Electricity in Ecuador: Same as the US?

Electricity in Ecuador is exactly the same as electricity in the United States. They use 2 and 3-prong plugs with the same current so you won’t need to bring any adapters. However, many of the older houses often have 2-prong plugs so you might want to bring some 3-to-2 prong adapters.

The current also fluctuates on occasion and we’ve heard from other people that some of their devices have been fried so you may want to bring a surge protector. You can buy them in Ecuador, but they are more expensive and may not be the same quality that you can get back home.

When we lived in a 3 bedroom, 2 story house in Cuenca, our electric bill ran $60 to $80 per month. In Olón, it runs $60 to $130 per month depending on the time of year. During the hot season, we run the air conditioner more so the bill is higher than the cool, cloudy season.

The electric company for the coastal region is CNE and for Cuenca it’s CentroSur. These are publicly owned utilities. As of 2019, 65% of Ecuador’s electricity is generated from renewable sources, predominantly hydro.

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JP Stonestreet

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Hola todos! Welcome to my author bio page! Let's see. Where to begin... I grew up in the country on a lake outside a small Kansas farm town. As soon as I could, I got the hell outta there! Since then, I've lived and/or worked in Kansas City, Washington D.C., Denver, San Francisco, and Ecuador. I started and sold a dotcom, wrote a book about it, started a YouTube channel, and now I write a lot. Amelia and I have embraced the Unconventional Life and we want to help you do it, too!