What Is a Reference Number?

A reference number is the identifier printed on an electricity bill that ties the bill to a specific consumer connection. Electricity distribution companies in Pakistan use it to look up billing records for a particular meter and account, so it's the value most bill-checking services — including this one — ask for first.

Where to find it

On most Pakistani electricity bills, the reference number appears near the top of the bill, often labelled "Ref No.", "Reference Number", or printed alongside a barcode. It's typically a long numeric string (commonly 14 digits for the companies supported on this platform).

Reference number vs. application number

Some bill portals let you search by either a reference number or an application/tracking number, which is a different identifier issued during a new connection or complaint process. If you only have an old bill on hand, the reference number is almost always the easier value to use.

Using it here

When you check a bill on this platform, your reference number is sent to our server, which requests the matching bill information from the relevant utility's public bill-lookup service. It is used only to process that one request and is not permanently stored — see our Privacy Policy for details.