Home › Appliances › Heating & Cooling › Electric Water Heater › United States (average)
How Much Does It Cost to Run a Electric Water Heater in the US? (2026)
A tank water heater is often the single largest electricity user in a home without electric heating. The element only runs a few hours a day, but at 4,000 watts or more those hours add up fast.
A typical electric water heater (4,000 W) costs $0.72 per hour, or about $64.80 per month at 3 hours a day in United States (average). Expensive to run
| Wattage | Per hour | Per day | Per month | Per year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Low (3,000 W) | $0.54 | $1.62 | $48.60 | $591.30 |
| Typical (4,000 W) | $0.72 | $2.16 | $64.80 | $788.40 |
| High (5,500 W) | $0.99 | $2.97 | $89.10 | $1,084 |
Formula: watts ÷ 1000 × hours × price per kWh. Typical use is 3 h/day ≈ 4,380 kWh per year.
In the US, with electricity at $0.18 per kWh (source: EIA Electric Power Monthly, 2026-06), a typical electric water heater costs $0.72 per hour and about $788.40 per year at 3 hours a day. Each $1.00 of electricity buys roughly 1.4 hours of use.
How to lower the cost of running a electric water heater
- Set the thermostat to 120 F (49 C). Factory settings are often 140 F.
- Insulate the tank and the first few feet of hot water pipe.
- Fix dripping hot taps. A slow drip can waste hundreds of litres of heated water a month.
- A heat pump water heater uses about a third of the electricity of a resistive tank.
Frequently asked questions
How many hours a day does a water heater run?
Typically 2 to 4 hours of element time, depending on household size and shower habits.
Is a tankless water heater cheaper to run?
It avoids standby losses, saving 10 to 30 percent, but electric tankless units need very high amperage.
Should I turn off my water heater at night?
A timer helps if you have time-of-use rates. Otherwise the savings are small because a well-insulated tank loses little heat overnight.
Compare with
Cost by region
- United States (average)
- California
- Texas
- New York
- Florida
- Canada (average)
- United Kingdom
- Germany
- France
- Australia
- India