What a Providence home costs each year
Property tax, water, trash and energy from public rates. Look up your address to make it yours, and see how to pay less.
Suggestions as you type come from Google; the lookup uses free public map services to find who serves it. Not stored unless you save your house.
Starts at the typical market value, $362,200; your assessed value is often lower. Typical use.
- Property tax$3,042
0.840% of $362,200
- Electricity and gas$3,945
500 kWh a month $1,974 · 70.4167 therms $1,971
- Water and sewer$1,427
8.3333 units (CCF) a month on Providence Water: water $52, sewer $67 a month
- Trash$0
City trash and recycling carts, $0 a month
- Home insurance$2,074
Typical premium $2,074
A Providence house at the typical market value ($362,200) costs about $10,500 a year: $3,040 property tax and charges, $1,430 water and sewer, $0 trash, $3,940 electricity and gas, $2,070 home insurance. Estimated from public rates, not anyone's actual bill.
Rates checked Oct 22, 2026. Insurance: what you enter, or a typical premium until you do. Sources are listed at the bottom.
Ways to pay less
Nothing here applies to every house automatically. These are worth checking:
Owner-occupied rate
City of Providence
How: Eligible Class 1A properties pay $8.40 per $1,000 of assessed value instead of the non-owner-occupied $14.60; apply with the city assessor by March 15.
Seniors 65+: tax exemption
City of Providence
How: $89,286 of value off the assessed value, with tax savings of no more than $750.00 per applicant.
Veterans: tax exemption
City of Providence
How: $36,429 of value, with tax savings of no more than $306.00 per applicant.
Free bulky waste collection
City of Providence
How: Schedule a free bulky waste collection with Waste Management at (800) 972-4545.
Money dates
- Mar 15Last day to file the homestead exemption or owner-occupied rate application with the city assessor.
Who serves this house
- Water
- Providence Water
- Providence Water residential rate, billed per HCF (hundred cubic feet).
- Property tax
- 0.84% of value
- 2026-27 (FY2027), City of Providence
- Garbage
- Waste Management (collection day lookup on the City's Department of Public Works page)
- Weekly trash and recycling collection; carts go to the curb the night before or by 5:30 a.m.
- Sewer
- Narragansett Bay Commission
- Residential customer charge per dwelling unit per year plus a charge per HCF of water used.
- Electricity
- Rhode Island Energy (The Narragansett Electric Company)
- Narragansett Electric Co. is listed first among principal taxpayers in the city's 2019 annual financial report.
- Gas
- Rhode Island Energy
- The PUC notice uses 845 therms a year for a typical residential heating customer.
Other RI cities
Woonsocket home costsNewport home costsCranston home costsWarwick home costs
How these numbers are made
- Property tax uses the FY2027 Class 1A owner-occupied rate of $8.40 per $1,000 of assessed value ($14.60 for non-owner-occupied); the calculator assumes the owner-occupied rate, which needs a homestead application.
- Starting value is the Census ACS median market value; assessed values may differ, so use the figure on your tax bill.
- Water adds the $0.21842 per HCF state surcharge to $3.993 per HCF, and $12.42 service charge plus $4.14 fire protection charge (City of Providence residents) monthly. Typical use is 100 HCF per year from Providence Water.
- Sewer is the Narragansett Bay Commission customer charge of $309.87 a year divided by 12, plus $4.972 per HCF of water used.
- Trash: the city Public Works page lists no fee, so it is counted as $0. Electric and gas are the same Rhode Island Energy figures used for Woonsocket (statewide rates; October 2026 winter supply blended with summer).
- Water rates come from the Providence Water rates page as archived by the Wayback Machine; its date is not shown, so check against your bill.
- Modelling: gas utility assumed to be Rhode Island Energy for Providence; no-separate-trash-fee inferred from absence of a fee on city pages.
- Nothing here is legal, tax or insurance advice.
- Providence FY27 adopted ordinance book
- NBC FY2027 tariffs
- Providence Water current rates (archived)
- Providence DPW
- Census Reporter B25077
- Providence 2019 CAFR
- Source
- Source
- RI PUC / utility document
- RI PUC / utility document
- RI PUC / utility document
- Source
- RI PUC / utility document
- Rhode Island Energy news release
How Providence compares
A typical Providence house against the 1000 cities we cover nationwide, using the same default numbers as the total above.
| Per year | Providence | Median | Where it falls |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property tax rate | 0.84% | 1.36% | lower than 915 of the other 982 cities we cover nationwide |
| Water | $620 | $681 | lower than 565 of the other 999 cities we cover nationwide |
| Sewer and utility-bill fees | $807 | $692 | higher than 556 of the other 882 cities we cover nationwide |
| Trash | $0 | $336 | lower than 770 of the other 819 cities we cover nationwide |
| Electricity and gas | $3,945 | $2,439 | higher than 964 of the other 999 cities we cover nationwide |
| Home insurance | $2,074 | $1,492 | higher than 646 of the other 766 cities we cover nationwide |
| Total | $10,488 | $10,827 | lower than 535 of the other 999 cities we cover nationwide |
Cities bill differently (some put trash on the tax bill, some cover more services), so a higher number isn't necessarily worse. The property tax rate is compared instead of dollars because house values differ.
Questions to ask your candidates
Each one starts from a number above. Any candidate can answer them.
1. Property tax rate
The fact: Providence's property tax rate is 0.84%, lower than 915 of the other 982 cities we cover nationwide. The rate adds up every agency on the bill, not only the city.
Ask: "Property tax in Providence is 0.84%, lower than 915 of the other 982 cities we cover nationwide. What should that money pay for first, and would you change anything about how it is set?"
2. Trash
The fact: Trash pickup here costs about $0 a year for the standard cart, lower than 770 of the other 819 cities we cover nationwide. Where trash is billed through the tax bill or a separate hauler, it is not counted here.
Ask: "Trash pickup here costs about $0 a year for the standard cart, lower than 770 of the other 819 cities we cover nationwide. What drives that cost, and would you change anything about the service or the price?"
3. Electricity and gas
The fact: Electricity and gas for a typical house here cost about $3,945 a year, higher than 964 of the other 999 cities we cover nationwide. Rates are set mostly by the utility and the state.
Ask: "Electricity and gas here cost about $3,945 a year for a typical house, higher than 964 of the other 999 cities we cover nationwide. Which parts of that can the city influence, and what would you do about them?"
Common questions about Providence house costs
What is the property tax rate in Providence?
About 0.84% of the value before exemptions a year (2026-27 (FY2027), City of Providence), plus flat charges on the same bill.
How much is property tax on a $500,000 house in Providence?
About $4,200 a year on $500,000 of the value before exemptions.
How much is the water bill in Providence?
About $119 a month for water and sewer at typical use (8.3333 units, or 6,233 gallons a month) on Providence Water.
How much does trash pickup cost in Providence?
$0 a month for a house.
Can seniors lower their property tax or bills in Providence?
Yes. Seniors 65+: tax exemption: City of Providence
How much does a house in Providence cost to run each year?
A Providence house at the typical market value ($362,200) costs about $10,500 a year: $3,040 property tax and charges, $1,430 water and sewer, $0 trash, $3,940 electricity and gas, $2,070 home insurance. Estimated from public rates, not anyone's actual bill.