Massachusetts energy profile

Manufacturing energy costs in Massachusetts

Massachusetts plants pay 19.94 cents per kWh for industrial power as of May 2026, which puts the state 128.9% over the national average and 47 of 51 in the country, counting from the cheapest.

Current prices in Massachusetts

  • Industrial electricity: 19.94 cents per kWh (May 2026, EIA).
  • Commercial electricity, the rate a warehouse or distribution center in Massachusetts typically pays: 24.07 cents per kWh.
  • Industrial natural gas: 17.2 per Mcf (May 2026), 302.8% above the national average.
  • Just below Massachusetts on the price ladder: District of Columbia at 14.6, Connecticut at 16.76, New Hampshire at 17.04 cents. Just above: California at 20.2, Rhode Island at 22.18, Alaska at 31.36 cents.

What the rate does to operating cost

  • A 10 kW machine running a 4,000 hour year costs about 7,976 in electricity at Massachusetts rates versus 3,484 at the national average; at 50 kW the gap is 39,880 versus 17,420, and at 200 kW it is 159,520 versus 69,680.
  • Power costs here punish waste. In Massachusetts, load-shifting, waste heat recovery, and idle-time elimination pay back quicker than the national math suggests, and quotes for energy-heavy work should use the local rate, not a national default.

What factory labor pays in Massachusetts

  • Industrial production managers: $71.18/hr median in Massachusetts versus $60.61 nationally (OEWS 2025).
  • Industrial engineers: $52.61/hr median in Massachusetts versus $49.25 nationally (OEWS 2025).
  • Production supervisors: $38.42/hr median in Massachusetts versus $35.79 nationally (OEWS 2025).
  • Industrial machinery mechanics: $35.02/hr median in Massachusetts versus $31.02 nationally (OEWS 2025).
  • Machinists: $32.34/hr median in Massachusetts versus $28.24 nationally (OEWS 2025).
  • Tool and die makers: $32.32/hr median in Massachusetts versus $30.79 nationally (OEWS 2025).
  • Massachusetts employs about 230,000 manufacturing workers as of Jun 2026 (BLS).

Manufacturing base in Massachusetts

  • Massachusetts has 5,920 manufacturing establishments employing about 234,190 workers (Census County Business Patterns, 2023).
  • Largest sectors by establishment count: fabricated metal products (1,101), food manufacturing (721), computer and electronic products (563), printing and related support (443), machinery manufacturing (426).

Sources and update cadence

  • Prices come from the U.S. Energy Information Administration and refresh automatically when the agency publishes; this page also archives each month's Massachusetts observation so the local price history deepens over time.

Last reviewed 2026-05-12.