What a clothes dryer
costs to run
Meter reading
per year
608 kWh certified × 19.41¢ per kWh ÷ 100 — median of 628 listed models
Default: US residential average, 19.41¢ per kWh, EIA JUL 2026. Overwrite it with your own rate, or pick your state below.
SOURCE·ENERGY STAR certified product data·tariff US residential average 19.41¢ — EIA Electric Power Monthly, retrieved 2026-07-28·REVIEWED JUL 2026
$118.01 a year A typical ENERGY STAR certified clothes dryer uses 608 kWh a year, which at the US average residential price of 19.41¢ per kWh is $118.01 a year.
That is the national figure, and nobody is billed at a national figure: the same appliance costs $75.09 a year in Idaho and $316.16 in Hawaii.
How this is worked out
- Take the certified annual consumption for the appliance class off the EPA's ENERGY STAR register — the median of every listed model, not a wattage anyone assumed.
- Take the residential tariff off the EIA's Electric Power Monthly, table 5.6.A. Here that is the US residential average, 19.41¢ per kWh.
- Multiply, then divide by 100 to come out of cents. Nothing is rounded before this line.
- Derive the rest of the schedule from that one figure: ÷ 12 monthly, ÷ 365 daily, × 10 for a ten-year life.
- Overwrite the tariff terminal with the rate printed on your own bill and the register re-reads. The certified consumption does not move — that is the half of the sum nobody gets to opinion their way out of.
annual cost ($) = certified kWh per year × tariff ¢ per kWh ÷ 100
Every certified model, cheapest to run first
Priced at the US average of 19.41¢/kWh. Nothing on this list is promoted or buried — it is the certified consumption in order.
| # | Model | kWh/yr | Cost/yr | vs typical |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bosch WQB245AXUC · Electric | 122 | $23.68 | saves $94.33 |
| 2 | Bosch WTW87NH1UC · Electric | 125 | $24.26 | saves $93.75 |
| 3 | Samsung DV25B69**H* · Electric | 125 | $24.26 | saves $93.75 |
| 4 | Samsung DV25FG50*0** · Electric | 125 | $24.26 | saves $93.75 |
| 5 | Miele TWF160 WP · Electric | 133 | $25.82 | saves $92.20 |
| 6 | Miele TWI180 WP · Electric | 133 | $25.82 | saves $92.20 |
| 7 | Miele TWB120 WP · Electric | 133 | $25.82 | saves $92.20 |
| 8 | LG DLHC1455* · Electric | 133 | $25.82 | saves $92.20 |
| 9 | Miele TXR860WP · Electric | 133 | $25.82 | saves $92.20 |
| 10 | Miele TWI680WP · Electric | 133 | $25.82 | saves $92.20 |
| 11 | Miele TXI680WP · Electric | 133 | $25.82 | saves $92.20 |
| 12 | Miele TWD360WP · Electric | 133 | $25.82 | saves $92.20 |
| 13 | Miele TWD160WP · Electric | 133 | $25.82 | saves $92.20 |
| 14 | Miele TXD160WP · Electric | 133 | $25.82 | saves $92.20 |
| 15 | LG WKHC152H*A · Electric | 133 | $25.82 | saves $92.20 |
| 16 | Asko T3HW.U · Electric | 142 | $27.56 | saves $90.45 |
| 17 | Samsung DV22N685*H* · Electric | 145 | $28.14 | saves $89.87 |
| 18 | Samsung DV22N680*H* · Electric | 145 | $28.14 | saves $89.87 |
| 19 | Blomberg DHP24400W · Electric | 149 | $28.92 | saves $89.09 |
| 20 | Blomberg DHP24412W · Electric | 149 | $28.92 | saves $89.09 |
| 21 | Beko HPD24412W · Electric | 149 | $28.92 | saves $89.09 |
| 22 | Samsung DV25B68**H* · Electric | 154 | $29.89 | saves $88.12 |
| 23 | Samsung DV25FG62*0** · Electric | 154 | $29.89 | saves $88.12 |
| 24 | Asko T5HXLW.U · Electric | 208 | $40.37 | saves $77.64 |
| 25 | Asko T5HXLT.U · Electric | 208 | $40.37 | saves $77.64 |
SOURCE·ENERGY STAR certified product data·628 certified clothes dryers on the register, listed by certified consumption·REVIEWED JUL 2026
The same clothes dryer on 51 tariffs
| State | Price per kWh | Cost per year | Per month |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hawaii | 52.00¢ | $316.16 | $26.35 |
| California | 33.25¢ | $202.16 | $16.85 |
| New York | 29.93¢ | $181.97 | $15.16 |
| Rhode Island | 29.46¢ | $179.12 | $14.93 |
| Massachusetts | 28.82¢ | $175.23 | $14.60 |
| Maine | 28.63¢ | $174.07 | $14.51 |
| Alaska | 28.23¢ | $171.64 | $14.30 |
| Connecticut | 27.37¢ | $166.41 | $13.87 |
| New Hampshire | 27.33¢ | $166.17 | $13.85 |
| District of Columbia | 25.40¢ | $154.43 | $12.87 |
| Vermont | 24.89¢ | $151.33 | $12.61 |
| Illinois | 23.85¢ | $145.01 | $12.08 |
| New Jersey | 23.27¢ | $141.48 | $11.79 |
| Michigan | 22.01¢ | $133.82 | $11.15 |
| Maryland | 21.77¢ | $132.36 | $11.03 |
| Pennsylvania | 21.55¢ | $131.02 | $10.92 |
| Wisconsin | 19.74¢ | $120.02 | $10.00 |
| Ohio | 19.52¢ | $118.68 | $9.89 |
| Delaware | 19.38¢ | $117.83 | $9.82 |
| Indiana | 18.15¢ | $110.35 | $9.20 |
| Virginia | 17.61¢ | $107.07 | $8.92 |
| Minnesota | 16.95¢ | $103.06 | $8.59 |
| West Virginia | 16.80¢ | $102.14 | $8.51 |
| Alabama | 16.77¢ | $101.96 | $8.50 |
| Texas | 16.44¢ | $99.96 | $8.33 |
| Oregon | 16.27¢ | $98.92 | $8.24 |
| South Carolina | 16.18¢ | $98.37 | $8.20 |
| Colorado | 16.16¢ | $98.25 | $8.19 |
| Mississippi | 16.16¢ | $98.25 | $8.19 |
| Georgia | 15.84¢ | $96.31 | $8.03 |
| South Dakota | 15.73¢ | $95.64 | $7.97 |
| Arizona | 15.23¢ | $92.60 | $7.72 |
| Florida | 15.17¢ | $92.23 | $7.69 |
| Kansas | 15.13¢ | $91.99 | $7.67 |
| North Carolina | 15.09¢ | $91.75 | $7.65 |
| Kentucky | 14.98¢ | $91.08 | $7.59 |
| Washington | 14.95¢ | $90.90 | $7.57 |
| Wyoming | 14.80¢ | $89.98 | $7.50 |
| Montana | 14.67¢ | $89.19 | $7.43 |
| Tennessee | 14.47¢ | $87.98 | $7.33 |
| Arkansas | 14.36¢ | $87.31 | $7.28 |
| Louisiana | 14.15¢ | $86.03 | $7.17 |
| Iowa | 14.14¢ | $85.97 | $7.16 |
| New Mexico | 14.12¢ | $85.85 | $7.15 |
| Missouri | 13.68¢ | $83.17 | $6.93 |
| North Dakota | 13.61¢ | $82.75 | $6.90 |
| Nevada | 13.60¢ | $82.69 | $6.89 |
| Nebraska | 13.59¢ | $82.63 | $6.89 |
| Oklahoma | 13.38¢ | $81.35 | $6.78 |
| Utah | 12.96¢ | $78.80 | $6.57 |
| Idaho | 12.35¢ | $75.09 | $6.26 |
One certified clothes dryer at the median consumption of 608 kWh a year, wired to 51 different tariffs. Same appliance, same duty cycle, same certification — only the tariff changes.
SOURCE·US EIA Electric Power Monthly, table 5.6.A·retrieved 2026-07-28·REVIEWED JUL 2026
Schedule notes
How much does it cost to run a clothes dryer?
About $118.01 a year at the US average residential price of 19.41¢ per kWh, for a typical ENERGY STAR certified clothes dryer using 608 kWh annually. Your own tariff decides the rest — put it into the terminal beside the register and the figure re-reads.
Which clothes dryers are cheapest to run?
The certified list runs from 122 to 687 kWh a year across 628 models, so at the US average the best costs $23.68 a year to run and the worst $133.35. The full ranking is on this page, in certified order, with nothing promoted.
Does the state I live in change the answer?
Considerably. The same clothes dryer costs $75.09 a year in Idaho at 12.35¢ and $316.16 in Hawaii at 52.00¢. Every state is listed on this page.
