How to tell how much electricity I use each day

Although many will rely on online calculators to find this value, it is also possible to calculate electricity usage manually. As every appliance and electronic device used within your home is shown in your monthly bill, it is important to include these alongside more conventional sources (heating, cooling, lighting, etc).

Although climate control and lighting are a little harder to manage, it is easy enough to find out how much they contribute to your monthly bills. To calculate your power consumption – simply follow this multi-step formula:

Calculate the watts that each of your devices use per day
Convert the watts into kilowatts – there are 1000 watts in one kilowatt.
Determine the kilowatts an appliance uses per month.
Convert this into kWh.
Figure out the cost by multiplying the kilowatts per month by the rate you pay for electricity.

For these, you’ll need to find the wattage for devices as well as an estimate of how many hours you use per day. If you find that your monthly electricity bill is still too high, then it may be time to start looking for a new contract…

How to find the wattage of a device

For most devices, there will be a label on the back or underside showing how many watts it uses. If this label is not immediately obvious, you may be able to find the same information in the owner’s manual/handbook.

If you are still not able to find the wattage – there are a few other options to help find it:

Purchase a wattage measuring device that will display the wattage of a device when you plug it in.
Contact the manufacturer with your device’s model number.
Look up your device and model number online.

Average wattage for household appliances

All device wattages provided from epa.gov

Appliance	Average Wattage
Coffee Maker	900-1200
Toaster	800-1400
Iron	1000-1800
Ceiling Fan	65-175
Space Heater	4500-5500
Hair Dryer	1200-1875
Laptop	50
Computer Monitor	150
Computer Tower	120
19”-36” Television	65-133
53”-61” Television	170