Calculate Your Monthly Electric Bill
Find your usage in kWh and your rate on your utility bill. The starting numbers below are examples: replace them with yours.
Other charges and credits (optional)
Where the money goes
Credits reduce the total, so they show as a negative amount. Every bar is labelled with its dollar value.
By day, week, month and year
The annual figure assumes this bill's daily cost stays the same all year. Real bills usually rise in summer or winter, so treat it as a baseline, not a forecast.
Effective cost per kWh
Effective cost is the total of the charges in this calculation divided by kWh. It can be higher than your utility's listed energy rate because fixed charges, delivery or supply charges, taxes, and credits are all spread across the same kWh.
What this result suggests
What happens if your usage changes?
750 kWh → $0
| Monthly usage | Bill | vs. your bill |
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How Much Electricity Does My Home Use?
Answer a few questions and the tool estimates monthly kWh for your home. It is an estimate based on the information you enter. Your actual usage may differ.
Home type
People in the household
Heating
Cooling
Water heating
Typical AC and heating use
Major appliances
More options: renting, EV, solar
Is electricity the only utility you pay?
The range comes from running the same home through lighter and heavier heating, cooling and household habits. Costs shown are energy charges only: fixed charges and fees come on top.
What makes up the typical estimate
Appliance Electricity Cost Calculator
Pick an appliance, adjust the numbers to match yours, and see kWh and cost. Power ratings are typical values: your appliance label or manual is more accurate.
How Much Does an AC Cost Per Hour?
The first figure assumes full power for a full hour. Real AC use varies with cycling, efficiency, thermostat setting, outdoor temperature and system size. Estimates use the "time the compressor actually runs" value above for daily, monthly and yearly figures.
What Uses the Most Electricity in Your Home?
Add more appliances to build a fuller picture of your home's electricity use. Use the appliance form above, or send your estimated home breakdown from the My Usage tab.
Check My Electric Bill
Enter whatever you have from this month's and last month's bill. Nothing is mandatory, but the diagnosis gets sharper with each field you add.
Current bill
Previous bill
More bill details (optional)
Current
Previous
Test Savings and Rate Scenarios
Change one number and see what it does to your bill. These scenarios use energy charges only.
What if your electricity rate changes?
What would using less electricity save?
How much should I budget for electricity each month?
Monthly bills swing with the seasons and with rate changes, so an average budget works best alongside a cushion for your highest-use months.
Results run on your device. Nothing you type here is sent or stored.
How Your Monthly Electric Bill Is Calculated
Every bill, from a studio apartment to a large house, comes from the same building blocks. Here is the whole path from meter reading to the amount due.
Electricity usage
Your meter counts energy in kilowatt-hours (kWh). One kWh is 1,000 watts running for one hour. Your bill lists the total for the billing period, usually 28 to 33 days.
Electricity rate
The rate is the price of each kWh, quoted in cents. A rate of 18.5¢/kWh means 100 kWh costs $18.50. Some plans have tiers, time-of-use pricing or seasonal rates, so the price you pay may not be one flat number.
Energy charge
Multiply usage by rate: 750 kWh × 18.5¢ = $138.75. This is usually the largest single piece.
Fixed charges
Many utilities add a monthly customer or service charge that you pay even if you use very little electricity.
Additional charges
Delivery, supply, riders, taxes and fees may be listed separately. Some are priced per kWh and some are flat amounts.
Credits
Bill credits, rebates or solar export credits are subtracted from the total.
Final bill
Add it all up: $138.75 + $15 fixed = $153.75 for this example. Put your own numbers into the to see yours. For a more detailed breakdown, see how to calculate an electricity bill.
The colors match the breakdown chart in the calculator: teal is energy, blue is fixed charges, amber is other charges, green is credits.
What Changes Your Electric Bill?
Heating and cooling are often the biggest swing factors. Hot summers and cold winters push usage up.
More square footage generally means more space to heat and cool.
More people means more laundry, hot water, cooking and devices.
Electric water heaters, dryers, ranges, pool pumps and EV chargers are large loads.
Same kWh, higher price per kWh, higher bill. Test it in the .
A 34-day bill covers more days than a 28-day bill, so it can look higher even at the same daily use.
kW vs. kWh
kW = power
How fast electricity is being used right now. It is the number on an appliance label.
kWh = energy
How much electricity was used over time. It is what you are billed for.
Think of kW as your speed and kWh as the distance traveled. A 100-watt bulb running 10 hours uses 1 kWh, exactly like a 1,000-watt heater running for one hour. If you want a deeper explanation of power versus energy, see the guide on how to calculate kW.
How to Estimate Your Electricity Bill Online
You can calculate your electricity bill online with two numbers: how many kWh you used and what you pay per kWh. That is exactly what the asks for first. Add your fixed monthly charge if you know it, and any fees or credits, and you have the bill.
If you don't have a recent bill, the builds a kWh figure from your home type, size, household, heating, cooling and appliances. Then you can carry that estimate straight into the bill calculator. Either way, you get a monthly electric bill estimate, plus annual, weekly and daily views.
There is no need to enter a street address. A state selection is enough for the climate assumption, and your rate can be copied from your utility bill or plan page. The rate matters more than the address: two homes in the same city can pay different rates on different plans.
How Much Electricity Does a Home Use Per Month?
There is no single answer, but national household averages in the United States are usually cited at roughly 850 to 900 kWh per month, with big differences by state, home type and heating fuel. Homes that heat with electricity or run central AC most of the summer can be far above that, while a small apartment with gas heat can be far below it.
To find out how much electricity your house uses, the most reliable source is your bill or your utility's online account, which usually shows monthly kWh for the past year. If you can't get that, the gives a low, typical and high case for your home and shows which category, such as cooling or water heating, contributes the most.
How Much Electricity Should a 2,000 Sq Ft House Use?
A 2,000-square-foot home can use very different amounts of electricity depending on climate, insulation, HVAC, water heating, household size, appliances, EV charging and other factors. Square footage alone can't determine consumption. The table below runs four different 2,000 sq ft homes through the same model used in the usage estimator.
| 2,000 sq ft home | Lower | Typical | Higher |
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Illustrative outputs from this tool's estimation model, in kWh per month, not measured data.
How Much Should My Electric Bill Be Per Month?
Your bill should roughly equal your usage times your rate, plus fixed charges. A power bill that is "normal" depends on all three. A household using 600 kWh at 14¢ pays far less than one using 1,200 kWh at 24¢, even though nothing is wrong with either.
A better test than a national average is your own history: compare this month with the same month last year, and compare your effective cost per kWh with your listed rate. The does that comparison. For budgeting, the turns an annual figure into a monthly one.
How Much Electricity Should I Use Per Month?
The usage you "should" have is the amount that matches your home and lifestyle. Typical factors are size, occupancy, climate, and whether heating, cooking and hot water are electric. Run the estimator, then use the to see what a 50, 100 or 200 kWh reduction would be worth at your rate.
What Uses the Most Electricity at Home?
In most homes the heavy hitters are heating and cooling, then water heating, then large appliances such as dryers and ovens. EV charging and pool pumps can rival any of them when present. Lighting, TVs and chargers add up but are usually smaller.
To see your own ranking, add appliances in the . The list sorts them by monthly cost and names your biggest estimated electricity user.
How Much Does AC Cost Per Hour?
The cost of one hour of AC equals the AC's power draw in kW times your rate. A 3 kW central system at 18.5¢/kWh costs about $0.56 for an hour of continuous running. But AC cycles on and off, so a "4 hours a day" habit may mean the compressor actually runs a fraction of that time. The AC cost section in the lets you set both hours and cycling.
How to Calculate Electricity Cost From kWh
Multiply kWh by the rate in dollars. With a rate in cents, divide by 100 first: 742 kWh × 18.5¢ = 742 × 0.185 = $137.27. To calculate cost by appliance, first find kWh: watts ÷ 1,000 × hours. A 1,500-watt heater used for 5 hours is 7.5 kWh, or $1.39 at 18.5¢. For more worked examples, see the energy cost calculator guide.
Why Is My Electric Bill Higher Than Expected?
A bill rises for one of four reasons, or a mix: you used more kWh, the price per kWh increased, the billing period was longer, or other charges grew. The splits the dollar difference between two bills into exactly those pieces, using only the numbers you enter. When the data isn't enough to say, it tells you what to add.
Moving, Renting or Adding an EV or Solar?
The usage estimator has options for renters, new homes, EV charging and rooftop solar. If you are pricing a new place, choose the home type and household details, then compare the estimate with the bills of the previous tenants if the landlord or utility can share them. If you rent, the tool asks whether electricity is the only utility you pay, since many renters also pay water, gas or trash.
What Happens If Electricity Rates Change?
A rate increase raises the energy charge in proportion. If your rate goes from 18.5¢ to 22¢ and you use 742 kWh, your energy cost rises by about $26 a month, or $312 a year. Try your own numbers in the .
How to Lower Your Monthly Electricity Cost
Start with what you can measure. Your biggest load, shown by the appliance ranking, is where a change matters most. Then use the savings tool to compare different reductions. For practical steps, see how to save money on electricity, and if your monthly bill went up, how to decrease your electricity bill.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I calculate my monthly electric bill?
Multiply your monthly usage in kilowatt-hours (kWh) by your rate per kWh, add fixed monthly charges and any other fees or taxes, then subtract credits. For example, 750 kWh at 18.5 cents per kWh is $138.75 in energy charges. Adding a $15 fixed charge gives a $153.75 bill.
How do I calculate my electric bill online?
Enter your monthly kWh, your rate in cents per kWh, and your fixed monthly charge into the monthly electric bill calculator. Both kWh and the rate are printed on your utility bill or in your online account. If you do not know your kWh, use the usage estimator, which builds an estimate from your home type, size, household, heating, cooling and appliances.
How can I estimate my electricity bill?
There are two methods. If you know your usage, multiply kWh by your rate and add fixed charges. If you do not, estimate kWh from your home details such as size, number of people, climate, heating and cooling type and major appliances, then price that estimate at your rate. The tool supports both.
How do I calculate how much electricity my house uses?
Your bill shows total kWh for each billing period, so the most accurate answer is on your bill or utility account. To estimate without a bill, add up your appliances: watts divided by 1,000, times hours of use, times days, gives kWh for each. The appliance calculator and usage estimator do this for you.
What runs up your electric bill the most?
In most homes, heating and cooling account for the largest share, followed by water heating and large appliances such as dryers and ovens. EV charging and pool pumps can also be major loads. Add your appliances to the appliance calculator to see which ones cost you the most each month.
What uses the most electricity at home?
Heating and cooling usually come first, then electric water heaters, clothes dryers, refrigerators and other always-on loads. In homes with an EV or a pool, those can rival the biggest items. Your own ranking depends on which of these you have and how often they run.
How much electricity should a 2,000 sq ft house use?
There is no single number. A 2,000 square foot home can use very different amounts of electricity depending on climate, insulation, HVAC, water heating, household size, appliances and EV charging. Use the home profile in the usage estimator to get a range that matches your situation.
How much should a power bill be per month?
It depends on kWh used, your rate per kWh and your fixed charges, so there is no universal figure. A useful check is to compare your bill with the same month last year and to compare your effective cost per kWh with your listed rate. The bill checker does both comparisons.
How much electricity should I use per month?
The right amount depends on the size of your home, how many people live there, your climate and whether your heating, cooking and hot water use electricity. Estimate your own figure with the usage estimator, then compare it with your actual bills.
How much does one hour of AC cost?
Multiply the AC's power draw in kilowatts by your rate. A 3 kW system at 18.5 cents per kWh costs about $0.56 for an hour of non-stop running. AC cycles on and off, so actual cost depends on how much of the time the compressor runs, plus efficiency, thermostat setting, outdoor temperature and system size.
How is my utility bill calculated?
A utility bill is usage multiplied by rate, plus fixed charges and any other charges such as delivery, supply, fees and taxes, minus credits. Some plans add tiered or time-of-use pricing, which changes the rate depending on how much or when you use electricity.
Why is my electric bill higher than expected?
A higher bill comes from more kWh used, a higher cost per kWh, more days in the billing period, or larger fixed or other charges. Enter your current and previous bills in the bill checker to see how much of the difference each factor explains.
What is the difference between kW and kWh?
A kilowatt (kW) measures power, or how fast electricity is being used at a moment in time. A kilowatt-hour (kWh) measures energy, or how much was used over time. One kW running for one hour is one kWh, and kWh is the unit your utility bills you for.