How to Get a Prepaid Meter in Nigeria: 2026 Cost and Steps

To get a prepaid meter in Nigeria, check whether you qualify for a free DISREP meter, then, if not, apply for a MAP meter on your DisCo's portal and pay the invoice. At AEDC and Eko in September 2026, single-phase costs about ₦95,000 to ₦133,000, installation is due within 10 working days, and the cost comes back as electricity units.

I checked this on Sunday, 27 September 2026, on three websites: NERC's metering FAQ, Abuja Electricity's MAP price list and Eko DisCo's "Order A Meter" page. If you're still getting a NEPA bill that has nothing to do with what you used, here is the longer version, with the catches.

4.85 million customers still have no meter

NERC's latest metering report, covered by Leadership and ThisDay in September 2026, shows the national metering rate at 61.51% at the end of June 2026. In May it was 60.22%.

June was a busy month.

DisCos installed 203,521 meters that month, almost double the 104,585 they managed in May, and out of 12,589,486 active customers, 7,743,839 now have a meter. Do the subtraction and you get about 4.85 million households and shops still paying on estimates, which is a lot of people arguing with a bill they can't check.

Who is still unmetered

Where you live matters. Eko DisCo leads at 88.70%, with Ikeja Electric at 87.91% and Abuja at 81.38%, while several northern DisCos trail far behind. At the bottom, ThisDay lists Jos at 35.42%, Yola at 36.20% and Kaduna at 39.83%. So if you're in Lekki, your unmetered neighbour is rare. In Jos, you are the majority.

What estimated billing costs you

An unmetered customer can't be billed more than the energy cap NERC sets for their feeder. That rule comes from Order NERC/307/2022, and NERC's billing FAQ says plainly that it doesn't allow billing above the cap. The cap is worked out from what the whole feeder consumed the month before, not from what you personally used.

The spread is wide.

Blueprint reported AEDC's September 2026 caps: one Asokoro feeder at 1,889kWh, several feeders in Jabi, Jiwa, Mararaba and Lafia at 61kWh. If you ran one fan and a phone charger all month while the flat next door ran two ACs and a freezer, you're both still paying for your feeder's average.

That's the whole argument for a meter.

Paid MAP meter or free DISREP meter

There are two doors. One costs money and moves faster, and the other is free but only opens for some people, on some feeders, when the DisCo gets round to them.

Meter Asset Provider (MAP) scheme

Under MAP, an accredited third-party vendor supplies and installs the meter, and your DisCo manages the process. You pay the full price upfront. NERC says the cost is then repaid to you over a period the Commission approves, and AEDC's MAP page puts that at 36 months, paid back as electricity units rather than cash.

So the meter isn't free, and it isn't quite a purchase either. Think of it as a loan you give the power sector, repaid in kilowatt-hours.

Free DISREP meters

The free option right now is DISREP, the Distribution Sector Recovery Programme. Voice of Nigeria reported in February 2026, from a Bureau of Public Enterprises briefing, that it's funded through a $500 million World Bank facility, with $250 million set aside to buy 3.2 million smart meters, and that the meters and installation are completely free. By that briefing, over 182,000 had gone in.

There's a catch on eligibility. Leadership's report on the Jos DisCo roll-out says DISREP targets existing unmetered customers and faulty meters on Band A feeders, and excludes new connections. Eko DisCo has an eligibility checker for its DISREP meters on its metering page.

NERC's own FAQ also mentions the National Mass Metering Programme and says roll-outs like it take several years, depending on each DisCo's metering gap. It tells customers to ask their DisCo about timelines for their area. I couldn't find any official page saying a national free roll-out is open to everyone today, so don't count on one.

Which one to pick

Check DISREP eligibility first.

It costs nothing to check and could save you six figures. If you're not on a Band A feeder, or your DisCo tells you there's no date for your area, MAP is the realistic route. Look at your last few estimated bills, and if they're painful, a meter you pay ₦100,000-plus for, with the money returned as units over three years, starts to make sense quickly.

Prepaid meter price in Nigeria in 2026: AEDC and Eko lists

Meter prices aren't fixed nationally any more. NERC deregulated MAP meter prices in 2024, and when DisCos raised prices that November, Leadership reported that vendors would now bid competitively every two months. So each DisCo publishes its own vendor list, and the numbers move.

Here are the two official price lists I could read on 27 September 2026 (Eko quotes prices without VAT and Abuja includes it, so they're not quite like-for-like):

Single-phase prepaid meter price

Most flats and small homes use single-phase.

On AEDC's September 2026 list, which has 32 vendors, single-phase runs from about ₦94,626 up to ₦132,500. Eko's nine vendors sit between about ₦110,000 and ₦120,000 before VAT.

Three-phase prepaid meter price

Three-phase meters are for bigger loads: larger houses, shops with heavy equipment, properties the DisCo already supplies on three phases. Expect a big jump in price: AEDC's list runs from ₦164,690 up to about ₦232,200, and Eko's runs from ₦174,790.70 to ₦205,000 plus VAT. If you're not sure which one you need, ask the DisCo before you pay, because buying the wrong type and then waiting for a swap is an expensive way to learn the difference.

Why prices differ by DisCo

Each DisCo accredits its own set of vendors, and vendors quote different prices for different meter technologies. AEDC's list alone covers PLC, cellular, RF, GSM/GPRS, LoRa and M-Bus meters. Add the two-monthly bidding and it makes no sense to quote one "Nigerian meter price", so open your own DisCo's list on the day you apply and ignore any figure you saw in a forwarded broadcast message.

Including this one, in a few months.

How to get a prepaid meter in Nigeria: MAP meter application steps

The exact screens differ, but the flow is broadly the same everywhere. For an EKEDC prepaid meter online application, Eko DisCo sends you to its CAIMS portal (caims.ekedp.com). AEDC has a MAP application page on abujaelectricity.com. Ikeja Electric's site wouldn't load for me on 27 September 2026, so check ikejaelectric.com again or ask customer care for its MAP route.

What you need before you start

Portals ask for KYC details, so gather them before you start, not halfway through a form on bad network. I'd have these on my phone:

• Your account number, or a photo of your latest bill so you can copy it from there
• A valid ID
• A working email address you actually check (Eko sends your installation form to the email you give during KYC)

Filling the form and KYC

Pick your vendor and meter type from the DisCo's list, then fill in your details. Type your address exactly as it appears on your bill, including the odd abbreviation your DisCo uses, because a different spelling of the street name is how a meter ends up tied to the wrong account.

Paying the invoice

You'll get an invoice. Pay only through the payment option the portal itself gives you, never into a personal account someone sends by text. Save the receipt, the invoice and a screenshot of the payment confirmation somewhere other than your phone's gallery, which has a way of disappearing when you change phones. That receipt is your evidence for the 10-day rule and for the refund later.

Installation day

Someone needs to be at the property.

Once the meter is in, check that the installer has recorded the meter correctly, and watch your inbox for the installation form. Take a photo of the meter label before the installer leaves.

NERC's 10-working-day rule and your prepaid meter refund

NERC's metering FAQ is clear: after you pay under MAP, you should be metered within 10 working days. AEDC's own MAP FAQ says the vendor must install within 10 days of payment.

If you are not metered in time

Start with your DisCo's customer care and give them your payment reference. If nothing happens, NERC tells customers to email complaints@nerc.gov.ng with proof of payment. You can also take your complaint to the NERC Forum Office covering your area, which NERC points to in its billing FAQ. Keep every email and ticket number.

Forum offices want a paper trail.

How the MAP refund comes back as token credit

NERC says everyone who paid for a meter under MAP is refunded through energy credits, with refunds effective from 1 April 2023. In practice that means you're not getting a bank transfer. Instead, part of each vend comes with extra units until the meter cost is repaid, over 36 months in AEDC's case.

Check your vend receipts for the refund entry. AEDC's MAP FAQ page also links to a separate MAP refund portal at maprefund.abujaelectricity.com. If a few months pass with no sign of the refund, raise it with the DisCo with your original meter receipt in hand.

After installation: meter number, KCT, first token and band

Finding your meter number

Your meter number is printed on the meter's label. That's why I told you to photograph it on installation day. It should also appear on your installation paperwork. Save it in your phone contacts under something obvious like "Light meter", because one wrong digit is an easy way to buy light for a stranger.

Loading your first token

New meters, and meters that have been updated, sometimes need Key Change Tokens (KCT) first. AEDC explains that a KCT is a special code for STS prepaid meters and usually comes as a pair. You enter the first, then the second, then your energy token. AEDC also warns that any old energy tokens have to go in before the KCT, or the meter will reject them. KCTs are free and single-use. Ask your DisCo for yours. AEDC, for example, issues them through its site and business districts.

After that, buying units is the easy part. You can buy your electricity token online with just the meter number and DisCo. On Eko DisCo, that's an EKEDC prepaid token.

Checking your band and tariff

Band A customers pay more per kWh than customers on the other bands, so it matters which one you're on. Electricity bands and tariffs in Nigeria are set by feeder, so before you load a big token, confirm your band on your DisCo's website. A meter doesn't change your band. It only changes whether you pay for what you use or for an estimate.

Common problems with new prepaid meters

Token rejected

On a new meter, a common cause is a missing KCT, or KCTs entered before old tokens were used up. Enter the key change codes in order, then retry. If the meter keeps saying "used" or "reject", this guide to rejected or failed tokens covers the other causes.

Meter not yet mapped to your account

Sometimes the meter is installed but the DisCo's system hasn't linked it to your account yet, so tokens fail or you keep getting estimated bills on top of a working meter.

That's a records problem at the DisCo. You can't fix it from the keypad.

Wrong band or tariff class

If your receipt shows a band you don't recognise from your DisCo's feeder list, or a commercial tariff class on a residential flat, raise it with customer care before you buy more units.

For any of these, go to your DisCo office with your ID, the MAP payment receipt and invoice, the installation form, a photo of the meter label, and a recent rejected-token receipt if you have one. Ask for a ticket number before you leave. If it drags past a couple of weeks, the NERC Forum Office is your next stop.

If you're one of the 4.85 million, start tonight. Check DISREP eligibility on your DisCo's site, open the current MAP price list, and decide whether ₦100,000-odd upfront beats another year of feeder averages.

Frequently asked questions

Published 28 September 2026. Prices and codes change - if you spot one that has moved, tell us and we will fix it.