How Much Does It Cost To Run An Electric Heater

Why Should You Buy A Space Heater?

When it’s cold outside, cozying up next to an electric heater can be so comfortable. These portable devices work by lighting up a wire coil and then using a small built-in fan to blow the heat out into space.

Heaters can be a great addition to your central air conditioner because they can provide targetted heat to a specific part in your room when needed or be used in rooms with inadequate central heating.

Electric heaters are portable, easy to use. By using them for a few hours on as need basis, you will be able to reduce your thermostat settings by a few degrees too.

How To Choose The Right Space Heater?

Before we look at the electricity consumption of space heaters, we need to purchase the right one. There are many different models with varying sizes, technology, safety features, and of course costs, so we encourage you to do thorough research before you invest in one.

Selecting the right model will play a huge role in ensuring you don’t overpay for your heater running costs down the road. Let’s look at the heater capacity. The general rule of thumb is that you’ll need roughly 10 watts of heating power for every square foot in the room.

For quick reference, you can use the below guide:

How Much Electricity Does A Space Heater Use?

To calculate how much electricity your heater will consume (and ultimately cost you on the electric bill), you need to take into consideration two factors – the heater’s wattage (the amount of electricity it is using per hour) and your current electricity cost in cents per kilowatt-hour.

We discussed the wattage output above, so let’s assume that to run, your device uses 1500 watts (or 1.5 kilowatts) per hour.

What about the electricity cost per hour? The average electricity rates differ in every US state and they will greatly impact your final electric bill. If you are able to switch electric suppliers, you should definitely compare electric plans in your zip code to see if you can lower your electric rate.

Not sure what’s your current electric rate? You can look at your electricity bill to find out the value (it will be written in cents per kilowatt-hour). Now that we have all the numbers we need to calculate the running cost of a portable electric heater to heat up your home.

How Much Does It Cost To Run A Space Heater Per Day?

Let’s say you have a 1,500-watt electric heater – which simply means that the device uses 1.5 kW every running hour. Assuming it’s a cold day, you will want to leave your heater on for 8 hours per day.

Let’s assume that you live in Texas and you haven’t yet switched electric suppliers, which means that you are paying the standard tariff of 11.85 cents per kilowatt-hour.

1,5 kilowatts x 8 hours x $0.1185 rate = $1.42/day.

How Much Does It Cost To Run A Space Heater Per Month?

$1.42 / day? It doesn’t seem like a lot. But it’s important to remember that these costs can quickly add up. Let’s look at the monthly cost.

$1.42/day x 30 days = $42.66 per month

Of course, this calculation is based on approximate figures, but hopefully, it gave you a good template to calculate your own cost.Take into consideration also that by using a heater every now and then to heat up a room, you will probably be able to lower your thermostat settings by a few degrees, resulting in a lower cost per month.

The best heaters will warm you up without keeping the costs unnecessary high. If you are thinking about buying one, try to look for an efficient model (lower usage per hour), or consider getting an oil heater.

Updated on 05-22-23