of your 24-month contract. Smaller REPs come and go (some have folded mid-contract, forcing customers onto the POLR). That continuity is worth a few cents per kWh to many households.
Where TXU shoppers quietly overpay.
Five patterns we see again and again in customer reviews and TXU complaints filed with the PUCT. Each one is fixable in 10 minutes.
TXU vs Reliant, Direct Energy, Green Mountain: who owns who?
Texas has more than 100 licensed REPs, but ownership is concentrated in two holding companies. Vistra Corp owns TXU Energy, Ambit Energy, Dynegy and Public Power. NRG Energy owns Reliant, Direct Energy, Green Mountain Energy and Cirro.
Shopping across "different" brands inside the same holding often shows you variants of the same wholesale supply book at different price points. Real cross-shopping means comparing a Vistra brand (TXU) against an NRG brand (Reliant) and at least one independent (Constellation, Champion, Gexa).
What to actually do with a TXU offer.
Shop Power to Choose
Use the state-run powertochoose.org as your starting point. Filter by your ZIP and your usage band, then sort by total cost at YOUR kWh.
Compare TXU at your kWh
Use the estimator at the top of this page. Try Fixed 12, Free Nights at your real night share, and TOU. Pick the one that comes out lowest in dollars, not in ¢/kWh.
Read the EFL carefully
The Electricity Facts Label shows the price at 500, 1,000 and 2,000 kWh, the ETF, the term length and any bill-credit cliff. If a "rate" appears only at one usage, that is the trap.
Check your TDU territory
TDU delivery rates vary between Oncor (DFW), CenterPoint (Houston), AEP (West/Central) and TNMP. Your REP is the same; your wires charge is not. This sets your "floor" cost.
Set up auto-pay and alerts
TXU offers small monthly credits ($1 to $5) for paperless billing and auto-pay; the renewal alert email at month 11 is what stops you from auto-rolling onto a variable rate.
Know who to call for outages
TXU does not run the wires. For an outage call your TDU: Oncor 1-888-313-4747, CenterPoint 1-800-332-7143, or AEP 1-866-223-8508.
Common questions about TXU Energy.
Reliability of the electricity itself is identical regardless of REP, because every Texas REP delivers power over the same TDU wires (Oncor, CenterPoint, AEP, TNMP). What varies between REPs is billing accuracy, customer service responsiveness and financial stability. TXU is one of the most stable: it has operated continuously since 2002, weathered a parent-company bankruptcy, and is now backed by NYSE-listed Vistra Corp. Smaller REPs occasionally fold mid-contract.
A REP (Retail Electric Provider) is the company you pay every month, TXU, Reliant, Gexa. They set the energy ¢/kWh and bill you. A TDU (Transmission and Distribution Utility) is the regulated wires company that physically delivers power to your meter. There are only five TDUs in Texas (Oncor, CenterPoint, AEP Texas Central, AEP Texas North, TNMP). You can switch REPs as often as you like; you cannot switch TDUs because your address is permanently assigned to one.
Energy charges are 0¢/kWh for any kWh used between 8 pm and 6 am on weekdays and all day Saturday and Sunday. In exchange, the weekday daytime energy rate is several cents per kWh above a comparable fixed plan. You still pay TDU delivery on every kWh (Free Nights does not waive delivery). The break-even point against a normal fixed plan is roughly 35% of your monthly kWh in the free window.
If you are inside a fixed-term contract, an Early Termination Fee applies, typically $150 to $295 depending on plan. Three exceptions: you are moving outside TXU service territory (free move with proof); you are within the final 14 days of your contract (PUCT rule, no ETF); or you accept TXUs renewal offer (no switch, no fee). Variable-rate and month-to-month plans have no ETF.
No. TXU Energy operates only in the deregulated portions of Texas, roughly 85% of the state, covering most of the Oncor (DFW), CenterPoint (Houston), AEP (West/Central) and TNMP territories. Municipally-owned utilities (Austin Energy, CPS Energy in San Antonio) and electric cooperatives are NOT deregulated; you cannot pick TXU there.
You do not report outages to TXU, they do not own the wires. Call your TDU directly: Oncor at 1-888-313-4747, CenterPoint at 1-800-332-7143, AEP Texas at 1-866-223-8508, or TNMP at 1-888-866-7456. Outage restoration time is set by the TDU, not by which REP you signed with.
More U.S. states with energy choice
Same playbook, different utility. Pick another deregulated state to compare utilities, suppliers and switching rules.
