Memphis Light, Gas and Water Division (MLGW)

Provider briefing

How this utility’s billing works

Memphis Light, Gas and Water Division (MLGW) operates as a municipal department serving Memphis and Shelby County. Customers should use the provider’s current account-specific bill and official customer-service instructions as the final authority for deadlines, balances, and service requests.

The published water-rate framework is described as Uniform volumetric water pricing by 100 cubic feet (CCF, about 748 gallons), with separate W1 schedule for residential customers inside Memphis city limits and W2/W51 schedules for residential customers outside the city limits in Shelby County. MLGW's current residential-rate page lists the water schedules as effective January 4, 2022 and does not show increasing-block or seasonal water tiers. Its official 2026 utility comparison, based on rates effective January 2026, uses a 10-CCF Memphis residential water bill of $23.93; the January 2026 system rate-adjustment release says the final 4% installment was expected to add approximately $5 to the average combined residential utility bill.. Bills are generated monthly. mlgw describes a residential billing month as the period between regularly scheduled readings, normally not less than 25 days or more than 35 days, with twelve billing months each calendar year. the bill identifies the current and next meter-reading dates, due date, billing days, and whether the reading is estimated., and a typical residential cost reference is For 5,000-7,000 gallons, usage is approximately 6.68-9.36 CCF. A practical 2026 water-only estimate is roughly $16-$24 per month before Tennessee water tax and any City of Memphis/Shelby County sewer, solid-waste, stormwater, or fire-protection line items; MLGW's official 2026 comparison uses $23.93 for 10 CCF. The total MLGW bill can be much higher because MLGW bills electric and gas together and collects charges imposed by other governmental entities.. These descriptions are useful planning benchmarks; actual charges can change with meter size, usage, sewer averaging, local taxes, drought stages, or account-specific fees.

Wastewater and sewer calculation

MLGW places City of Memphis and Shelby County sewer, solid-waste, stormwater, and related charges on the combined utility bill, but its current customer page expressly says those services are provided by the City or County rather than MLGW. City sewer rules use a monthly volumetric charge based on measured water consumption, with a minimum monthly charge and a residential maximum; the City code also describes the charge per 1,000 gallons/100 cubic feet. The reviewed MLGW materials do not publish a universal winter-average formula for residential sewer and do not make MLGW the sewer-rate authority. Customers disputing sewer charges should contact Memphis sewer service at 901-576-6757; a water-leak adjustment separately considers the actual sewer-use impact so water that did not enter the sewer can be treated differently.

Meter and infrastructure notes

MLGW reads nearly one million meters each month, including water meters, on a recurring field schedule. Meter readers use state-of-the-art handheld computers; readings are downloaded to MLGW's mainframe at the end of each day, and an error safeguard flags readings likely to create an unrealistic bill for re-read or verification. The exact current and next reading date appears in the blue-shaded column on the bill. If a meter is inaccessible because of a locked gate, pet, overgrowth, weather, or other obstruction, MLGW may estimate the bill from historical usage and reconcile it automatically after the next actual read. MLGW also offers smart-meter-dependent PowerPay and usage notifications, but the public FAQ describes the ordinary residential process as scheduled physical meter reading rather than universal hourly AMI transmission.