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How Much Does It Cost to Run a Outdoor Security Floodlight in the US? (2026)
An LED floodlight draws 10 to 50 watts, replacing 150 to 500 watt halogen units. Motion sensors keep them off most of the night, which matters more than the wattage.
A typical outdoor security floodlight (30 W) costs $0.005 per hour, or about $1.62 per month at 10 hours a day in United States (average). Cheap to run
| Wattage | Per hour | Per day | Per month | Per year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Low (10 W) | $0.002 | $0.018 | $0.54 | $6.57 |
| Typical (30 W) | $0.005 | $0.054 | $1.62 | $19.71 |
| High (100 W) | $0.018 | $0.18 | $5.40 | $65.70 |
Formula: watts ÷ 1000 × hours × price per kWh. Typical use is 10 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 outdoor security floodlight costs $0.005 per hour and about $19.71 per year at 10 hours a day. Each $1.00 of electricity buys roughly 185.2 hours of use.
How to lower the cost of running a outdoor security floodlight
- Use motion sensors rather than dusk-to-dawn on lights that are only for security.
- Replace any halogen floodlight with LED. It cuts consumption by 80 to 90 percent.
- Aim lights where needed instead of adding more.
In standby it draws about 1 W, which adds roughly 9 kWh ($1.58) per year if it is never unplugged.
Frequently asked questions
How much does it cost to run an outdoor light all night?
A 30 watt LED for 10 hours uses 0.3 kWh, a few cents a night.
Do motion sensor lights use electricity when off?
About 1 watt for the sensor, roughly 9 kWh a year.
How much does a halogen floodlight cost compared with LED?
A 500 watt halogen for 10 hours uses 5 kWh, versus 0.3 to 0.5 kWh for an LED of similar brightness.
Cost by region
- United States (average)
- California
- Texas
- New York
- Florida
- Canada (average)
- United Kingdom
- Germany
- France
- Australia
- India