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How Much Does It Cost to Run a Computer Monitor in the US? (2026)
A 24 inch office monitor draws around 20 to 30 watts. Large 4K or high-refresh gaming monitors can reach 60 to 80 watts, comparable to the computer they are attached to.
A typical computer monitor (30 W) costs $0.005 per hour, or about $1.30 per month at 8 hours a day in United States (average). Cheap to run
| Wattage | Per hour | Per day | Per month | Per year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Low (15 W) | $0.003 | $0.022 | $0.65 | $7.88 |
| Typical (30 W) | $0.005 | $0.043 | $1.30 | $15.77 |
| High (80 W) | $0.014 | $0.12 | $3.46 | $42.05 |
Formula: watts ÷ 1000 × hours × price per kWh. Typical use is 8 h/day ≈ 88 kWh per year.
In the US, with electricity at $0.18 per kWh (source: EIA Electric Power Monthly, 2026-06), a typical computer monitor costs $0.005 per hour and about $15.77 per year at 8 hours a day. Each $1.00 of electricity buys roughly 185.2 hours of use.
How to lower the cost of running a computer monitor
- Lower brightness. Most monitors ship far brighter than needed indoors.
- Set the display to sleep after 5 to 10 minutes idle.
- Turn off a second monitor when not in use.
In standby it draws about 0.5 W, which adds roughly 4 kWh ($0.79) per year if it is never unplugged.
Frequently asked questions
How much electricity does a monitor use per day?
About 0.25 kWh for 8 hours on a typical 30 watt monitor.
Do monitors use power when off?
About half a watt in standby.
Does a bigger monitor use more electricity?
Yes. Power scales roughly with screen area and brightness.
Cost by region
- United States (average)
- California
- Texas
- New York
- Florida
- Canada (average)
- United Kingdom
- Germany
- France
- Australia
- India