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What’s the Typical Electricity Consumption for American Homes?

how much power does a house use

Nowadays, we take electricity for granted and expect that whenever we push a button or flick the switch, the power comes on. In fact, we now rely on electricity so much that every American consumes about six times more household electricity than the global average and the number keeps rising. What does it mean for the customers and their electric bills? Does home electric usage vary between Texas, Louisiana, or North Carolina? We explore the answers to these questions in this article.

Average Electrical Consumption per Month

We Americans like to use a lot of electricity!  An average US household consumes approximately 975 kilowatt-hours of electricity each month, three times more than the United Kingdom. Germany and Italy consume even less, 277 and 220 kilowatt-hours retrospectively. 

Luckily, our average electricity prices are lower than in other developed countries, which is great – otherwise, our bills would be astronomically high! According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, the national average monthly electricity bill for residential customers in 2020 was $115, approximately 1.8% lower than it had been in 2019 ($118).

Due to the growing population and increasing electrification in our homes (think of all the appliances in your house that need to be plugged in), the home electricity usage (and with it our monthly bill) continues to rise– the EIA projects a nearly 50% increase in world energy use by 2050.

Have you ever wondered how an average household electricity bill is calculated?

Kilowatt Hours Used x Electric Rate (Cents per Kilowatt Hour) ÷ 100 = Household Electric Bill

If you are hearing these terms for the first time, keep reading. We will talk about household usage and electricity rates in a minute. We will also help you identify what affects your usage and how to reduce it and your costs.

Factors Affecting Your Electrical Usage

Your electricity bills will directly depend on the amount of electricity that you use every month so the first thing you should do is to calculate your average monthly electricity usage. According to EIA, the average U.S. household usage can vary from anywhere between 700 and 2000 kWhs. What factors affect such a big gap?

Home Size

On average, energy usage in houses is much higher than in apartments. The square footage of your property affects your energy consumption greatly. The more space you have, the more energy you will use for heating and cooling it. One study estimates that every additional square foot will add approximately 0.5 kWh to your usage.

Electrical Appliances

After your square footage, the type of appliances you own and use on regular basis will be the second most important factor in the size of your household electricity usage. For example, heating and cooling your house is responsible for nearly half of your total energy costs (whether you use electricity or natural gas). How do your appliances impact your kilowatt-hours (kWh)?

Not Using Energy Efficient Appliances

Inefficient, old appliances will use about 35% more energy than the newer alternatives. A home outfitted with ENERGY STAR-certified products can potentially save you $250 or more per year on utility bills. It might cost you a bit more upfront, but these appliances will pay for themselves in the first cycle of electricity savings.

Broken or Damaged Appliances

A broken or damaged appliance might drastically increase the amount of electricity you use because it has to work harder to make up for the fault. Always replace damaged electric devices as soon as possible, especially air conditioners and heating units.

Vampire Appliances

You heard right! You might have an energy vampire in your home and you don’t even know it. We of course talk about things that continue to consume electricity, even when they are turned off or in a standby mode – a television, a stereo, laptop, or a computer for example.

U.S. State

Even the state where you live will impact how much electricity your household use on regular basis. How is it possible? Frequent extreme temperatures, such as in Texas, might require you to keep your central heating or air conditioning on at all times and be one of the reasons for the unusually high usage.

Highest Residential Electric Usage Per State

We know that electricity prices per kilowatt-hour vary widely by location; the average Hawaiian consumer spends $203 every month on electricity. Does the average electricity consumption also vary? The answer is yes. Let’s look at the 10 U.S. states that use the most electricity.

RankStateAverage Kilowatt Hours Used% Higher Than National AverageAverage Electric Rate: January 2020Average Monthly Bill ($)
1Tennessee1,28346%9.58122.91
2Louisiana1,28246%7.7198.84
3Mississippi1,24742%9.24115.22
4Alabama1,23641%9.63119.03
5Texas1,17634%8.4899.72
6Kentucky1,16633%8.5299.34
7Virginia1,16533%9.48110.44
8South Carolina1,15932%9.67112.08
9Arkansas1,15632%7.7889.94
10Georgia1,14230%9.62109.86

As you can see, Tennessee and Louisiana have the highest average monthly electricity consumption per household. Luckily, their average electric rates are on the lower end, partially offsetting the impact of high usage on the electricity bill.

Lowest Residential Electric Usage Per State

Which U.S. homes use on average the least amount of electricity?

RankStateAverage Kilowatt Hours Used% Lower Than National AverageAverage Electric Rate: January 2020Average Monthly Bill ($)
1Hawaii51841%29.18151.15
2California54638%16.5890.53
3Vermont56036%15.1384.73
4Alaska57235%19.36110.74
5Maine57235%13.4476.88
6Rhode Island58933%18.1106.61
7New York60431%14.8389.57
8Massachusetts60731%18.5112.3
9New Hampshire62129%17.01105.63
10New Mexico63927%9.3559.75

You probably spotted the anomaly – Hawaii has by far the lowest home energy consumption, yet the average residential electric bills that customers pay are very high! This has got to do with the astronomical price per kilowatt-hour of electricity. As an island, Hawaii is surrounded by nothing but the ocean, so it has to import almost all of its energy sources, which adds greatly to the costs. 

Methods to Reduce Electricity Consumption

how much electricity does the average person use?

Now that we established what your home energy consumption is and why it might be so high, let’s get to work with lowering that number. The good news is that there are actually as many as 25 different ways to save power in every room of your house. What are some of the best ways to reduce your monthly power use?

Unplug, Unplug, Unplug

Get in a habit of unplugging your devices you are not using, or before you go to bed – be it lamps, laptops, or a stereo. Thanks to increased connectivity, your electronic devices continue to consume power while waiting to be switched back on with a remote. If left uncontrolled, this can add up to a high number of kWh per month. Consider getting a smart power strip, which shuts off electronics that are no longer in use, to avoid high standby power costs.

Utilize Natural Lighting

Take advantage of sunny days by opening up the curtains and benefiting from natural, rather than artificial light. Sunlight will not only help you by saving energy but will also get you in a better mood!

Consume Less Hot Water

No one likes cold water when you shower. But if your water heater thermostat is set at 140ºF by default, the standby heat loss alone might add up to $61 in annual costs. Use less water in general – take quick refreshing showers instead of baths, turn the tap off while you brush, or apply shampoo and don’t pre-rinse.

Avail a Smart Thermostat

A programmable thermostat conserves energy by automatically reducing the heating and cooling of your household when you are away. Some newer versions will even learn your daily routines and program themselves, like the Nest thermostat from Google. A pro tip –some electric suppliers offer a free programmable thermostat device when you sign up for one of their electric plans, so keep an eye out when you shop for energy rates.

Practice Energy Efficiency

Practice energy efficiency whenever you can. It might feel like a big inconvenience in the beginning, but you will quickly get used to it. Don’t run a half-empty dishwasher, turn off the lights when you leave the room, and don’t blast the AC unit for the whole day if you don’t have to. You will be surprised how much energy you can save!

FAQs

Below are answers to some of the questions you might have about how much electricity an average household use per day, month, or year.

Is 50 kWh a day a lot?

An average U.S. residential household uses about 877 kWh of electricity per month, which comes to 30 kWh a day, give or take. Therefore, 50kWh is on the high end of daily power consumption, but it definitely falls within the average. If you are worried that your power usage is too high, there are a number of things you can do! Follow our guide to  25 different ways to save power in every room of your household.

Why is your electric bill so high?

There are a number of reasons why your residential electricity or gas bills might be high. You might be using energy inefficiently, for example by excessive heating and cooling, or perhaps some of your electric devices are damaged and consume more kilowatts than normal. If you think that your bill is higher than it should be, it might be worth scheduling a utility bill audit.

What uses the most electricity in a house?

According to the Department of Energy, the biggest portion of your energy consumption is attributed to heating and cooling it. These two items are closely followed by a water heater, a fridge, and your oven. Lighting definitely plays a role too – depending on how many rooms do you have and how diligent you are about turning off the lights when you leave the room. Next time you need to buy new light bulbs, replace them with LEDs. LED bulbs use at least 75% less energy and last 25 times longer, potentially reducing your annual price by $200 if you have more than thirty lights.

What is the average electricity usage for a 3-bed house?

According to the US Energy Information Administration, an average U.S. residential household uses about 877 kWh of electricity per month. A 3 bedroom home is considered to be a medium energy usage household, which means that it will use 12,000 kWh of gas and 3,100 kWh of electricity.

Final Words

The amount of electricity you use per day, per month, or per year in your home is determined by a number of factors, but it certainly isn’t fixed. You can take steps to reduce your energy spending, which in turn will also lower your costs. If you already identified the devices that use the most electricity and you are on track to reduce your consumption, you can go one step further and compare electricity prices in your zip code, for further savings!

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