Updated: August 2026
An electricity tariff slab is a consumption band with its own per-unit price. Your monthly units fall into one of these bands, and the band decides what you pay per unit. As of August 2026, domestic slabs in Pakistan run from Rs 3.95 per unit for the smallest lifeline homes to Rs 47.20 per unit for homes above 700 units a month, set by SRO 279(I)/2026, which took effect on 12 February 2026. The same schedule applies to every distribution company, from LESCO in Lahore to K-Electric in Karachi.
The slabs are the single most important thing to understand about a Pakistani electricity bill, because of one rule that catches most people out: for ordinary (unprotected) domestic consumers, the whole month is billed at the rate of the slab your total lands in. Use 300 units and every unit costs Rs 33.10. Use 301 and every unit costs Rs 36.46. That single extra unit adds about Rs 1,044 to the energy charge before any tax. This page explains what a slab is, lists the current boundaries and rates, shows exactly how the “landing slab” rule differs for protected consumers, and works the arithmetic at each step of the ladder.
For the full cost of a unit after taxes, adjustments and surcharges, see our pillar guide to the electricity per unit price in Pakistan. This page is about the slab structure itself.
What a “slab” actually is on your bill
A slab (NEPRA’s own term is a consumption “step” or “block”) is a range of units with a fixed rate attached. The domestic tariff is a ladder of these ranges. The first block covers your first 100 units, the next covers 101–200, and so on up to a top block for everything above 700 units. Each rung has its own Rs-per-unit figure, and the figure rises as you climb.
Three bodies set the numbers. NEPRA (the regulator) determines the cost-based rates, the federal government notifies them through a Statutory Regulatory Order, and your DISCO’s billing software applies them. The current notification is SRO 279(I)/2026. It kept the lower slabs (up to 300 units) unchanged from the July 2025 schedule, trimmed every slab above 300 units by roughly Rs 1.5 per unit, and added a new monthly fixed charge that we cover further down.
The system is deliberately progressive: light users pay little, heavy users pay a lot, and a federal subsidy keeps the bottom rungs far below actual cost. That design is also why a modest rise in usage can move you to a costlier rung and reprice every unit you burned that month.
The current electricity tariff slabs (August 2026)
Here is the full domestic slab ladder in force in August 2026. The middle column is the protected rate; the right column is the unprotected rate that applies to most households. The fixed charge is a separate per-kilowatt line explained later on this page.
| Monthly consumption | Protected rate (Rs/unit) | Unprotected rate (Rs/unit) | Fixed charge (Rs per kW) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lifeline: up to 50 units | 3.95 | — | Exempt |
| Lifeline: 51–100 units | 7.74 | — | Exempt |
| 1–100 units | 10.54 | 22.44 | 200 / 275 |
| 101–200 units | 13.01 | 28.91 | 300 / 300 |
| 201–300 units | — | 33.10 | 350 |
| 301–400 units | — | 36.46 | 400 |
| 401–500 units | — | 38.95 | 500 |
| 501–600 units | — | 40.22 | 675 |
| 601–700 units | — | 41.85 | 675 |
| Above 700 units | — | 47.20 | 675 |
Source: uniform domestic tariff schedule under SRO 279(I)/2026, effective 12 February 2026, as published on official DISCO tariff pages (IESCO, FESCO). Fixed-charge figures shown as protected / unprotected where both apply. Rates as of August 2026.
One correction worth flagging, because it is wrong on many rate websites: the top slab is Rs 47.20, not Rs 47.69. The Rs 47.69, Rs 41.62 and Rs 42.76 figures still circulating online are the pre-SRO-279 rates from 2025. The February 2026 schedule cut them.
How slabs are applied: landing slab vs previous-slab benefit
This is where the money is decided, and where most confusion lives. The rule is different for the two main consumer types.
Unprotected consumers are billed on the landing slab. Whatever slab your total consumption lands in, your entire month is charged at that one rate. There is no discount for the units that fell in lower blocks. A home using 250 units pays 250 × Rs 33.10, not a mix of 22.44, 28.91 and 33.10. This “single-slab” or landing-slab method has applied to unprotected domestic consumers ever since NEPRA re-targeted the domestic subsidy toward low-usage homes; protected consumers were carved out of it.
Protected consumers keep the previous-slab benefit. Their bill is telescopic: the first 100 units are charged at the 1–100 rate and the balance at the 101–200 rate. A protected home using 180 units pays 100 × Rs 10.54 plus 80 × Rs 13.01, not 180 units at a single rate. That benefit only runs up to 200 units, because protected status itself ends there.
Lifeline consumers stay on their low flat rates. A lifeline home that keeps within 50 units is billed at Rs 3.95, and one within 100 units at Rs 7.74. Lifeline consumers are also exempt from the fixed charge, the financing cost surcharge and the monthly fuel adjustment, which the bigger slabs all carry.
The practical takeaway: for a protected home, extra units cost a little more. For an unprotected home, crossing into a new slab reprices everything you have already used that month.
Why crossing a slab reprices your whole month
Because unprotected billing uses the landing slab, the jump between slabs is a cliff, not a step. Look at what a single unit does at three points on the ladder (energy charge only, before tax):
- 300 to 301 units. At 300 units: 300 × Rs 33.10 = Rs 9,930. At 301 units the total lands in the 301–400 slab, so all 301 units are charged at Rs 36.46: 301 × 36.46 = Rs 10,974.46. One extra unit adds Rs 1,044.
- 500 to 501 units. At 500: 500 × 38.95 = Rs 19,475. At 501: 501 × 40.22 = Rs 20,150.22. One extra unit adds Rs 675.
- 700 to 701 units. At 700: 700 × 41.85 = Rs 29,295. At 701, the whole month reprices to the top slab of Rs 47.20: 701 × 47.20 = Rs 33,087.20. One extra unit adds Rs 3,792.
None of those jumps is the cost of the extra unit. They are the cost of re-rating every unit before it. This is the mechanism behind bills that seem to double for no reason in June and July: an AC pushes the meter from one slab into the next, and the higher rate applies retroactively to the whole month. If you are hovering near a boundary, our guide on how to reduce your electricity bill lists the changes that shave the most units.
The three consumer types the slabs sort you into
The slab you land on depends first on which of three categories your connection falls in.
Lifeline is the deepest subsidy, for the smallest users: minimal sanctioned load with consumption within 50 or 100 units, judged over the last twelve months. Rates are Rs 3.95 and Rs 7.74.
Protected covers domestic (non-time-of-use) connections under 5 kW that stayed at or below 200 units in every one of the last six billing months. Rates are Rs 10.54 and Rs 13.01, with the telescopic benefit.
Unprotected is everyone else: any home that crossed 200 units even once in the last six months. Billing starts at Rs 22.44 from the very first unit and follows the landing-slab rule all the way up.
The gap between protected and unprotected is larger than any other line on the bill. Status is recomputed automatically each month from your meter history, with no form to fill, so one careless month costs you six. The full six-month rule is in our protected vs unprotected consumers guide.
The 200-unit boundary: the most expensive line on the sheet
The jump from protected to unprotected happens at 200 units, and it is the harshest cliff on the entire tariff.
- 200 units, protected: 100 × 10.54 + 100 × 13.01 = Rs 2,355.
- 201 units, unprotected: 201 × 33.10 = Rs 6,653.10. The whole month reprices to the 201–300 slab, with no previous-slab benefit.
One unit over the line adds Rs 4,298 in energy charges alone, before 18% GST and the other levies push the real-bill gap higher still. That is why staying at or under 200 units matters more than any appliance swap. We break the threshold down unit by unit in our 200-unit electricity bill explainer.
Worked energy charge at each slab
The table below shows the energy charge (units × slab rate) at a representative point in each slab, so you can see the ladder in rupees. These are energy charges only. They exclude the fixed charge, the financing cost surcharge, fuel and quarterly adjustments, duty and GST, all of which are added on top and covered in the taxes on your electricity bill guide.
| Units used | Status | How it’s billed | Energy charge (Rs) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 50 | Lifeline | 50 × 3.95 | 197.50 |
| 100 | Protected | 100 × 10.54 | 1,054.00 |
| 200 | Protected | (100 × 10.54) + (100 × 13.01) | 2,355.00 |
| 200 | Unprotected | 200 × 28.91 | 5,782.00 |
| 300 | Unprotected | 300 × 33.10 | 9,930.00 |
| 400 | Unprotected | 400 × 36.46 | 14,584.00 |
| 500 | Unprotected | 500 × 38.95 | 19,475.00 |
| 600 | Unprotected | 600 × 40.22 | 24,132.00 |
| 700 | Unprotected | 700 × 41.85 | 29,295.00 |
| 800 | Unprotected | 800 × 47.20 | 37,760.00 |
Notice the same 200-unit row billed two ways. As a protected consumer it is Rs 2,355; as an unprotected consumer it is Rs 5,782. Identical electricity, two and a half times the energy charge, decided entirely by which side of the 200-unit line your last six months put you on.
The new per-kW fixed charge
SRO 279 added a monthly fixed charge that most domestic consumers had never seen before. It has nothing to do with how many units you burn. It is billed per kilowatt of your sanctioned load (the capacity your connection is approved for), it applies even in a month you use nothing, and GST is charged on top of it. The rate per kW is set by the slab your consumption lands in, then multiplied by your full sanctioned load.
| Consumption slab (units/month) | Protected (Rs per kW) | Unprotected (Rs per kW) |
|---|---|---|
| 1–100 | 200 | 275 |
| 101–200 | 300 | 300 |
| 201–300 | — | 350 |
| 301–400 | — | 400 |
| 401–500 | — | 500 |
| 501 units and above | — | 675 |
Worked example: a 2 kW home using 250 units lands in the 201–300 slab, so its fixed charge is 2 × Rs 350 = Rs 700 for the month before GST, on top of the energy charge. A 3 kW home drawing 500 units pays 3 × Rs 500 = Rs 1,500. Lifeline consumers pay no fixed charge at all. Time-of-use consumers (5 kW and above) pay the top Rs 675 per kW rate; check your bill for the exact load figure it is applied to.
These fixed charges have drawn public and legal pushback since they landed, and could be revised on a future schedule. For now they appear on every non-lifeline domestic bill.
What sits on top of the slab rate
The slab rate is the first line, not the last. For a typical unprotected household the extras lift the effective price well above the headline slab figure. In brief, as of August 2026:
- Financing cost surcharge: Rs 3.23 per unit on every slab except lifeline.
- Quarterly tariff adjustment (QTA): currently a credit of Rs 1.9857 per unit in June, July and August 2026 bills.
- Fuel price adjustment (FPA): a monthly plus-or-minus figure that settles actual fuel costs from two months earlier; lifeline and prepaid consumers are exempt.
- Electricity duty: a provincial levy of roughly 1.5% of the variable charges.
- GST: 18% sales tax under FBR rules.
- Advance income tax: 7.5% on domestic bills above Rs 25,000 a month if you are not on the Active Taxpayer List.
Stacked together, a base slab rate of Rs 33.10 for a 300-unit home works out to an effective Rs 43–44 per unit once the surcharge, duty and GST are added, before the monthly adjustments. The full line-by-line breakdown, with who is exempt from what, is in the taxes guide.
When slabs don’t apply: time-of-use meters
Slabs are only for ordinary domestic connections. If your sanctioned load is 5 kW or more, your DISCO puts you on a time-of-use (TOU) meter that bills by clock time, not consumption bands. As of August 2026 the domestic TOU rates under SRO 279 are Rs 46.85 at peak and Rs 34.53 off-peak, before adjustments. The peak window runs about four hours in the evening, so shifting heavy loads out of it is a TOU home’s cheapest saving. City timings are in our electricity peak hours guide.
Slabs and solar
Rooftop solar lowers the units you draw from the grid, so a home that trims daytime consumption below 200 units can hold or regain protected status. One 2026 change matters here: new solar connections since 9 February 2026 are on net billing, not net metering, so exported units are bought back at the National Average Energy Purchase Price (roughly Rs 10–11 per unit, though published figures vary, so confirm the rate with your DISCO) while imports are charged at your normal slab. How the two schemes differ is laid out in our net billing vs net metering comparison, and the full mechanics are in our net metering in Pakistan guide.
FAQs
What is an electricity slab in Pakistan?
A slab is a band of monthly units with its own per-unit rate. The domestic tariff is a ladder of these bands, from a lifeline block up to a top block above 700 units. As of August 2026 the rates run from Rs 3.95 to Rs 47.20 per unit under SRO 279(I)/2026, and the same ladder applies to every DISCO.
How many electricity slabs are there in Pakistan in 2026?
Domestic consumers face two lifeline blocks (up to 50 and 51–100 units) plus the main slabs: 1–100, 101–200, 201–300, 301–400, 401–500, 501–600, 601–700, and above 700 units. Protected consumers only use the first two main blocks, because protected status ends at 200 units.
Do I pay the higher slab rate only on the extra units above the boundary?
For unprotected consumers, no. Your entire month is billed at the rate of the slab your total lands in, with no discount for units that fell in lower blocks. Only protected consumers get the previous-slab benefit, where the first 100 units are billed at the lower rate and the rest at the next rate.
What is the difference between protected and unprotected slab billing?
Protected billing is telescopic: 100 units at Rs 10.54 and the next 100 at Rs 13.01, up to the 200-unit limit. Unprotected billing uses the landing slab: the whole month at one rate, starting at Rs 22.44 from the first unit. A protected 200-unit bill is Rs 2,355 in energy charges; the same 200 units billed unprotected is Rs 5,782.
Why did my whole bill jump when I only used a few extra units?
Because unprotected consumers are billed on the landing slab, crossing into a higher band reprices every unit you used that month, not just the extra ones. Going from 300 to 301 units moves all 301 units from Rs 33.10 to Rs 36.46, adding about Rs 1,044. Going from 700 to 701 units adds about Rs 3,792.
Are the slab rates the same for LESCO, K-Electric and every other DISCO?
Yes. All ten ex-WAPDA DISCOs and K-Electric bill domestic consumers on the same uniform slab schedule set by SRO 279. Only the monthly fuel adjustment and provincial duty differ slightly. You can confirm your own figures on the electricity bill calculator or a company page such as the LESCO bill calculator.
What is the new fixed charge on my bill, and who is exempt?
SRO 279 added a monthly charge billed per kilowatt of your sanctioned load, set by your consumption slab (Rs 200–675 per kW). A 2 kW home using 250 units pays 2 × Rs 350 = Rs 700 before GST. It is billed even at zero use. Lifeline consumers are exempt, and the charge has drawn pushback that could see it revised on a future schedule.
Check which slab you actually land on
Your slab is not a guess. Enter your units into our free electricity bill calculator and it applies the exact 2026 rates, protected and unprotected, with the fixed charge and taxes layered on. Pick your own company from the all-DISCOs hub, from IESCO to K-Electric, and check your real bill against the ladder on this page. If the rate printed on your bill does not match the slab your units fall in, that is worth a call to your DISCO.