What Uses the Most Electricity in a House? Typical kWh and Cost by Appliance
Nationally, air conditioning, electric heat, and electric water heating are the biggest uses of home electricity, each averaging around 2,300 to 2,700 kWh a year in homes that have them. A pool pump or EV charger can match them.
Those figures come from the US Energy Information Administration’s (EIA) Residential Energy Consumption Survey, which estimated how much electricity homes used for each purpose in 2020. Nationally, EIA puts air conditioning at 19% of home electricity use, and space heating and water heating at 12% each. The average household used about 10,500 kWh for the year.
The survey also shows which machines most top-ten lists leave out: dehumidifiers, second fridges, hot tubs, and the furnace blower. Below is the full table with yearly costs, how climate reshuffles it, and the upgrades that move the needle.
Average yearly electricity use, by what it powers
The numbers below are EIA’s averages per household that has that item. A home without a pool isn’t dragging down the pool-pump average. Costs use 17¢ per kWh, about the US residential average. EIA reports rates from about 11¢ to over 40¢ depending on the state, so redo the multiplication with the rate on your bill.
| What it powers | Avg kWh per year (homes that have it) | Yearly cost at 17¢ |
|---|---|---|
| Water heating (electric) | 2,706 | 2,706 × $0.17 = $460 |
| Space heating (electric) | 2,484 | $422 |
| Pool pump | 2,384 | $405 |
| Electric vehicle charging | 2,363 | $402 |
| Air conditioning | 2,318 | $394 |
| Hot tub (heater 1,479 + pump 484) | 1,963 | $334 |
| Dehumidifier | 999 | $170 |
| All refrigerators in the home | 839 | $143 |
| Furnace/AC blower fan (heating 233 + cooling 457) | 690 | $117 |
| Clothes dryer | 680 | $116 |
| Lighting | 654 | $111 |
| TVs and related gear | 632 | $107 |
| Separate freezer | 570 | $97 |
| Second refrigerator | 494 | $84 |
| Cooking (range and oven) | 290 | $49 |
| Ceiling fans | 226 | $38 |
| Dishwasher | 112 | $19 |
| Microwave | 107 | $18 |
| Clothes washer | 69 | $12 |
One note on reading this table:
- The space heating figure is an average across very different homes. EIA’s number includes households that use electricity as their main heat and households that only run a space heater now and then. If your whole house heats with electric baseboards or a furnace, your use is likely higher than 2,484 kWh.
To check a single appliance, use the formula: watts × hours used ÷ 1,000 × your price per kWh. A 1,500-watt space heater running 6 hours a day uses 1,500 × 6 ÷ 1,000 = 9 kWh, or about $1.53 a day at 17¢. The wattage on the label is the maximum draw, though. Things that cycle on and off, like fridges, water heaters, and AC, use less than label watts × 24 hours. A plug-in watt meter measures what a plug-in appliance actually uses. For a deeper dive, see what a space heater costs for 8 hours.
Your climate reorders the top of the list
The national averages hide big regional swings. Here’s the same EIA survey split by climate region, in kWh per year for homes that have each item:
| Climate region | Air conditioning | Space heating | Water heating |
|---|---|---|---|
| Very cold and cold | 1,310 | 2,876 | 2,669 |
| Mixed-humid | 2,293 | 2,975 | 2,927 |
| Mixed-dry and hot-dry | 2,691 | 951 | 2,065 |
| Hot-humid | 4,173 | 1,914 | 2,559 |
| Marine | 902 | 2,696 | 3,073 |
In hot-humid regions, AC averages 4,173 kWh, or 4,173 × $0.17 = $709 a year, and pulls far ahead. In cold regions the same AC averages 1,310 kWh ($223), while electric heat reaches 2,876 kWh ($489). In the mild, damp marine climate, where little cooling is needed, the water heater leads these three at 3,073 kWh ($522).
So “is the AC or the water heater my biggest cost?” depends mostly on where you live, and on whether your water heater runs on electricity or gas. A gas water heater takes that line off your electric bill entirely, though it shows up on the gas bill instead.
The quiet ones that rival the big three
Pool pumps. At 2,384 kWh a year on average, and 2,864 kWh in hot-humid regions, a pool pump uses about as much as air conditioning. ENERGY STAR explains why speed matters so much: cutting a pump’s speed in half lets it use just one-eighth as much energy. That’s the case for variable-speed pumps that run slower for longer.
Hot tubs. The heater and pump together average 1,963 kWh, about $334 a year at 17¢.
EV charging. Homes that charge an electric vehicle average 2,363 kWh a year. That’s real money on the bill, but it replaces gasoline, so judge it against fuel costs rather than against the fridge.
Dehumidifiers. These are the sleeper. The average household with one uses 999 kWh a year, and 1,368 kWh in hot-humid regions. Even the national figure is more than the 839 kWh average for all the refrigerators in a home. ENERGY STAR says certified models use 20% less energy than similarly sized conventional units. Run it with the doors and windows to that space closed, and aim for the 30–50% humidity range ENERGY STAR describes as optimal rather than drying the air further. If you’re running one to fight a smell, our guide to a basement that smells musty only in summer covers the moisture sources worth fixing first.
Second fridges and freezers. A second refrigerator averages 494 kWh ($84), and a separate freezer 570 kWh ($97). ENERGY STAR says refrigerators over 15 years old can cost about $95 more a year to run than a new model, and that an old fridge uses about 20% more energy than an ENERGY STAR one.
The furnace and AC blower. The fan that pushes air through your ducts averages 690 kWh a year between heating and cooling seasons, and most appliance lists leave it out. For keeping its airflow clear, see furnace filter basics.
What the bigger upgrades are worth
Heat pump water heater. ENERGY STAR estimates a certified heat pump water heater saves a household of four about 3,760 kWh a year compared with a standard electric tank. It prices that at $550 a year using 14.6¢ per kWh.
At 17¢ the math is 3,760 × $0.17 = $639 a year. At your own rate, it’s 3,760 × your rate. ENERGY STAR puts the payback on the extra purchase cost at about three years. One condition: these units work less efficiently in cold spaces and may switch to standard electric heating in cold conditions, so where the tank sits matters.
Heat pump clothes dryer. ENERGY STAR says heat pump dryers use around 70% less energy than conventional dryers. Applied to the 680 kWh average, that’s 680 × 0.70 = about 476 kWh saved, or roughly $81 a year at 17¢. That’s a meaningful saving, but it’s a smaller lever than the water heater. Whatever dryer you have, clean the lint filter after every load to keep airflow up.
Replacing an old second fridge. If you need the extra fridge year-round, ENERGY STAR’s advice is to replace an old unit with a certified model and recycle the old one. If it mostly holds drinks, unplugging it saves its whole load, about 494 kWh a year for the average second fridge.
What gets blamed but rarely matters
The microwave has a scary nameplate wattage but averages 107 kWh a year ($18), because it only runs for minutes. The dishwasher averages 112 kWh ($19). Lighting is real at 654 kWh, but it’s spread across every bulb in the house. Chargers and standby power add up in aggregate, which our phantom power breakdown covers, but no single one competes with a water heater.
How to find the culprit in your own home
- Start with what you own from the top of the table. Do you have an electric water heater, electric heat, a pool, a hot tub, an EV, or a dehumidifier? Each of those is worth more attention than everything below the fridge line.
- Use your utility’s hourly or daily data, if it offers it. Spikes that line up with hot afternoons, laundry day, or a dehumidifier season point to the culprit without buying anything. If your bill doubled with no change in habits, look here first.
- Put a plug-in watt meter on anything that plugs into a regular outlet. That covers fridges, freezers, dehumidifiers, and window AC units. Leave it for a full week, since cycling appliances vary day to day, then multiply the weekly kWh by 52 and by your rate.
- For hard-wired equipment like water heaters, central AC, and pool pumps, compare months with and without heavy use, or ask your utility about an energy audit.
FAQ
Is my air conditioner or my water heater the bigger electric cost?
Nationally they’re close: 2,318 kWh for AC versus 2,706 kWh for an electric water heater, among homes that have them. In hot-humid regions AC wins easily at 4,173 kWh. In cold and marine regions, the electric water heater usually comes out ahead. With a gas water heater, AC is the bigger electric cost.
Does an old freezer in the garage really cost that much?
A separate freezer averages 570 kWh a year, about $97 at 17¢, and a second fridge averages 494 kWh, about $84. ENERGY STAR estimates a fridge over 15 years old costs about $95 more a year to run than a new one. A week on a plug-in watt meter will tell you where yours falls.
Will unplugging appliances make a big difference?
Only for the ones you don’t need. Unplugging a mostly empty second fridge saves its whole load. Unplugging small electronics helps a little. Major appliances like the main fridge and water heater have to stay on.
Sources
- Electricity use in homes (EIA) — AC 19%, space heating and water heating 12% each; about 10,500 kWh average household use
- RECS 2020 Table CE5.3a (EIA) and Table CE5.3b (EIA) — average kWh per household by end use and by climate region
- Average Price of Electricity to Ultimate Customers (EIA) — about 17¢ per kWh average, 11¢ to over 40¢ by state
- Estimating Appliance and Home Electronic Energy Use (DOE) — watts × hours ÷ 1,000 × rate; nameplate is maximum draw
- Heat Pump Water Heaters: Benefits and Savings (ENERGY STAR) and Heat Pump Water Heaters (ENERGY STAR) — 3,760 kWh and $550 a year saved, about three-year payback; less efficient in cold spaces
- Clothes Dryers (ENERGY STAR) — heat pump dryers use around 70% less energy; clean the lint filter every load
- Pool Pumps (ENERGY STAR) and Dehumidifiers (ENERGY STAR) — half speed uses one-eighth the energy; certified dehumidifiers use 20% less; 30–50% humidity range
- Refrigerators (ENERGY STAR) — fridges over 15 years old cost about $95 more a year; old fridges use about 20% more energy
Written and reviewed by peter.bae for Hearth & Habit · Last reviewed October 11, 2026
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