Frankfurt's Grundversorgung Costs 41 Cents a kWh: Here's What Switching Actually Saves You
Mainova is Frankfurt's Grundversorger, the fallback basic supplier you land on automatically if you never actively choose a tariff, and its Mainova Strom Classic rate, effective January 1, 2026, runs a base fee of 91.49 euros a year plus 38.78 cents per kWh, working out to roughly 1,448.86 euros a year, about 41 cents per kWh, for a typical 3,500 kWh household. That's genuinely expensive compared to switching: market data puts the average saving from moving off Grundversorgung to a competitively priced tariff at around 487.33 euros a year for that same 3,500 kWh household, and the cheapest available new-customer rate in the city has run as low as roughly 27.47 cents per kWh, well under Mainova's Grundversorgung rate. Mainova does sell its own cheaper contract tariffs too, separate from Grundversorgung, including green options like Strom Direkt 24 ÖkoPremium running around 33.35 cents per kWh with a new-customer bonus. Every tariff breaks into two numbers worth comparing side by side: the Grundpreis (fixed fee regardless of usage) and the Arbeitspreis (per-kWh rate), and running your own postal code and consumption through a comparison tool is the only way to see where you actually land.
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The Official Rule
Frankfurt’s Grundversorger, the basic supplier every resident lands on automatically without a signed contract, is Mainova, majority-owned by Stadtwerke Frankfurt Holding. Its Grundversorgung tariff, Mainova Strom Classic, effective January 1, 2026, charges a base fee (Grundpreis) of 91.49 euros a year plus a per-kWh rate (Arbeitspreis) of 38.78 cents. For a typical household using 3,500 kWh annually, that works out to roughly 1,448.86 euros a year, close to 41 cents per kWh blended.
Every tariff in Germany, not just Mainova’s, splits into these same two components, and understanding both matters more than fixating on the headline cents-per-kWh number alone, per the Bundesnetzagentur’s own breakdown:
| Component | What it covers |
|---|---|
| Grundpreis | Fixed fee charged regardless of how much electricity you use |
| Arbeitspreis | Per-kWh rate applied to your actual consumption |
Grundversorgung is genuinely expensive relative to the wider market. Market data on Frankfurt’s electricity pricing puts the average household saving from switching off Grundversorgung to a competitively priced tariff at roughly 487.33 euros a year for that same 3,500 kWh household, and the cheapest available new-customer rate citywide has run as low as roughly 27.47 cents per kWh, well under Mainova’s blended Grundversorgung rate of about 41.40 cents.
Annual electricity cost comparison, 3,500 kWh household
It’s worth being clear that Mainova itself isn’t limited to its expensive Grundversorgung rate. The company separately sells contract tariffs at lower prices, including green-certified options like Strom Direkt 24 ÖkoPremium, which has run around 33.35 cents per kWh with a new-customer bonus applied, still meaningfully cheaper than Grundversorgung, without leaving Mainova as a provider at all if you’d rather not switch companies.
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Before You Trust the Cheapest Number
A tariff’s headline rate isn’t the whole story. Check what any advertised Preisgarantie (price guarantee) actually locks in, some cover only the Arbeitspreis, leaving network fees and new levies free to rise, while others lock the full price including taxes. Be wary of Vorkasse (prepayment) tariffs, which shift more risk onto you if a provider runs into financial trouble. And treat a large first-year discount with some skepticism, since it’s designed to make the sticker price look better than the renewal rate you’ll actually pay in year two.
Run your own postal code and consumption through Check24’s electricity comparison with any bonus filter turned off, that’s the only way to see a number that reflects your actual household rather than a citywide average.
What You’ll Need
- Your postal code and an estimate of annual consumption, from a previous bill if you have one.
- The Grundpreis and Arbeitspreis for any tariff you’re comparing, not just the blended cents-per-kWh headline figure.
- Clarity on what any Preisgarantie actually locks in before assuming it protects your full bill.
- Awareness of whether a tariff requires Vorkasse, and a preference to avoid it if possible.
Step by Step
- Find your current status: if you never signed a contract, you're likely on Mainova's Grundversorgung at the higher rate.
- Compare tariffs using your real postal code and consumption, not a generic average, on a comparison tool with bonus filters switched off.
- Check both the Grundpreis and Arbeitspreis for any tariff you're considering, not just the advertised cents-per-kWh number.
- Read what the Preisgarantie actually covers before assuming your whole bill is protected from increases.
- Avoid Vorkasse tariffs where a cheaper alternative without prepayment exists.
- Consider Mainova's own non-Grundversorgung tariffs too, like Strom Direkt 24 ÖkoPremium, if you'd rather not switch providers entirely.
Compliance Note
This page explains the general framework for comparing electricity tariffs in Frankfurt. It is not financial advice. Prices, bonuses, and market conditions change frequently; confirm current rates directly with Mainova or an independent comparison tool before making a decision. This page contains an affiliate link; SettledIn may earn a commission if you sign up through it, at no extra cost to you.
FAQ & Common Pitfalls
Do I have to switch away from Mainova's Grundversorgung?
No, Grundversorgung is a fully legal, always-available fallback, and nobody is forced off it. The tradeoff is cost: at 91.49 euros a year base fee plus 38.78 cents per kWh as of January 1, 2026, Mainova Strom Classic runs meaningfully higher than competitively priced tariffs, market data puts the average household saving from switching at around 487.33 euros a year for 3,500 kWh of annual consumption. Staying on Grundversorgung is a legitimate choice if you value not dealing with contracts at all, it just tends to cost more.
What's the actual difference between Grundpreis and Arbeitspreis?
The Grundpreis is a fixed monthly or annual fee you pay regardless of how much electricity you actually use, think of it as covering the cost of being connected at all. The Arbeitspreis is the per-kWh rate applied to your actual consumption. A tariff with a low Arbeitspreis but a high Grundpreis can end up costing more than one with the reverse for a low-usage household, and vice versa for a high-usage one, which is why comparing only the headline cents-per-kWh figure without checking the Grundpreis can be misleading.
Does Mainova offer anything cheaper than its own Grundversorgung rate?
Yes. Grundversorgung (Mainova Strom Classic) is specifically the fallback rate, Mainova separately sells contract tariffs at lower prices, including green-certified options like Strom Direkt 24 ÖkoPremium, which has run around 33.35 cents per kWh with a new-customer bonus applied. These require actively signing a contract rather than defaulting into Grundversorgung, so they're worth checking directly on Mainova's own tariff pages even before comparing against other providers entirely.
Is the cheapest tariff on a comparison site always the right choice?
Not automatically. The cheapest listed rate, which has run as low as roughly 27.47 cents per kWh citywide, sometimes reflects a new-customer bonus that inflates the apparent savings for year one but disappears at renewal, or a Vorkasse (prepayment) structure that carries more risk if the provider runs into financial trouble. Check what a tariff's price guarantee actually covers, whether it's the full price or just part of it, before assuming the top result on any comparison list is the best long-term deal.
How much could I realistically save by switching?
For a household using around 3,500 kWh a year, market data puts the average saving from moving off Mainova's Grundversorgung to a competitively priced tariff at roughly 487.33 euros annually. Your own number depends entirely on your actual consumption and which tariff you land on, running your specific postal code and usage through a comparison tool is the only way to get a figure that actually applies to you rather than a citywide average.
I just moved and haven't picked a tariff yet. What happens by default?
If you use electricity at your new address without having actively signed a contract with any provider, Grundversorgung with Mainova kicks in automatically, this is the legal fallback mechanism described in more detail on our page about registering electricity for the first time. It's not a penalty rate exactly, but it is priced higher than what you'd typically get by actively comparing and choosing a tariff, so it's worth treating tariff selection as a near-term task rather than something to defer indefinitely.