What Are Alternative Retail Electric Suppliers (ARES)?

In Illinois, an Alternative Retail Electric Supplier (ARES) is a company licensed by the Illinois Commerce Commission (ICC) to sell electricity supply to residential and commercial customers in ComEd and Ameren Illinois service territories. ARES compete with the utilities' default supply rate — called the Price to Compare (PTC) — by offering fixed-rate, variable-rate, and renewable energy contracts. Illinois deregulated its retail electricity market in 1997, giving customers the right to choose their electricity supplier the same way they choose a long-distance phone carrier.

Important: your utility (ComEd or Ameren) still owns and maintains the poles, wires, and transformers regardless of which ARES you choose. Only the electricity commodity changes — outage response and delivery reliability are not affected. ComEd's 2026 PTC is approximately 9.5–11 cents per kWh; Ameren Illinois runs 10–12 cents per kWh. Fixed-rate ARES offering below these benchmarks save you money on the supply portion of your bill.

Illinois law provides strong consumer protections: a 10-business-day rescission right after enrollment, mandatory 30-day renewal notice, required written contract disclosure before enrollment, and strict prohibition on "slamming" (enrolling customers without consent). In 2025, the Illinois Attorney General reached an $8.4 million settlement with Clearview Energy for deceptive practices — verify any ARES is ICC-licensed at icc.illinois.gov before signing.

To switch: compare ARES offers at FindEnergyRates.com, enroll online with your ComEd or Ameren account number, and your utility is notified automatically. No service interruption occurs. Switching typically takes effect within one to two billing cycles.

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