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How Much Does It Cost to Run a Electric Kettle in British Columbia? (2026)
Kettles draw a lot of power but for only a few minutes. Boiling a litre of water takes about 0.1 kWh regardless of kettle wattage; a higher wattage kettle just does it faster.
A typical electric kettle (2,000 W) costs C$0.26 per hour, or about C$1.17 per month at 0.15 hours a day in British Columbia. Cheap to run
| Wattage | Per hour | Per day | Per month | Per year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Low (1,500 W) | C$0.20 | C$0.029 | C$0.88 | C$10.68 |
| Typical (2,000 W) | C$0.26 | C$0.039 | C$1.17 | C$14.24 |
| High (3,000 W) | C$0.39 | C$0.058 | C$1.75 | C$21.35 |
Formula: watts ÷ 1000 × hours × price per kWh. Typical use is 0.15 h/day ≈ 110 kWh per year.
One hour of an electric kettle (2.0 kWh) is the same electricity as
- 11km in an electric car
- 20hours of TV
- 133phone charges
- 222hours of an LED bulb
In British Columbia, with electricity at C$0.13 per kWh (source: Hydro-Québec 2025 comparison, 2025-04), a typical electric kettle costs C$0.26 per hour and about C$14.24 per year at 0.15 hours a day. That is about 7% less than the national average for Canada (C$1.26 per month), because electricity in British Columbia costs C$0.13 per kWh against C$0.14 nationally. Each C$1.00 of electricity buys roughly 3.8 hours of use.
How to lower the cost of running a electric kettle
- Boil only the water you need. Filling the kettle for one cup doubles or triples the cost.
- Descale regularly. Limescale on the element slows heating.
- A kettle with a keep-warm function can use more over a day than boiling twice.
- Kettles are more efficient than boiling water on an electric stovetop.
Frequently asked questions
How much does it cost to boil a kettle?
About 0.1 kWh per litre. A full 1.7 litre kettle uses roughly 0.17 kWh.
Is a 3,000 W kettle more expensive to run than a 2,000 W one?
No. It uses the same energy to boil the same water, just in less time.
Is it cheaper to boil water in a microwave?
No. Kettles are generally more efficient for boiling water than microwaves.
Compare with
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