Cost to run a fridge per year
What a fridge costs
At 17 cents a kilowatt hour, a fridge costs 2.6 cents an hour while it is drawing power. 24 hours a day with 35 percent average draw is 1.26 kWh a day, $6.43 a month and $78.18 a year. Change any of those three numbers in the calculator and the answer moves with them, because there is nothing else in the sum.
The label figure is 150 watts. That is what the device draws while it is working, not what it draws around the clock.
| Hours of use a day | Energy a day | Cost a month | Cost a year |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 h | 0.05 kWh | $0.27 | $3.26 |
| 2 h | 0.10 kWh | $0.54 | $6.52 |
| 4 h | 0.21 kWh | $1.07 | $13.03 |
| 8 h | 0.42 kWh | $2.14 | $26.06 |
| 24 h | 1.26 kWh | $6.43 | $78.18 |
What changes the number
- The label gives the compressor draw, not the average. A 150 W compressor running a third of the time averages 50 W, which is why multiplying the label by 24 overstates the bill threefold.
- Modern units use 300 to 500 kWh a year. An older or larger unit can use twice that, and the difference shows up entirely on this line of the bill.
- A fridge in a hot garage, or one with a failed door seal, runs far more than the cycle assumed here. The seal test is a sheet of paper that should not slide out easily.
Find your own wattage
Inside the door or on the back. If the rating plate gives only annual energy in kWh, divide by 8760 for the average draw in kilowatts.
What this does not include
It does not count a second fridge or a chest freezer in the garage, which together often cost more than the kitchen unit.
Check it against your own numbers
The [running cost calculator](../index.html?device=fridge) opens with this device already selected and its wattage filled in. Replace the wattage with your own reading, set the hours you actually use, and the monthly and yearly figures update in place.
Related: [A 1,500 W space heater](../space-heater/index.html), [An electric blanket](../electric-blanket/index.html), [A dehumidifier](../dehumidifier/index.html).