Energy bills in the UK are expensive and managing them is a constant battle for households, amongst various other living expenditures. The recent energy price cap changes often bring bad news, increasing the cost of electricity and gas.
The cost of energy bills can vary depending on the size and type of property you live in, but the way you use your devices can have a big impact too.
To help give a better understanding on how much appliances at home cost you, we have calculated the daily, monthly and yearly energy usage cost of appliances using the current energy price cap.
In this study, we will give a rundown on the everyday appliances that use the most energy, their cost, and the summer appliances that may catch you out – even when you think your energy bill may reduce during the sunny months.
Furthermore, our data has also delved into the cost of leaving these electrical devices on standby, finding out the energy vampire devices that you should really think about turning off more often.
In this article
- The most energy guzzling home appliances
- The cost of running everyday appliances
- The monthly and yearly costs of leaving devices on standby
- So, what? It’s not that much, right?
- How much energy do summer appliances consume?
- Are electric radiators expensive to run?
- Three ways to reduce your energy bills
- Key learnings
The most energy guzzling home appliances
Usage costs of home appliances can depend on the size of the household, for consistency, our data represents a household of four people.
| Home Appliance | Daily Usage Cost | Monthly Usage Cost | Yearly Usage Cost |
| Washing Machine | £1.08 | £32.89 | £394.64 |
| Dishwasher | £0.86 | £26.31 | £315.71 |
| Tumble Dryer | £0.70 | £21.38 | £256.51 |
| Oven | £0.57 | £17.27 | £207.18 |
| Fridge Freezer | £0.32 | £9.87 | £118.39 |
A washing machine is the most energy thirsty appliance in the house, especially if you are one of those households where a washing cycle seems to be constantly on.
Alongside this, dishwashers and tumble dryers are big energy-draining appliances in the house - they contribute a large proportion to the monthly energy bill due to heating of the water. To reduce energy costs, washing clothes on a lower temperature or hanging wet clothes outside when the weather is warmer can save a pretty penny.
Fridge freezers are needed to be on 24 hours of the day, so it will be no surprise that they are one of the most energy consuming appliances, although be rest assured they don’t work on full power constantly, only when they need to maintain the right temperature.
Checking the energy rating of common household appliances that are used daily before purchasing can make a big difference to the yearly energy usage. For example, an A-rated appliances will be more energy efficient than a G-rated. According to energy saving trust an A-rated washing machine compared to a D-rated washing machine could save around £95 per year.
The cost of running everyday appliances
| Home Appliance | Daily Usage Cost | Monthly Usage Cost | Yearly Usage Cost |
| Air Fryer | £0.41 | £12.33 | £147.99 |
| Kettle | £0.20 | £6.17 | £73.99 |
| Lighting (5 x Bulbs) | £0.11 | £3.29 | £39.46 |
| Microwave | £0.10 | £3.08 | £37.00 |
| Electric Hob | £0.09 | £2.88 | £34.53 |
| Vacuum | £0.09 | £2.71 | £32.56 |
| Toaster | £0.04 | £1.23 | £14.80 |
| Coffee Machine | £0.02 | £0.66 | £7.89 |
An air fryer seems to be the new oven in a modern household - and for good reason. When we compared using both appliances for the same amount of time, the oven actually costs a third (33%) more to run than an air fryer, showing the latter is more energy efficient, and may even take less time than the oven to cook food.
A true Brit loves a hot drink, but a cup of tea is more costly than you think. Making a few cups of tea or coffee adds a considerable amount to a household’s energy usage. Interestingly, boiling a kettle uses three times as much energy as a coffee machine does when making a hot drink.
‘Turn the lights off’ was a common phrase we all heard constantly during our childhood, but doing so can save on energy costs. Our calculations show the cost of having five bulbs on in the house every night.
The monthly and yearly costs of leaving devices on standby
| Home Appliance | Monthly Usage Cost | Yearly Usage Cost |
| Games Console | £2.96 | £35.52 |
| Gaming PC | £1.91 | £22.97 |
| Desktop Computer | £1.66 | £19.89 |
| TV | £1.24 | £14.92 |
| Speaker / Digital Radio | £0.87 | £10.42 |
| Oven | £0.71 | £8.52 |
| Kettle | £0.45 | £5.45 |
| Microwave | £0.43 | £5.21 |
| Air Fryer | £0.66 | £4.26 |
| Slow Cooker | £0.36 | £4.26 |
| Coffee Machine | £0.18 | £2.13 |
| Electric Toothbrush Charger | £0.13 | £1.59 |
| Vacuum Charger | £0.13 | £1.59 |
| Washing Machine | £0.10 | £1.25 |
| Tumble Dryer | £0.10 | £1.25 |
| Dishwasher | £0.10 | £1.25 |
| Phone Charger | £0.10 | £1.25 |
| Electric Shaver | £0.09 | £1.14 |
| Single Lamp | £0.09 | £1.11 |
| Electric Hob | £0.05 | £0.64 |
Sorry to all gamers – Games consoles and Gaming PC’s are vampire devices, costing a small fortune to leave on standby.
For all you remote workers, a desktop computer came out as the third most expensive device to keep on standby.
On the other hand, the cheapest appliances to have on a constant standby are electric hobs and single lamps, but if you have multiple lamps on standby it will soon get expensive.
The calculation to work out the cost of a device on standby are the maximum costs, it's important to note that many appliances are getting more energy efficient, and costs will dependant on how efficient your appliance is.
So, what? It’s not that much, right?
Whilst the figures might not sound that astounding at first glance, the monthly cost that could be saved is nearly the cost of an ad-free monthly Netflix subscription.
The yearly cost of standby devices is more than an average weekly food shop bill for a small family and about the same as two full tanks of petrol – big savings that matter.
If we compare to an average electricity bill, in line with the current energy price cap, it means that unused devices left on standby are stealing 16% of your total bill.
Our point is, if you use your energy efficiently, you can save money that is better spent on your daily life, opposed to energy companies.
How much energy do summer appliances consume?
| Home Appliance | Hourly Usage Cost |
| Hot Tub | £0.95 |
| Patio Heaters | £0.54 |
| Electric BBQ | £0.43 |
| Electric Mower | £0.41 |
| Hedge Trimmer | £0.24 |
| Electric Fan | £0.01 |
When the warmer weather arrives in the summer, theoretically the average energy bill for households will reduce with no heating required, right? Be careful if you purchase a hot tub as your bills may even be more expensive than the winter. These can cost nearly a pound to run per hour, and they still require energy to maintain the temperature when not in use.
One summer appliance that won’t break the bank is an electric fan, which costs just 1p an hour, meaning even if we are lucky enough to get three months of summer sun, it will cost less than £10 using an electric fan for 8 hours a day.
When it comes to gardening appliances, electric mowers and hedge trimmers hourly energy usage comes at a much higher cost, however, keep in mind these are only used occasionally and not for long periods.
Are electric radiators expensive to run?
If a home is heated via electric radiators that will be another cost which can increase your electricity bill but also reduce the gas bill, so which is type of heating is cheaper to run?
Whilst gas is currently available at cheaper rates than electricity, electric radiators can still work out cheaper to run than gas central heating or storage heaters.
Electric radiators are an efficient heating option, they are 100% efficient at point of use, which simply means all the power drawn from the wall is converted into heat and nothing is wasted.
Three ways to reduce your energy bills
1. Turn devices off at the plug
As our data shows, there are plenty of ‘vampire devices’ in the household which drain energy even when on standby mode, so getting into the habit of turning these off at the plug will save on energy bills.
It may sound obvious but please don’t turn off the fridge freezer!
2. Purchase energy efficient appliances
Having as many A-rated appliances as possible means they will be more energy efficient and will use less energy, therefore lowering your energy costs.
Replacing all your appliances at once will be a costly task, so it may be best to just ensure appliances are being replaced with energy efficient ones when its required, not one that has an energy rating of G. It can save you hundreds.
3. Use clever hacks to reduce energy usage
There are a variety of energy saving hacks that can reduce monthly bills. Consider anything from ensuring your washing machine is done on full loads only, having shorter showers to hanging the washing out instead of using a tumble dryer.
There are even try more unusual hacks such as insulate windows with plastic wrap, sealing chimney flutes or dusting down radiators.
For more information on these, check out our unusual energy saving hacks blog page.
Key learnings
✓ High Energy Usage Appliances: Washing machines, dishwashers, and tumble dryers are the top energy guzzlers, contributing significantly to monthly bills, especially due to their heating requirements.
✓ Standby Costs: Leaving devices like gaming consoles, desktops, and TVs on standby can cost households hundreds annually. Simple habits like turning off appliances can result in substantial savings.
✓ Summer Appliances: While heating costs decrease in summer, appliances like hot tubs, patio heaters and electric mowers can increase energy bills significantly if used frequently.
✓ Energy Efficient Appliances: Investing in A-rated appliances helps save money in the long run by using less energy, compared to less efficient G-rated models.
✓ Practical Energy Saving Tips: Turn off devices at the plug, use energy-efficient appliances, and implement simple energy-saving hacks like washing on full loads or hanging clothes to dry instead of using a tumble dryer.
Methodology and data sources
Methodology
The calculate the cost of running household appliances, we used the KwH rating of each appliance and the average usage per day of that appliance. We then calculated the overall daily, monthly and yearly cost using the current energy price cap cost of electricity (pence per KwH).
To calculate the cost of standby devices, we used the KwH rating of each appliance when on standby, multiplied by 24 (hours in a day) and then calculated the monthly and yearly cost using the current energy price cap cost of electricity (pence per KwH).
Data Sources
- Calculating the energy cost: https://smartmoneytools.co.uk/tools/energy-cost-calculator/
- Energy Price Cap: https://www.ofgem.gov.uk/energy-price-cap
- https://energysavingtrust.org.uk/advice/home-appliances/
- https://powerni.co.uk/help/energy-guides/which-appliances-use-the-most-electricity/
- https://www.greenmatch.co.uk/blog/most-energy-consuming-appliances
- https://www.electricalsafetyfirst.org.uk/guidance/safety-around-the-home/home-appliances-ratings/
- https://www.daftlogic.com/information-appliance-power-consumption.htm
- https://www.which.co.uk/news/article/how-much-does-it-really-cost-you-to-leave-your-tech-on-standby-a9Elw3D3HKUR
- https://www.uswitch.com/gas-electricity/guides/average-gas-and-electricity-bills-in-the-uk
- https://www.confused.com/gas-electricity/guides/average-energy-bills-in-the-uk