The cost to run power to land in Arizona depends on the utility, the distance to its nearest line, and what you are building. There is no single price. Utilities such as APS and TEP file line extension policies approved by the Arizona Corporation Commission, SRP publishes its own rules, and each gives a limited allowance and charges for the rest. The only reliable number is a written estimate from the utility that serves the parcel.
Who serves your land
Power in Arizona comes from investor-owned utilities, a public power district and member-owned cooperatives. Their tariffs differ, so the first step is to find out which one serves the parcel. The ones covered here:
- APS, an investor-owned utility.
- SRP, the Salt River Project, a public power district.
- TEP and UNS Electric (UniSource), whose tariffs follow a similar structure.
- Electric cooperatives, such as Sulphur Springs Valley Electric Cooperative.
A parcel's service area is a fact to confirm, not assume. Two parcels on the same road can be served by different utilities.
How APS handles a single home
APS publishes its rules in Service Schedule 3, "Conditions Governing Extensions of Electric Distribution Lines and Services." The version reviewed for this article (Revision 15) took effect on December 1, 2021. For a permanent single-family residence, APS installs facilities on a "free footage" basis: up to 750 feet per applicant, or $10,000, or a total cost under $10,000 per applicant. Any construction cost above $10,000 is paid by the applicant as a non-refundable contribution in aid of construction. The cost estimate excludes one single-phase transformer. The site plan must be approved and recorded in the county first. APS says the 750-foot and $10,000 figures are reviewed from time to time with the Commission, so check the current numbers.
For anything beyond a home, the tariff changes. In a residential subdivision of four or more homes, the developer pays project costs in advance. Part of that is a refundable advance, returned at a per-lot allowance of $3,500 for each permanently connected customer over five years. Anything left unrefunded after five years becomes non-refundable. In a "lot sale" development, where lots are sold for others to build on, the applicant pays the total estimated cost as a non-refundable contribution.
How TEP and UNS Electric handle it
TEP's Rules and Regulations (Section 7, effective January 1, 2021) give a line extension allowance of 500 feet at the company's expense for an overhead extension to an individual applicant, measured along the shortest feasible route and including the service drop. Beyond that, the applicant pays a non-interest-bearing refundable cash deposit, calculated at per-foot rates in TEP's Statement of Charges. Deposit refunds are tied to later customers connecting to the same line within 500 feet. TEP will prepare a preliminary design and rough estimate without charge. A detailed plan or estimate requires a deposit.
The UNS Electric rules reviewed for this article (effective August 22, 2016) use a 550-foot allowance and a similar refundable-deposit structure. Check for a newer version before relying on it.
SRP and cooperatives
SRP's Rules and Regulations (last revised November 3, 2025) say SRP may require a contribution in aid of construction when it installs facilities to serve a customer, for platted residential developments of four or more contiguous lots of one acre or less, and for relocations at a customer's request. A line or service lateral extension over 1,000 feet is individually evaluated and may require a contribution. For underground work, SRP may require the customer to pay for all trenching, backfill, boring and conduit. These payments are generally non-refundable unless the written agreement says a portion is refundable.
Cooperatives set their own terms. Sulphur Springs Valley Electric Cooperative's residential process starts with a line extension packet and an initial design fee, which is $0 or $150 for up to 400 feet, plus $0.20 per foot beyond 400 feet. A field technician then prepares an estimate that covers permitting, easement acquisition and materials. You pay that invoice as aid-to-construction, and you may get a second invoice after construction for unforeseen costs. The design fee deposit is non-refundable.
What drives the cost
APS states that construction costs depend on the applicant's location, scope of project, load size and load characteristics, and include project management, engineering, design, surveys, permits and inspection. The tariffs above point to the same set of factors:
- Distance from the nearest line with spare capacity. Every allowance above is measured in hundreds of feet, and the applicant pays beyond it.
- Overhead versus underground. APS will install underground only if the applicant signs a trench agreement and provides the earthwork, or pays APS for it as a non-refundable contribution. SRP likewise may require the customer to pay for trenching, backfill, boring and conduit.
- Easements. If the line crosses someone else's land, a recorded easement is needed. See our guide to legal access to landlocked land in Arizona.
- Load. A house is a different load from a shop, a barn or a commercial site. TEP's tariff prices three-phase extensions separately from single-phase.
- Permits and terrain. Some jobs need permits or leases from governments for work on public land, and APS prices those as project-specific estimates rather than from its standard schedule.
This article gives no blanket dollar range, because the tariffs price by distance and scope rather than by parcel. Treat any dollar figure that is not tied to a named utility, a distance and a date as a guess.
Steps before you buy or list
Ask the serving utility for a preliminary design and a rough estimate. TEP's rules say it prepares those without charge. If you want detailed plans, specifications or cost estimates, TEP requires a deposit equal to the estimated cost of preparing them. TEP says it will make them available within 90 days of the deposit, or within 45 days for subdivision developers who supply approved plats. If you then authorize construction, the deposit is credited to the cost of construction. Otherwise it is non-refundable.
Then ask three questions in writing. Where is the nearest energized line with the right voltage and capacity? What is the allowance, and what happens beyond it? Is any part of what I pay refundable, and for how long? APS and TEP answer these in their tariffs. A cooperative answers them in its service conditions, which are on file with the Commission.
Solar and off-grid as an alternative
When the utility's estimate is high, some owners compare it to generating power on site. That decision depends on the load and on a written quote for the system. Get both numbers in writing before choosing, and ask the county what it requires for a building permit on a parcel without grid service.
What it does to lot value
A buyer will subtract the connection cost from what they will pay. A parcel next to an energized line with a recorded easement is simpler to underwrite than one a half mile from the nearest pole. If you are selling, get an estimate from the serving utility before you list. It converts a vague worry into a number. Our raw land due diligence checklist puts utilities next to access, water and zoning for that reason.
Tariffs and allowances change by Commission order. The utility and an Arizona attorney or engineer have the final word on a specific parcel.
Selling land that needs this work
Red Dirt Property buys and entitles land across all 15 Arizona counties. It underwrites parcels against its own statewide parcel data and buys as-is, then handles entitlement after closing, with no agent commission on its purchases. If power is the open question on your land, start at selling land to a developer.