Total metered electricity consumption was 32,986 GWh (gigawatt hours) in 2025, an increase of 3.4% compared with 2024 (See Table 1.1).
Commercial and industrial customers were responsible for 72% of total metered electricity consumption, while residential customers consumed 28% (See Table 1.1).
The number of business meters increased from 302,873 in 2024 to 305,597 in 2025. Taking a longer view 28,786 non-residential meters have been added since 2016 (See Table 3.4).
The number of residential meters rose by 11% between 2016 and 2025. The highest increases were in Dublin County, Kildare, and Meath, with all three up by 21% (See Table 2.8).
Donegal had the lowest median residential electricity consumption in 2025 at 2,630 kilowatt hours (kWh), while Kildare had the highest median figure at 3,846 kWh (See Table 2.5).
Around 10% of residential customers consumed less than 1,000 kWh in 2025, less than the median consumption of 3,228 kWh (See Tables 2.5 and 2.10).
Metered electricity consumption by stand-alone Electric Vehicles (EV) charge points rose by 42% from 33 GWh in 2024 to 47 GWh in 2025 (See Table 4.1).
This year’s release adopts a revised layout compared with prior editions. The contents are now organised into separate chapters: Residential, Non-Residential and Other Indicators. As in previous years, Data Centres Metered Electricity Consumption is released as a standalone volume.
The customer type is defined by the DUoS group (Distribution Use of System) also referred to as tariff group in the release. The urban and rural residential DUoS groups include some small non-residential consumption such as newsagents and farms. Large Energy Users are a combination of DUoS groups DG8, DG9, DG10 and TCON. Please see Background Notes for more details.
The median, or midpoint, electricity consumption represents the usage of a typical customer within that category.
The allocation of customers to counties was mainly done using the customer file provided by ESB Networks. In some cases, where detailed information was not available, an estimate was made based on the placename.
| X-axis label | Urban Residential | Rural Residential | Large Energy Users | Other Non-Residential |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 5486 | 2911 | 4090 | 12869 |
| 2017 | 5489 | 2925 | 4337 | 12975 |
| 2018 | 5644 | 3027 | 4762 | 13297 |
| 2019 | 5416 | 2923 | 5113 | 13053 |
| 2020 | 6011 | 3220 | 5589 | 12236 |
| 2021 | 6011 | 3294 | 6546 | 12656 |
| 2022 | 5668 | 3095 | 7831 | 13229 |
| 2023 | 5573 | 3006 | 9102 | 12900 |
| 2024 | 5849 | 3101 | 9897 | 13055 |
| 2025 | 5954 | 3121 | 10812 | 13099 |
Large Energy Users category had the largest single share of Ireland’s total metered electricity consumption in 2025 at 33%. Their overall consumption surpassed 10 terawatt hours in 2025 at 10,812 GWh, representing 9.2% growth from 2024.
The overall metered electricity consumption is nearly evenly distributed by quarter with higher share in winter seasons (26%) and lowest (23%) in the third quarter (July to September).
The next chapter presents a residential sector breakdown including number of meters, consumption and median values, with aggregation provided by county, quarter, and year.
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Statistician's Comment
The Central Statistics Office (CSO) has today (07 July 2026) published Metered Electricity Consumption 2025.
Commenting on the release Dr Grzegorz Głaczyński, Statistician in the Climate and Energy Division, said: “During 2025, the total metered electricity consumption across the network expanded by 3.4% compared with 2024, reaching an aggregate of 32,986 GWh. The growth was observed in most sectors, with the highest rise in Large Energy Users of 9.2%, and a 1.3% decline in Low Voltage Business (Non-Maximum Demand), when compared with 2024 (See Table 1.1).
Residential Sector Analysis
Domestic energy use was split between urban and rural settings, which represented 18% and 9% of the national total, respectively. Urban residential demand climbed by 1.8%, whilst rural household consumption saw a modest growth of 0.6% from 2024 to 2025 (See Table 1.1).
Household electricity demand again exhibited distinct seasonal fluctuations through 2025. Quarter 1 (Q1) 2025, January to March, was the peak period and required the highest volume, accounting for 31% of annual residential consumption. During these months, the quarterly median usage peaked at 907 kWh. On the other hand, Q3 (July to September), was the low period and registered the lowest demand at 21% of the residential annual total, with a corresponding median low of 625 kWh.
Overall, the national median consumption for a residential customer in 2025 stood at 3,228 kWh, marking a 0.6% drop from 2024 (See Tables 2.1 and 2.4). Geographically, the median household electricity usage remained close to previous year’s figures, with a slight downward trend in 2025 when compared with 2024. Kildare recorded the highest median figure at 3,846 kWh. The lowest median household consumption was in Donegal (2,630 kWh), Leitrim (2,677 kWh), and Mayo (2,831 kWh) (See Table 2.5).
Looking at total consumption shares, the Dublin Postal Districts led with 19%, followed by Cork (12%), Galway (6%), and Kildare (5%). Within the Dublin Postal Districts, Dublin 15 (10%) and Dublin 24 (9%) consumed the most (See Tables 2.2 and 2.3).
Non-Residential Sector Analysis
Commercial and industrial customers remained the primary drivers of power demand, making up the largest block of the market at 72% of total metered electricity consumption. The non-residential sector grew by 4% from 22,952 GWh in 2024 to 23,911 GWh in 2025 (See Table 1.1).
The highest consumption was in Dublin, with 4,233 GWh in 2025, rising by 2% when compared with 2024. When examining consumption within the Dublin Postal Districts, the highest concentrations of electricity use were localised in Dublin 15 and Dublin 2, which accounted for 13% and 12% of the district’s non-residential total respectively (See Tables 3.2 and 3.3).
Large Energy Users which includes large data centres and other energy intensive industrial operations, saw a substantial 9% increase in demand between 2024 and 2025. They consumed one third of the country’s total metered electricity in 2025. For exceptionally large consumers (DG10, TCON), daily peak demand consistently appeared in the afternoon between 14:00 and 16:00 (See Table 1.1 and Figure 3.2).
Metered Network Expansion
The physical infrastructure supporting the network continued to grow. Business meters increased from 302,873 in 2024 to 305,597 in 2025. Taking a longer view since 2016, the grid added 28,786 non-residential meters and 231,855 residential connections (See Tables 2.8 and 3.4).
System Generation
While high-volume industrial demand peaked in mid-afternoon, the peak window for overall Metered Electricity Generation across the grid typically occurs later, concentrating around 17:00 to 19:00.”