The short answer
In 2024, U.S. electricity customers averaged 611.3 minutes without power, about 10.2 hours, according to utility reports to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. South Carolina had the most outage time at about 52 hours per customer, followed by Maine, North Carolina, Florida and Texas. South Dakota and Arizona had the least, at about 1.5 hours. Major events drove 79 percent of outage time nationally.
TAKKEL’s leadership comes from power and storm operations. We have sat in the storm rooms, chased the timesheets and rebuilt the reports after the lights came back on.
We published these rankings because state averages are where most reliability conversations start, and where they too often stop. The numbers that actually change a utility’s year live one level down: which circuits, which causes, and which steps of restoration are eating the minutes. That is the work we do.
Where 2024’s outage time came from
The fifteen states with the most outage time per customer, split into day-to-day outages and major events. The dashed line is the U.S. average.
Hours without power per customer, 2024. Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration, Electric Power Annual Table 11.3. Day-to-day is SAIDI without major events; major events is the difference.
What the rankings tell an operations leader
Read the chart by color, not just by length. The light blue is storm exposure. The dark blue is day-to-day reliability. They call for different fixes, and a utility that cannot separate them in its own data cannot manage either one.
Storm-driven states
In South Carolina, Florida, North Carolina and Texas, 90 percent or more of 2024’s outage time came from major events. South Carolina went from 167 minutes in 2023 to 3,137 in 2024 on the back of Hurricane Helene.
Here the leverage is event readiness: staging, crew visibility during the event, and how fast restoration paperwork closes out so costs are recovered. See what a storm event dashboard should show.
Day-to-day reliability states
West Virginia (486.1 minutes), Vermont (275), Maine (274), Mississippi (266.3) and Hawaii (225.6) led the country on outage time excluding major events, against a national figure of 126. Twenty-four states were above that national day-to-day figure.
Here the leverage is routine: outage cause coding, vegetation cycles, equipment replacement priorities and work order backlog. See document automation for utility companies.
Year-to-year swings are a warning too. Oklahoma fell from 896.6 minutes in 2023 to 270.9 in 2024, while Texas rose from 496.2 to 1,270.6. One season can make a utility look like a leader or a laggard, which is why trend lines and cause data matter more than a single year’s rank.
For utilities and cooperatives
Get a reliability benchmark for your territory
State averages cannot tell you where your own minutes come from. Starting with a working session, we take your outage data and show you:
- Where you stand. Your SAIDI and SAIFI, with and without major events, against your state, your neighbors and the U.S.
- What is driving your minutes. Outage time broken down by cause, circuit and region, so the biggest contributors are obvious.
- Where restoration time goes. When your data allows it, the split between detection, dispatch, travel and repair.
- The first fixes worth making. Two or three changes ranked by how much they would move your numbers, and the reporting to track them.
Bring an export from your outage management system or the data behind your EIA-861 reliability reporting. If your data is scattered, that is a finding too, and we will show you how to fix it.
Request a reliability benchmark ›Or call 563.321.2430
For utility contractors: where the work concentrates
For line, storm and vegetation contractors, this table is a map of demand. States with high storm-driven outage time are where restoration and grid hardening work concentrates. States with high day-to-day outage time tend to keep maintenance, vegetation and replacement programs busy. Our guide to utility contract strategy covers getting on those utilities’ bid lists, and the utility contractors page covers storm closeout, billing and bids.
Which states had the most power outage time in 2024?
South Carolina (52.3 hours per customer), Maine (29.1), North Carolina (24.0), Florida (22.0) and Texas (21.2) had the most outage time, followed by Georgia, West Virginia, New Hampshire, Louisiana and Vermont. Only 13 states were above the national average of 10.2 hours. According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, major events such as Hurricanes Beryl, Helene and Milton accounted for most of the outage time Americans experienced in 2024.
Which states had the most reliable power in 2024?
South Dakota (1.4 hours), Arizona (1.5), North Dakota (1.7), Massachusetts (1.7) and Rhode Island (1.7) had the least outage time per customer, including major events. Excluding major events, Illinois, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Nevada and Delaware had the lowest day-to-day outage time.
Power outages by state: all 50 states, 2024
Select a column heading to sort. Select a state for its reliability profile, its neighbors and what drives its outage time.
| Rank | State | Hours, all events | Minutes, all events | Minutes, day-to-day | Interruptions per customer | Share from major events | Minutes, 2023 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | South Carolina | 52.3 | 3,136.5 | 117.8 | 2.37 | 96% | 167.2 |
| 2 | Maine | 29.1 | 1,748.6 | 274 | 3.64 | 84% | 1,863 |
| 3 | North Carolina | 24.0 | 1,441 | 141.4 | 1.81 | 90% | 252 |
| 4 | Florida | 22.0 | 1,321.5 | 66.4 | 1.77 | 95% | 160.1 |
| 5 | Texas | 21.2 | 1,270.6 | 129.4 | 2.11 | 90% | 496.2 |
| 6 | Georgia | 20.5 | 1,229.1 | 212.3 | 2.12 | 83% | 349.2 |
| 7 | West Virginia | 19.4 | 1,165.5 | 486.1 | 2.83 | 58% | 751.5 |
| 8 | New Hampshire | 15.4 | 922.7 | 132.3 | 2.02 | 86% | 645.8 |
| 9 | Louisiana | 12.1 | 727.5 | 206 | 2.72 | 72% | 584.2 |
| 10 | Vermont | 11.6 | 696.7 | 275 | 2.52 | 61% | 744.4 |
| 11 | Kentucky | 10.8 | 648.3 | 153.3 | 1.96 | 76% | 868.2 |
| 12 | Nebraska | 10.7 | 641.7 | 73.6 | 1.23 | 89% | 72.6 |
| 13 | Washington | 10.4 | 623.5 | 158.6 | 1.75 | 75% | 151.7 |
| 14 | Oregon | 9.8 | 591 | 130.9 | 1.35 | 78% | 126.9 |
| 15 | Mississippi | 9.5 | 567.1 | 266.3 | 2.56 | 53% | 802.1 |
| 16 | Ohio | 8.5 | 510.5 | 133.2 | 1.30 | 74% | 366.2 |
| 17 | Arkansas | 8.5 | 509.1 | 194.6 | 2.13 | 62% | 911.2 |
| 18 | Michigan | 7.8 | 470.4 | 160.1 | 1.36 | 66% | 1,093.6 |
| 19 | Virginia | 7.0 | 418.3 | 166.4 | 1.63 | 60% | 221.1 |
| 20 | Montana | 5.9 | 351.5 | 156.6 | 1.62 | 55% | 118.7 |
| 21 | Pennsylvania | 5.6 | 336.1 | 131 | 1.35 | 61% | 252.7 |
| 22 | Alaska | 5.5 | 327.1 | 192.4 | 2.59 | 41% | 374.8 |
| 23 | Hawaii | 5.3 | 320.6 | 225.6 | 2.62 | 30% | 491.8 |
| 24 | Indiana | 5.2 | 312.4 | 121.4 | 1.28 | 61% | 455.4 |
| 25 | Kansas | 4.8 | 285.6 | 103.6 | 1.51 | 64% | 283.1 |
| 26 | California | 4.7 | 279.6 | 158.2 | 1.34 | 43% | 346.6 |
| 27 | Alabama | 4.7 | 279.4 | 117.8 | 1.87 | 58% | 294.2 |
| 28 | New Mexico | 4.6 | 278.8 | 156.5 | 1.32 | 44% | 168.9 |
| 29 | Tennessee | 4.6 | 278.6 | 159.5 | 2.00 | 43% | 857.9 |
| 30 | Oklahoma | 4.5 | 270.9 | 119.6 | 1.73 | 56% | 896.6 |
| 31 | Wisconsin | 4.4 | 266.1 | 91.3 | 1.02 | 66% | 183 |
| 32 | Colorado | 4.3 | 255.1 | 119 | 1.41 | 53% | 99.2 |
| 33 | Idaho | 3.9 | 232.8 | 174 | 1.31 | 25% | 137.5 |
| 34 | Missouri | 3.7 | 224.3 | 106 | 1.19 | 53% | 371.8 |
| 35 | New York | 3.7 | 219.9 | 72 | 0.91 | 67% | 120 |
| 36 | Minnesota | 3.7 | 219.6 | 92.2 | 1.25 | 58% | 126.4 |
| 37 | New Jersey | 2.9 | 174.2 | 99.7 | 1.12 | 43% | 108.3 |
| 38 | Iowa | 2.8 | 166.7 | 89.8 | 1.15 | 46% | 104.9 |
| 39 | Nevada | 2.6 | 158.9 | 63.8 | 1.11 | 60% | 138.7 |
| 40 | Illinois | 2.6 | 156.9 | 59.4 | 0.85 | 62% | 208.2 |
| 41 | Connecticut | 2.6 | 153.6 | 73.1 | 0.88 | 52% | 164.6 |
| 42 | Wyoming | 2.3 | 137.8 | 109.1 | 1.00 | 21% | 127 |
| 43 | Utah | 2.0 | 119.8 | 106.7 | 1.03 | 11% | 127.1 |
| 44 | Maryland | 2.0 | 118.1 | 75.1 | 0.82 | 36% | 166.2 |
| 45 | Delaware | 1.9 | 116.1 | 65.9 | 0.84 | 43% | 108.2 |
| 46 | Rhode Island | 1.7 | 104.3 | 60.8 | 0.90 | 42% | 104.6 |
| 47 | Massachusetts | 1.7 | 102 | 76.1 | 0.84 | 25% | 259.4 |
| 48 | North Dakota | 1.7 | 99.1 | 84.2 | 0.92 | 15% | 208.6 |
| 49 | Arizona | 1.5 | 87.5 | 72 | 0.99 | 18% | 106.8 |
| 50 | South Dakota | 1.4 | 84.7 | 62.1 | 0.81 | 27% | 77 |
| United States | 10.2 | 611.3 | 126 | 1.52 | 79% | 342 |
How to read the table. Minutes are the average total time a customer was without power during the year (SAIDI). Day-to-day minutes exclude major events. Interruptions per customer is how many outages the average customer had (SAIFI). Share from major events is the portion of outage minutes that came from major events such as hurricanes and severe storms. Ranks run from 1st, the most outage time, to 50th, the least. Figures are customer-weighted state averages from utilities that report reliability data to EIA.
How TAKKEL helps utilities move these numbers
Reliability numbers improve when the people running restoration and maintenance can see what is happening and stop retyping paperwork. We build outage and reliability reporting with data and BI for utilities, automate timesheets, work orders and closeout with AI and automation for utilities, and fix the workflows behind them with business performance for utilities. See all of our energy and utilities work and how an engagement runs.
Frequently asked questions
Which state had the most power outage time in 2024?
South Carolina, at about 3,137 minutes per customer, or roughly 52 hours, according to utility reliability data reported to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. About 96 percent of that time came from major events, in a year when Hurricane Helene struck the Southeast.
Which states have the most reliable electricity?
In 2024, South Dakota, Arizona, North Dakota, Massachusetts and Rhode Island had the least outage time per customer, each under two hours including major events. Excluding major events, Illinois, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Nevada and Delaware had the lowest day-to-day outage time.
What is SAIDI?
SAIDI, the System Average Interruption Duration Index, is the average number of minutes of power interruption per customer over a year. Utilities report it with and without major events, such as hurricanes and severe storms, so storm impact can be separated from day-to-day reliability.
What is the difference between outages with and without major events?
Outage time with major events includes everything, including hurricanes, ice storms and other large events. Outage time without major events removes days that cross a statistical threshold, leaving routine interruptions from equipment, vegetation, animals and smaller storms. Comparing the two shows whether the problem is storms or day-to-day reliability.
How can a utility benchmark its own reliability?
Compare your SAIDI and SAIFI, with and without major events, against your state, your neighbors and the national figures, then break your own minutes down by cause, circuit and restoration step. TAKKEL builds this view from your outage data, starting with a working session, so you can see which fixes would move your numbers most.
Where does this outage data come from?
The figures come from the U.S. Energy Information Administration’s Electric Power Annual, Table 11.3, which compiles reliability metrics that utilities report on Form EIA-861. They are customer-weighted state averages for 2024 and 2023, and they cover utilities that report reliability data to EIA.
