Ever wondered how much each appliance or electrical device around the home is costing on your bill each month?

With a clearer understanding of how to work this out, we can make better decisions on where to save if possible – both on bills and energy use.

What you’ll need: 3 simple numbers.

And let’s say, in this case we’re looking at a kettle:

1. The kettle’s ‘power rating’ – a number that tells us how much energy each appliance uses. This is measured in watts or kilowatts.

2. Your electricity unit rate (in pence per kilowatt hour) which you can find on your energy bill.

3. how long you use the kettle for in hours, on average – per day in this case – but you could also make this per week or month, as you prefer.

The Maths

How we get to the cost is simply from the above three numbers – 1 x 2 x 3:

That is – kettle running cost = power rating in killowatts (kW) × hours used × unit rate £ per kilowatt hour (kWh).

So a 3kW kettle used for 20 minutes a day (0.3 hours) at 27.69p per kWh costs… about 25p per day (3 x 0.3 x 27.69).

NEA and LEAP both have good lists showing which appliances cost the most to run, for a quick summary of which devices may be costing you most, and which make little difference:

How Much Do your Electrical Items Cost to Run – National Energy Action. (NEA)

Running Cost Guide – Local Energy Advice Partnership (LEAP).

Quick Tips on the Running Cost of your Appliances

Always look at the Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) of an appliance. The EPC effectively gives a rating of an appliance from A (the most efficient) to G (the least efficient). The higher the rating, up to A – the best – the cheaper it is to run.

Overall, appliances that heat or cool water or air (such as washer dryers or cookers) tend to be more expensive to run.

For example, if you have an electric shower, shortening the time you spend using it a little is a great way to reduce energy consumption, as it has a high wattage or power rating.

Additionally, there is less need to worry about how long a microwave or toaster is being used for, as these appliances have a lower power rating and generally, they’re not over long periods of time.

Always use the eco function on appliances like washing machines if you can. While their cycle may be longer, they overall still use less energy and are cheaper to run.

Washing clothes at 30 degrees also uses less energy, saving around £27 a year on average.

Please do also read our previous post on small changes you can make in the home to reduce energy and heating costs.

We have also previously covered how energy tariffs and contracts work, plus which utility bill grants and supports are currently available.

As always, if you’re based in SE London and struggling with your bills, need free advice or support – you can find all the ways you can get in touch with our Energy Advice team here.