Read a Home Energy and Water Bill
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What you will learn
- 1Find the account name, billing period, amount due and due date on a bill
- 2Work out how much was used from two meter readings
- 3Name the units used for electricity and water
- 4Compare months on a usage chart
- 5Keep the account number private
Mini Lesson
Every month or so, many homes get a bill for the electricity and water they used. A bill can look like a page full of numbers, but each part has one simple job. Once you know where to look, you can find what your family used, how much it costs and when it must be paid. In this lesson you read a made-up sample bill, then look at a real one with your grown-up.
🏠 The Life Skills Way (step by step)
- WHO AND WHEN: the account name shows who the bill is for. The billing period shows the dates the bill covers.
- METER READINGS: a meter at home counts what you use. Take the current reading minus the previous reading, and the answer is what you used.
- UNITS: electricity is usually counted in kilowatt-hours (kWh). Water may be counted in gallons or cubic feet - bills use different units in different places.
- AMOUNT DUE AND DUE DATE: the amount due is the money to pay. The due date is the last day to pay it.
- USAGE CHART: the bars compare this month with other months, so you can see if your family used more or less.
- USE LESS: as you learned in science, turning lights off, taking shorter showers and running only full loads all help your family use less.
Look at real bills only with a grown-up. A bill shows an account number and other private details. Never share an account number, or any part of a bill, with anyone - on the phone, at the door or online. If someone asks you for these details, tell your grown-up.
Words to know
billing period
The dates that a bill covers.
e.g. The billing period was April 1 to April 30.
meter
A device at home that counts how much electricity or water is used.
e.g. My grown-up showed me where the water meter is.
meter reading
The number shown on a meter on a certain day.
e.g. The current meter reading was 4,500.
kilowatt-hour
A unit for measuring how much electricity is used, written kWh.
e.g. Our home used 300 kilowatt-hours in April.
amount due
The money that must be paid for the bill.
e.g. The amount due on the sample bill is $60.
due date
The last day to pay the bill.
e.g. The due date is May 20.
💡 Handy Tip: to check the "used" number, subtract the previous reading from the current reading yourself. On the sample bill, 4,500 minus 4,200 is 300 kWh - the same as the bill says.
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