DESCO vs DPDC vs NESCO vs BREB
If you're not sure which company supplies your meter, this guide compares DESCO, DPDC, NESCO, BPDB and BREB — coverage areas, rates, and which one is generally cheaper.
Bangladesh has six electricity distributors — and you don't get to pick
A practical breakdown of who supplies whom, what's actually different between them, and where the popular folklore is wrong.
The short version
- Tariff per unit is identical across all six distributors — BERC sets one national rate schedule
- Differences are in prepaid availability, service speed, and meter rent — not in the price of electricity
- You don't choose a distributor — your address determines who supplies you
The map
The six companies and their service areas
Bangladesh’s grid is split into six retail distribution territories, none of which overlap:
DESCO
1.4Mconnections
DPDC
1.5Mconnections
BREB
35Mconnections
- DESCO — North Dhaka, Tongi, Gazipur city
- DPDC — South Dhaka, Narayanganj
- NESCO — Rajshahi and Rangpur divisions (north-west)
- BPDB Retail — Chittagong, Sylhet, Khulna urban areas
- WZPDCL — Khulna division urban
- BREB (palli bidyut samitis) — all rural areas through 80+ samitis
The honest truth
Are the rates really identical?
Yes for the energy charge. BERC publishes a single national tariff order. The slabs and rates printed on a DESCO bill are identical to the slabs and rates on a DPDC, NESCO, or BREB bill. You can verify this by stacking actual bills from different companies side by side.
Prepaid availability
Smart prepaid meters: who has them
DESCO has the highest prepaid penetration — most new residential connections in North Dhaka are smart prepaid. DPDC is rapidly catching up in South Dhaka. NESCO and BPDB are still majority postpaid. BREB has a hybrid model with prepaid in newer connections only.
Customer service
What's actually different in practice
DESCO — most digitised
DPDC — close second
NESCO — mostly paper
BPDB Retail
BREB samitis
The big myth
Where you can't choose
You don’t pick your distribution company. Bangladesh assigns by service area — your address falls inside exactly one company’s territory, and that’s who supplies you. If you move, the new company will issue a new connection. The only choice you have, if you’re a high-load consumer at the boundary of LT and MT (~50 kW sanctioned), is to negotiate which tension level your service runs at.
Frequently asked questions
Read next
How to read your bill
Open a DESCO, DPDC, NESCO, or BREB bill and walk through every line with us — units, slabs, demand charge, VAT, and the rebates most people miss.
Why is my bill high?
Bills above ৳5,000 a month are usually one of nine things, not bad luck. We walk through each cause and how to confirm it on your own bill.
Prepaid meter guide
A practical guide to prepaid meters in Bangladesh — how recharge codes work, the 0.5% prepaid rebate, switching from postpaid, and what to do when the meter behaves strangely.
Consumer categories
The category on your meter (LT-A, LT-B, LT-C, LT-D, LT-E, MT, HT, EHT) decides what you pay. Here's exactly what each one means and who qualifies.