We combine our user submitted reviews along with other reviews from Google, Facebook, Yelp, and the Public Utility Commission to grade providers.
Reliant Energy, a prominent electricity provider in Texas, is widely recognized but often not the most cost-effective choice. While Reliant has a strong brand presence, it's essential to consider that electricity is a commodity, and the quality of service remains consistent across providers, whether you opt for a well-known brand like Reliant or a smaller, lesser-known company with more competitive rates. Power outages are managed by your utility company, giving you no control over that aspect.
Many people are drawn to Reliant Energy due to its extensive marketing efforts, including substantial investments in TV commercials, pro-sports sponsorships, radio ads, and various promotional activities. They often tout enticing perks like "free nights and weekends" and sign-up bonuses. However, it's crucial to evaluate whether these perks offset the higher cost of electricity per kWh, as they might not necessarily result in overall savings.
Reliant Energy offers a stable and reputable electricity service, ensuring reliability for your home or business needs. Before committing to Reliant, it's a good idea to explore and compare rates from other providers and plans available in your area to make an informed decision that aligns with your budget and preferences.
Reliant Energy is a retail electricity provider that serves residential and business customers in Texas. The company is headquartered in Houston, Texas and is a subsidiary of NRG Energy, a leading integrated power company in the United States.
Reliant Energy has a long history in Texas, dating back to the early 20th century when it was known as Houston Lighting and Power Company. Over the years, the company has grown and evolved, changing its name to Reliant Energy in 2000 and becoming one of the largest electricity providers in the state.
Today, Reliant Energy provides electricity to over 1.5 million customers in Texas, and offers a variety of plans to meet their energy needs. The company is committed to providing reliable and affordable electricity to its customers, while also promoting energy efficiency and sustainability.
Reliant Energy offers a range of products and services to help customers reduce their energy consumption and lower their bills, including smart thermostats, energy-efficient appliances, and renewable energy options. The company is also actively involved in promoting renewable energy, with a focus on wind and solar power.
In addition to providing electricity to its customers, Reliant Energy is dedicated to giving back to the communities it serves. The company's charitable giving focuses on education, environment, and community outreach, and it has contributed millions of dollars to these causes over the years.
Overall, Reliant Energy is a leading retail electricity provider in Texas, committed to providing reliable and affordable energy to its customers, while also promoting energy efficiency and sustainability.
Excellent and informative customer service!
Great company will really recommend it
This company had great plans, but not now.
I've had reliant for years and have never had a problem.
I have been struggling to get answers about specific needs. I am happy to report that I got a wonderful and helpful person who answered all of my concerns. I am always happy to get good customer service in 2022.
They bought out my electric company and its been problems ever since. Messed up my contract dates and its been 2 months and they still haven't fixed to my correct terms. No one listens, talks down to you when I have my contract right in front of me. I've emailed my contract and continue to be on the back burner. Customer service is zero stars.
Very easy and simple with their live chat agents
Great communication and fast acting. Very helpful.
Bryan was very helpful and understanding.
Decent electric company.
Good breakdown giving regarding my account query
Very very very helpful. Omar definitely needs a raise because he did everything fast and had all the answers I was looking for
Fast and easy set up online. I did have a few questions and customer service was able to answer all those questions.
Great help! They are so nice!
It was very helpful and convenient
GREAT CUSTOMER SERVICE; GREAT PRICES! BEEN A CUSTOMER FOR OVER 13 YEARS!
I made a massive mistake by leaving TXU and going to reliant. I’ve changed nothing about my lifestyle and the 4 years I was with TXU I consistently have the same KW usage, the first month I was with reliant my KW doubled. Impossible. They promised credits if I switched and have not fulfilled them. Their customers service agents argue with you and basically say “you are a liar”. Do NOT transfer to this account to this company. Biggest mistake ever. They are horrible
My agent Cecilio was great! He was able to not only help me out with my request but he gave a huge extension! Blessing!!!
I had the best experience when it came to understanding everything to get connected. Thanks Reliant Energy
My experience with Reliant has been very good 👍.
Awesome service
Ceclio was very helpful he was fast and straight to the point he resolved my issue within three short minutes. Reliant Energy is my energy company & I am a very satisfied customer!🙂
Kevin was very helpful and was able to solve my problem.
Quick response time and appreciated the help and professionalism.
They do a great job...
Changed a setting in my billing and I chatted with Reliant to confirm it would be active by my payment date in four days. The answer was quick, and all was well.
the rep i spoke w/ explained everything to me , she was polite, knew her job title in handling the questions i asked her to the best of her ability , very professional
This has been the best electric billing company ever! Reliable service and customer support top of the line!
Brittany was very patient and walked me through getting my issue resolved.
Very fast service
LaDorian was very knowledgable and efficient. She made the process very easy
Es la mejor compańia de electricidad que cumple y se compromete con el cliente
I have had a reliant in the energy for over 4 years and the service has always been great. The customer service is impeccable.
90 percent of the time I am helped thoroughly and with understanding we both walk away satisfied
The customer service I received from representative (Miguel) was very courteous and he was very helpful. I really appreciate the assistance, so grateful 😊
Was helped, given extra time, and felt appreciated
On Thurs, mothers electricity was turned off by Reliant. Mother had service at this house for close to 50 yrs. Reliant found discrepancy in name, so shut it off. I called immediately to have service turned on. Reliant told me yes, they could put it on same day. That Thurs night temperature would get down to mid 30's. Had to send in ID/DL to verify. Put account in mothers name and Reliant verifier would not accept the photo that was uploaded (distorted photo uploaded). Had already paid deposit and was already taken out of my checking acct. Since we needed service that day, I cancelled that acct and start service in My name and sent in my info, same problem. Verifier would not accept the photos I was sending. Was showing a distorted photo. By this time, verification dept would not be able to do anything til tomorrow. FRIDAY morning, called Reliant and was able to E-MAIL photos of my DL to Verification dept. They sent email back saying it could take up to 24-48 hrs to verify and turn on electricity, so it was a waiting game to see if they would turn on electricity by Friday closing time. Friday night temp expected in 50's. NO ELECTRICITY!! Early Saturday morning I called a DIFFERENT company all together and signed up with them. SERVICE WAS STARTED WITHIN TWO HOURS! Has been almost a week and still no refund on Deposit I put down in Mothers name account that was cancelled. Over a two day period, talked to about four different people from Reliant different departments, and all told me that it should not take that long to verify and service should be turned on soon. I WILL NOT BE RECOMMENDING RELIANT TO ANYONE! Would give Reliant ZER0 stars if possible. FIVE STARS FOR GREEN MOUNTAIN ENERGY COMPANY!!
Very quick and professional chat. Helpful. I was able to get a more cost effective plan after speaking with Miguel who answered my questions with much patience! Been with Reliant for 12 years (was not aware it had been that long already) and am staying with them again this go round.
Thank You Reliant for making my home a safe and bright place to be.
Very few issues over the last 17 years
Cuando hay una buena informacion entre cliente y proveedor de luz siempre habra mayor satisfaccion y lealtad a Reliant, tratarnos como si fuera la primera vez que nos van a vender Luz.
Great experience and awesome customer service.
Prefer person rather than having to verify who I am to get on the site many times. Too many passwords
Service was fine. I did not have any issues, BUT their renewal rates were ridiculously high. I would have stayed if they had a reasonable rate.
Happy appreciated the help today
This company is a scam. They hold my deposit for more than half of year. Every time when I ask them, the agent will tell me to wait for 2 months for the check processing. Again and again, never actually send the check to me. And they are revoked from BBB. So be careful when you choose them. Update: can anyone give any advice how can I get my deposit back? I talked to a manager, he also said he will sent the check to me, he month later, NOTHING!
They are ok when they work but our here at Cedar Creek Lake??? If the sun is shining, the power goes out. If it’s raining, the power goes out. Then you say ,” You need to Email us”. But the POWER IS OUT. You folks have inferior equipment and refusing upgrade. That’s YOUR FAULT.
Absolutely the worst company to choose, I have switched to a better company and will never do business with reliant ever again.
It is absolutely absurd the amount I pay for electricity for a family of 4. This has to be the most greedy corporation I've ever had the displeasure of working with and I would never recommend to anyone. I will actually go out of my way to make sure no one gets screwed over like I have been, monthly. And it isn't the customer service, the customer service is lovely. It is the rates set, the "delivery charges" from a third party I did not sign up with. My family has gone into debt while moving into Texas and Reliant Energy has played a huge role in that. I hope the ceo & shareholders are living lavishly while average american families are quite literally struggling to keep the lights on :)
Perfectly krumby they are, set me up with my solar panels and didn't 'tell' me they don't offer or give any credits for surplus energy. This would be the second time I left for poor customer service. This time, they just out and out stole from me. Response to reply: Um, you've lost a potential customer for life. The only way I would return is if you match solar surplus 1 for 1 used. IE, you pay me the same rate I pay you per KW. No funny business, which you've done, twice!
Worst customer service ever! The most incompetent company I have ever dealt with. I wish I would have known before I added 3 service addresses with them. They have been a nightmare, it’s not worth the advertisement of cheap and reliable service because it’s very much the opposite. I am still waiting to know what happened to the funds charged on my card that didn’t go into my bill payment Your phone line leads to a machine or a representative that can’t find my account. The same account your company has been charging my bank. THIEVES!
Is it only me or this company is lying to people? I just paid my bill and I received another due 04/28 astromic even though I live by myself never at home. Why is it so hard to trust people ?
This company let someone use my social security number to open an account with no background verification. After i told them i was a victim of fraud they sent it to collections and now my credit is dropping because they were to lazy with setting up an account. Dont support these people
Reliant Energy is the worse energy company existing!!! They lie and STEAL!!! BEWARE….corporate officials are TOO important for customers! No phone numbers given to higher level management @ ALL!
I feel like I made a mistake leaving TXU when they stopped me in Walmart they made it seem like my bill would be 81 for whatever I use I be at work all day and come home late and still don’t use that much usage . They sent me a disconnection date and my bill was 102.81 why they now say my bill 249.81 and I paid the 102.81 as before the disconnection date and it would be back to average I’m suppose to be billed !!!! THEY say you can’t get an extension unless you been with them for 3 months so let’s say people don’t have the money and have issues they lights JUST got off!!! THEY SCAM AND ARE LIARS !!!! TXU IM COMING BACK 🤣👏🏾. Bad service.
DO YOUR RESEARCH!!! Customer Service ..3/10 Miscellaneous Charges.. 3/10(frequently happens) Customer Care/Value ..2/10 (will lie on a recorded line) Product/Services ..8/10 (few outages & quick connection signals) Overall… 4/10 !! Beware of the false advertising for the different plans, I supposedly have nights free and I work 10 hours during the day; yet I still average a $200+ bill for a ONE BEDROOM apartment and somehow my usage is the highest Monday-Thursday..(while I’m clocked in at work)
Worst company. Literally
WORST EXPERIENCE .. they do not share *Nearly* enough informaiton on setting up a new power account specifically around getting a meter installed and getting an ESID number (this was never mentioned before - just learned this term today) I had to cancel my scheduled install I made over 1.5 months ago. SSSSOOO frustating. An associate went throught the exact same horrible experience with Reliant getting power setup. I wish I had talked with him before losing 8 hours of my life I can never get back. Reliant .. your customer service is terrible .. fix it please.
I have filed a complaint on reliant because they are treating everybody in Baytown like this charging everybody double. Everybody is so upset. Reliant reply to everyone is you can do it in payment. We will be calling the governor. I have changed company and a year later they treat me fair. I hope reliant goes out of business after robbing people like this. Carma........ To the good reviews I was very happy with reliant in the beginning until they started gouging everyone. Be ware people. I wonder what they pay these good review people.
Trash people and company
One of the worst experiences I have had has been with this company.
Average billing very misleading. Beware!! Read the fine print. Switched and now owe 1.3k to reliant. Will never use this service again.
TRASH ! signed up for Average Billing Last Month. Only for them to use the remaining balance as PAST DUE !!!!!? They talked me into Average Billing which was on paid on THE DUE DATE (09.08.). The literally Forwarded the Balance Forward (I didn't inquire about this type of billing. They pitched IT ! I had no problem paying my whole bill. I was thinking , what could it hurt !? A LOT, i guess, when they are Societal THUGS !) They were pushing this Last Month bc those are Low months (for my family). Why would I sign up to have the BALANCE ROLLED OVER w FAKE Late Charges & a Disconnection fee. I wasn't disconnected. I signed up for this AB ON my due date. I will be filing a CFPB & BBB Formal Complaint. . . Thieves ! FIND a Quality company. Reliant = Rely on your bill to be Improperly INFLATED. . . . contract been over. Dumping these CROOKs.
I was late for my bill, they gave my grace period of two days and the moment I called and apologized I made the payment and got it reconnected in less than an hour! Excellent customer care, highly recommend :)
I recently had a really disappointing experience with Reliant Energy. Their customer service was poor, and I was constantly being transferred between different departments just to address billing and try to get better rates. It's frustrating that they couldn't offer assistance over the phone and insisted on doing everything online. I expected better service from such a big company. I do not recommend Reliant Energy.
I have been on the phone with a request for a new conection over the phone with a representative name ‘JOEL’ as we speak and he constantly puts me on hold for 30mins and comes back with nothing. I asked for a manager- guess what - puts me a even longer hold times. Its been over 1 hour 15 mins out of which 1 hour is the wait time. WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH THIS COMPANY. I would like the higher management to reach out to me ASAP. HORRIBLE CUSTOMER SERVICE.
Terrible service desk! If I had more hands, I'd give you three thumbs down.
Our mission is to provide accurate and helpful data and content to help you make an informed decision when comparing energy providers.
Plans and Rates:
We review all available plans from every licensed energy provider. Then we rank the lowest available rate from each provider. Providers then receive a rating based on what percentile their lowest plan ranks.
For example, Provider A has the 3rd lowest-priced plan, while Provider B has the 45th lowest-priced plan out of 46 providers who submitted plans to PUC. Provider A will have a rating of 5, while Provider B will have a rating of 1.
Customer Service:
We scrape online reviews from Google, Yelp, BBB, and Trust Pilot to determine what customers are saying about the provider. The rating reflects the aggregate of all online reviews.
Renewable Options:
The rating system is based on the availability of renewable energy options. A 5-star rating is awarded to entities that offer a fully renewable option, signifying 100% renewable energy usage. A 4-star rating is given to those that provide a mix of energy sources, with more than 50% coming from renewable sources. Entities with renewable energy options exceeding the state average of 31.1% receive a 3-star rating, while those offering less than 31.1% renewable options are rated with 2 stars. Lastly, a 1-star rating is assigned to those with no renewable energy options, indicating a lack of commitment to sustainable energy practices.
PUC Rating:
The Public Utility Commission publishes a rating for each provider based on the number of formal complaints filed against the provider in comparison to how many customers they have.
For example, a provider with 10 formal complaints out of 10,000 customers would have a 1-star rating whereas a provider with 10 complaints and 1,000,000 customers would have a 5-star rating.
The GridHacker rating uses a weighted average that prioritizes rates and customer service over renewable options and PUC rating. We do this because we feel that for most customers price and service are the two most important factors when they are shopping for an electricity plan.
A good price per kWh in Texas typically ranges from 9 to 13 cents, depending on various factors such as the type of plan, market conditions, and location. Fixed-rate plans offer stable pricing, while variable-rate plans can fluctuate. It's important to compare different plans and providers to find the best rate for your energy needs. Using GridHacker, you can easily compare and enroll in plans from top providers directly on our website to ensure you're getting a competitive rate.
Texas electricity rates are determined by several factors:
Understanding these components helps explain why electricity prices can vary and how you can find the best plan for your needs. With GridHacker, you can easily compare and enroll in plans from different providers right on our website.
