Home › Appliances › Kitchen › Rice Cooker › United States (average)
How Much Does It Cost to Run a Rice Cooker in the US? (2026)
A rice cooker draws full power only while bringing water to the boil, then drops to a low keep-warm setting of 30 to 60 watts. A typical cook uses well under 0.3 kWh.
A typical rice cooker (500 W) costs $0.090 per hour, or about $1.35 per month at 0.5 hours a day in United States (average). Cheap to run
| Wattage | Per hour | Per day | Per month | Per year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Low (300 W) | $0.054 | $0.027 | $0.81 | $9.86 |
| Typical (500 W) | $0.090 | $0.045 | $1.35 | $16.43 |
| High (1,000 W) | $0.18 | $0.090 | $2.70 | $32.85 |
Formula: watts ÷ 1000 × hours × price per kWh. Typical use is 0.5 h/day ≈ 91 kWh per year.
In the US, with electricity at $0.18 per kWh (source: EIA Electric Power Monthly, 2026-06), a typical rice cooker costs $0.090 per hour and about $16.43 per year at 0.5 hours a day. Each $1.00 of electricity buys roughly 11.1 hours of use.
How to lower the cost of running a rice cooker
- Turn off keep-warm once the rice is done. Over several hours it can use more than the cook itself.
- Cook larger batches and refrigerate leftovers.
- Use the quick cook mode if your cooker has one.
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 electricity does a rice cooker use per batch?
About 0.2 to 0.3 kWh, less than a cent in most regions.
Is a rice cooker cheaper than the stove?
Yes. It is insulated and switches itself down, so it uses less energy than a pot on a burner.
Does keep-warm use a lot of power?
About 40 watts, so leaving it on for 8 hours uses more than cooking the rice.
Cost by region
- United States (average)
- California
- Texas
- New York
- Florida
- Canada (average)
- United Kingdom
- Germany
- France
- Australia
- India