Duke Energy customers may be able to get $150 bill credit. But there’s a catch
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Customers receive a $150 credit the first year after acceptance into EnergyWise.
- Customers receive a $50 annual credit on their enrollment anniversary while enrolled.
- If a customer opts out of three events, they will be removed from EnergyWise.
Duke Energy offers a free program that claims to give renters and homeowners a $150 bill credit. All they have to do is let the electric provider control their thermostat.
Residents with an approved smart thermostat can sign up for EnergyWise, which allows Duke Energy to temporarily adjust the temperature in a home to ease demand during periods of peak usage.
For example, Duke Energy might lower the thermostat temperature early on a summer day, preemptively cooling the home before an anticipated period of high energy demand.
Customers wouldn’t necessarily see a smaller bill at the end of the month because it isn’t the amount of energy used that’s changing, only the time energy is used.
The incentive for participating comes as an annual bill credit. Customers get $150 the first year in the program, then $50 each year after.
While the smart thermostat program isn’t new, it may be another way Triangle residents can cut back on costs amid rising prices of gas, food and other goods and services.
Nationally, electricity bills are expected to increase this summer. According to a new report from educational and policy organization National Energy Assistance Directors Association, customers in the South Atlantic region, which includes North Carolina, will spend $860 on average to cool their homes between June and September. That’s up more than $100, or 13.5%, from last year.
North Carolina residents in particular may have to deal with higher bills moving forward, if the N.C. Utilities Commission gives Duke Energy the 18% rate increase it wants.
How does EnergyWise work?
The only equipment homeowners or renters need to enroll in the EnergyWise program is a qualifying internet-connected smart thermostat. (Duke Energy has separate offers for customers who do not sign up for the smart thermostat program. They can enroll their qualifying air conditioner, water heater and/or electric heat strips to get bill credits in exchange for allowing Duke Energy to reduce their runtimes during peak electric demand periods.)
Duke Energy told The News & Observer it expects to add more manufacturers and brands to its list of qualifying products this year. Right now, select Ecobee, Emerson, Honeywell Home, Lux, Google Nest and Amazon thermostats are acceptable.
Residents who don’t have a smart thermostat may be able to get Duke Energy to install one for them at a reduced price. But they’ll first need to sign up for a free energy assessment through the Home Energy House Call program. During the visit, Duke Energy will help residents understand how their home uses energy and how they can save on bills, by checking on air leaks, insulation and appliances.
Customers can enroll in the program on the EnergyWise website or while purchasing a smart thermostat from Duke Energy’s online store.
Once enrolled, Duke Energy may adjust thermostats “a few times per month” when electricity demand peaks. Customers should be notified about the adjustments before they happen, either on thermostats or in a web or mobile app, depending on the thermostat. Each “event” typically lasts one or two hours, according to Duke Energy’s website.
Once the event ends, the thermostat will automatically return to its original setting.
It is possible to opt out of an event, which customers can do by adjusting their thermostats.
But if a customer opts out more than twice in a season, Duke Energy can remove them from the program, and they lose the bill credits for that season. If Duke Energy is unable to connect to a customer’s thermostat during an event, that counts as on opt-out, too.
Customers who participate in the program should get the one-time $150 credit within two billing cycles after they are accepted into the program. The credit is limited to one per service address, and it isn’t offered to anyone who was previously enrolled and is rejoining.
The $50 annual credit comes on the anniversary of the customer’s enrollment and is provided as long as the customer remains in the program.
More than 170,000 Duke Energy Progress customers are enrolled in the EnergyWise Home program, and more than 248,000 Duke Energy Carolinas customers are enrolled in the PowerManager program. (EnergyWise and PowerManager are the same program.)
What do customers say?
For some customers, the $50 annual rebate may not be enough to warrant giving Duke Energy control over the temperature of their home.
The N&O asked members of a Durham Facebook group for feedback on the program.
One person who has a Google Nest and used to be in the program said “the savings never materialized and were paltry.” That person also said it was difficult to be removed from the program.
(If you’re in the program but don’t want to be anymore, email support@energywisetstat.com and ask to be taken off the EnergyWise Home smart thermostat program. If you live in ZIP codes 27516, 27517 or 27312, contact 866-541-8886 to do this.)
Another person who wasn’t signed up for the program said they have friends who were signed up for the program. “It does what IT wants, not what you program,” the person said.
Needless to say, the commenter was not interested in trying EnergyWise: “NEVER will anyone control the temperature in MY home, and that’s all I’m going to say.”
This story was originally published June 9, 2026 at 7:00 AM with the headline "Duke Energy customers may be able to get $150 bill credit. But there’s a catch."
