Home › Appliances › Kitchen › Electric Kettle › United States (average)
How Much Does It Cost to Run a Electric Kettle in the US? (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 $0.36 per hour, or about $1.62 per month at 0.15 hours a day in United States (average). Cheap to run
| Wattage | Per hour | Per day | Per month | Per year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Low (1,500 W) | $0.27 | $0.040 | $1.21 | $14.78 |
| Typical (2,000 W) | $0.36 | $0.054 | $1.62 | $19.71 |
| High (3,000 W) | $0.54 | $0.081 | $2.43 | $29.56 |
Formula: watts ÷ 1000 × hours × price per kWh. Typical use is 0.15 h/day ≈ 110 kWh per year.
In the US, with electricity at $0.18 per kWh (source: EIA Electric Power Monthly, 2026-06), a typical electric kettle costs $0.36 per hour and about $19.71 per year at 0.15 hours a day. Each $1.00 of electricity buys roughly 2.8 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
Cost by region
- United States (average)
- California
- Texas
- New York
- Florida
- Canada (average)
- United Kingdom
- Germany
- France
- Australia
- India