How to read your Bangladesh electricity bill
A DESCO, DPDC or Palli Bidyut bill packs a dozen fields onto one page, and most of them go unread until something looks wrong. This guide explains what each field means and how to check the maths behind the final number.
Whether you get a paper bill, an SMS summary or a prepaid recharge slip, the underlying fields are the same across DESCO, DPDC, NESCO, BPDB, WZPDCL and the Palli Bidyut Samities, because they all follow the same BERC-regulated billing format. Once you know what each field represents, a bill stops being a single scary total and becomes a short, checkable calculation. This guide is informational — always confirm anything you dispute directly with your utility's billing office.
On this page
The identity fields
The top block of the bill identifies who you are and how you are classified — this is where billing disputes usually start, because a wrong category or wrong sanctioned load changes every charge below it.
| Field | What it means |
|---|---|
| Consumer number / account number | Your unique account identifier — needed for every online payment, complaint or category change application. Never share it publicly. |
| Meter number | The serial number physically printed on your meter. Confirm it matches the meter at your premises — mismatches happen after meter replacement if records aren't updated. |
| Tariff category | A code like LT-A (residential) or LT-E (commercial) that decides which rate table applies to your units. See our category guide if this looks wrong for how you use the connection. |
| Sanctioned load | The maximum load (in kW) your connection is approved for. This drives the fixed demand charge every month, whether or not you actually use that much power. |
| Billing month / cycle | The consumption period the bill covers — usually the previous calendar month, though reading dates can shift by a few days. |
Meter reading fields
This is the section that actually determines how many units you are billed for.
- Previous reading — the register value at the end of the last billing cycle.
- Present reading — the register value at the end of this cycle. Present minus previous, in the register's own units, gives the raw consumption.
- Multiplying factor (MF) — for meters connected through a current transformer (common on three-phase, commercial and industrial connections), the raw register difference must be multiplied by this factor to get actual kWh. Most single-phase household meters have MF = 1, so this step is invisible to them.
- Units consumed — (present − previous) × MF. This is the number that gets priced through the tariff slabs or time-of-use rates.
The charges section
This is where the taka amounts start appearing, usually in this order:
- Energy charge — units consumed priced through your category's slabs (for residential LT-A) or peak/off-peak rates (for time-of-use categories). See the tariff page for the current rate table.
- Demand charge — sanctioned load (kW) × the category's demand rate, charged every month regardless of consumption.
- Meter rent — a small fixed monthly fee (commonly ৳10–৳40) for the physical meter, more for three-phase or CT-metered connections.
VAT, rebates and arrears
Three more lines usually sit below the charges, and together they can move the total by 5–10%.
| Field | Effect on the bill |
|---|---|
| VAT (5%) | Applied to the net amount after rebates, on top of energy, demand and rent charges. |
| Rebate | Prepaid connections typically get a small automatic rebate (around 0.5%); paying before the due date on a postpaid bill can earn a larger rebate (around 5%) on the pre-VAT amount. |
| Arrears | Any unpaid balance carried forward from a previous cycle, added in full to this bill's total before VAT. |
| Late payment surcharge | Added if the previous bill's due date passed unpaid — the rate and grace period vary by utility. |
Due date and payment fields
The bottom of the bill states the due date (after which the surcharge and eventual disconnection risk apply), a bar/QR code for app or agent payment, and usually the utility's helpline number for complaints. Keep the bill or a photo of it until the next one arrives — it is your primary evidence in any dispute.
How to verify the arithmetic yourself
You can reconstruct almost the entire bill with four numbers: units consumed, tariff category, sanctioned load and whether you get any rebate.
- Confirm units consumed = (present − previous) × multiplying factor.
- Price those units through your category's slab or peak/off-peak rates — our bill calculator does this instantly for any BERC category.
- Add demand charge (sanctioned load × category demand rate) and meter rent.
- Subtract any rebate, then add 5% VAT on the remainder.
- Add arrears or surcharges shown separately, if any.
Key takeaways
- • Units consumed = (present − previous reading) × multiplying factor.
- • Demand charge is fixed and applies even with zero consumption.
- • VAT (5%) is applied after any rebate, not before.
- • Arrears and surcharges are added on top of the current cycle's own charges.
- • Photographing your meter monthly is the single best way to catch billing errors early.
Frequently asked questions
Why does my bill say 'estimated' instead of a real reading?
Meter readers sometimes cannot access a meter — locked gate, tenant absent — so the utility estimates the reading from your average usage. Estimated bills are corrected against the actual reading next cycle, which can cause a large swing either way.
What is a multiplying factor and why is mine not 1?
Meters feeding heavy loads use a current transformer (CT) to scale down the current before measuring it. The multiplying factor (MF) undoes that scaling — if your MF is 40, the register reading is multiplied by 40 to get real units. Almost all residential single-phase meters have an MF of 1.
My bill shows arrears but I paid last month. What happened?
Payments made close to the billing cut-off date sometimes post after the next bill has already been generated. Keep your payment receipt or SMS confirmation and it should clear automatically within one more cycle; if not, take the receipt to the billing office.
Is the VAT the same for every tariff category?
Yes, 5% VAT is applied nationally on top of energy and demand charges regardless of category, though some subsidised categories or government-declared exemptions can differ — check with your utility if your bill shows an unusual VAT line.
What is a late payment surcharge and when does it apply?
If a bill is not paid by the due date printed on it, most utilities add a surcharge (commonly 1–5% of the outstanding amount) to the following bill and may eventually flag the connection for disconnection. The exact rate and grace period vary by utility, so check your bill's terms or ask your billing office.
Continue with consumer categories, why bills jump or check your own numbers with the bill calculator.