The COVID-19 pandemic caused significant disruptions to economies around the world. In response to this, some developing countries offered reliefs such as electricity subsidies while others did not. How did the pandemic affect the electricity consumption of households and firms Did the utility subsidies enable a quick recovery from the pandemic And what are the distributional impacts of the utility subsidies This paper leverages unique administrative billing data on electricity consumption from two African countries, Ghana and Rwanda, with differing policy responses to the pandemic to document the demand response of households and firms to the COVID-19 pandemic, and the role of utility subsidies during the period. Findings from the paper indicate that the pandemic led to higher consumption of electricity in both countries, albeit with variations across countries and sectors. While residential consumption soared, consumption of non-residential customers such as hotels and industries declined during the period. Electricity subsidies in Ghana during the pandemic explain the sharp increase in residential consumption. These findings highlight the potential effects of pandemic relief measures on household welfare.