MEPCO Meter Reading
Last checked 26 September 2026
MEPCO reads every meter once a month, on the reading date printed on your bill, and the units you pay for are the present reading minus the previous one. This guide shows how to read a single-phase, three-phase or solar net meter, how to send your own reading photo through Apna Meter Apni Reading, how estimated bills work and what to do when a reading is wrong.
When does MEPCO read your meter?
MEPCO reads meters once a month, on the reading date printed on the bill. Under NEPRA's Consumer Service Manual (CSM), the consumers of each sub-division are divided into batches, and each batch is normally read on the same dates every month. If your meter was not read, MEPCO's FAQ asks you to contact your sub-division.
The CSM also says distribution companies should send an SMS once a reading is captured, giving the units recorded, the scheduled reading date and the actual reading date. The bill itself prints the reading date, the present reading and the previous reading.
Every reading comes with a photo
Meter-reading photos are mandatory for every consumer. Readers take them on mobile phones or hand-held units, each photo carries a time stamp and a geo-tag, and it is printed on the bill. MEPCO must keep the photos for twelve months so they can be shown to NEPRA, the Provincial Office of Inspection (POI) or a court in a billing dispute.
When the reading cycle runs long
If a billing cycle runs past its normal length because of force majeure or another unforeseen situation, the CSM requires pro-rata billing. The units are scaled to the calendar month and the rest are carried forward. In the CSM's own example, a protected consumer whose meter shows 208 units over 33 days, in a 30-day month, is billed 189 units (208 ÷ 33 × 30) at protected rates. The other 19 units appear on the bill as outstanding units and are billed the next month, and protected status stays intact for the current month.
Meters read remotely
Connections with automatic meter reading (AMR) form a separate batch, and MEPCO bills them remotely on its own schedule. MEPCO describes its advanced metering infrastructure (AMI) as smart meters linked to communication networks that collect real-time data.
How to read your meter
To read your meter, find the screen that matches the reading on your bill. MEPCO's Apna Meter Apni Reading guides, published in 2025, show three kinds of meter.
Single-phase meter
On a single-phase meter, read the total kWh figure and compare it with the present reading on your bill. The sample meter in MEPCO's single-phase guide has its display sequence printed on its face: 01 serial number, 02 total kWh, 03 current month maximum kW, 04 previous month maximum kW and 05 instantaneous kW.
Three-phase time-of-use meter
A three-phase time-of-use (ToU) meter records peak and off-peak units as separate readings, and the bill shows both. In MEPCO's three-phase guide, the peak reading is display sequence 5 and the off-peak reading is sequence 6. Homes with a sanctioned load of 5 kW or more have ToU meters, and the MEPCO peak hours for each season decide which of the two readings a unit is added to.
Solar net meter
A net meter records imported and exported units separately, each split into peak and off-peak, so there are four readings to check. The labelled sample photos in MEPCO's net-meter guide show them on display sequences 6 (peak export), 7 (peak import), 8 (off-peak export) and 9 (off-peak import). The bill prints the import and export photos and lists imported and exported units separately. How those units are priced is explained in MEPCO net metering and net billing rules.
How to work out your units
Your units for the month are the present reading minus the previous reading. For example, a present reading of 12,540 and a previous reading of 12,310 give 230 units. On a ToU meter, subtract separately for peak and off-peak. On a net meter, subtract for each of the four readings: the import readings show the units you took from the grid, and the export readings the units you sent to it.
To see the readings and the photo MEPCO used, open your bill with the MEPCO bill checker. Setting several months side by side in your MEPCO bill history of units and amounts makes a missed or estimated reading easy to spot. With your units worked out, the MEPCO bill calculator for your units and load estimates the bill.
Send your own reading with Apna Meter Apni Reading
Apna Meter Apni Reading ("my meter, my reading") lets you photograph your meter and send the reading through the Power Smart app, where it is compared with the photo taken by MEPCO's meter reader. MEPCO presents it as an easy way for consumers to control over-billing. Its guides set out the steps:
- Open the app. Install Power Smart (also written PowerSmart) from the App Store or Google Play, open it and tap the meter reading icon. MEPCO's guides show the app's sign-in screen at this step, and its start screen reads "Powered by PITC".
- Enter your 14-digit reference number. The Apna Meter Apni Reading screen says it uses the number printed on your bill to find your meter-reading schedule.
- Photograph the reading. Keep the meter's serial number clearly visible. On a three-phase meter, photograph sequence 5 (peak) and sequence 6 (off-peak); on a net meter, sequences 6, 7, 8 and 9.
- Send the photo. It is compared with the meter reader's photo of the same meter.
The guides also show what a usable photo looks like: a close, sharp shot in which the digits and the serial number can be read. A blurred photo, or one of the whole meter taken from a distance, is marked as wrong.
Estimated and average bills
A MEPCO bill is estimated only when an actual reading cannot be used, and the CSM sets the method for each case. The table covers two kinds of estimate and the catch-up bill after readings pile up: the situation, how the units are worked out and what limits or corrects the bill.
| Situation | Units billed | Limit or correction |
|---|---|---|
| MEPCO cannot take the reading because of force majeure | Your own meter photo, if you send one; otherwise a provisional average: the same month last year or the last eleven months' average, whichever is lower | Rebilled on the actual reading, with slab benefit, once the situation is normal |
| The meter is defective | The same months last year or the last eleven months' average, whichever is higher | At most two months; the meter must be replaced within two billing cycles |
| Readings accumulate over several months | Actual units, split month by month | Separate bills keep the slab benefit |
The force majeure estimate uses the lower figure and the defective-meter estimate the higher one. MEPCO's FAQ says a defective-meter estimate is marked "est def" on the bill; the replacement and its cost are covered in MEPCO meter change for a faulty meter.
What to do if the reading on your bill is wrong
If the present reading on your bill is higher than your meter shows, report it with a photo of the meter; the CSM gives MEPCO 7 days from your complaint to redress bill errors caused by wrong meter readings.
- Photograph the meter. Capture the reading and the serial number, and note the date.
- Compare it with the bill. Check the present reading and the meter photo printed on the bill.
- Report the difference. MEPCO's FAQ directs wrong-reading cases to the customer service centre in your area or at MEPCO headquarters. You can also call 118 or register a complaint on PITC's complaint portal.
- Check Power Smart for a correction screen. PITC's overbilling action plan, which MEPCO posted on its website in August 2025, includes screenshots of a Meter Reading Correction screen in the app, with the month's previous and current readings, the meter photo, a box for the reading you claim, and tick boxes to report that the photos do not match the reading or are blurred. Use it if your version of the app offers it.
MEPCO's FAQ asks consumers to get a clear difference between the bill and the meter corrected, because it can cause over-charging or under-charging in the next bill. For escalation beyond the first complaint, see how to get a wrong MEPCO bill corrected. Other meter and connection requests are listed under MEPCO consumer services.
Sources: NEPRA Consumer Service Manual as on 26 November 2025, sections 4.3, 6.1 to 6.4, 10.3 and 14.2; MEPCO Apna Meter Apni Reading guides for single-phase, three-phase and net meters (2025), PITC overbilling action plan (August 2025), FAQ page and technical overview (mepco.com.pk); PITC bill service (bill.pitc.com.pk). Checked 26 September 2026.