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Electricity Bill for a Single person in an apartment in Canada (2026)
One adult in a one or two room flat. The fridge runs all year, cooking is quick, and a laptop and TV cover the evenings. Nothing runs long enough to dominate.
A single person in an apartment uses about 6,583 kWh of electricity a year. At Canada (average) prices of C$0.14 per kWh (source: Canada Energy Regulator 2026 market snapshot, 2026-06), that is C$76.80 per month, or C$921.62 per year.
Benchmark: Natural Resources Canada, Survey of Household Energy Use 2019, Table 3.5a electricity intensity per household (GJ converted at 277.78 kWh/GJ): High-rise apartment. Data as of 2019. It covers all electricity use; electric heating is common in Quebec, Manitoba and Atlantic Canada, which is why those averages are high.
Where the electricity goes
- Heating & cooling 35%
- Other appliances 19%
- Water heating 15%
- Refrigeration & freezing 10%
- Washing, drying & dishwashing 6%
- TV, computing & network 6%
- Lighting 6%
- Cooking 3%
| End use | Per year | Cost | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| Heating & cooling | 2,304 kWh | C$322.57 | 35% |
| Water heating | 987 kWh | C$138.24 | 15% |
| Refrigeration & freezing | 658 kWh | C$92.16 | 10% |
| Cooking | 197 kWh | C$27.65 | 3% |
| Washing, drying & dishwashing | 395 kWh | C$55.30 | 6% |
| TV, computing & network | 395 kWh | C$55.30 | 6% |
| Lighting | 395 kWh | C$55.30 | 6% |
| Other appliances | 1,251 kWh | C$175.11 | 19% |
End-use shares: Derived. NRCan publishes residential end-use shares for all fuels (space heating 59%, water heating 19%, appliances 14%, lighting 4%, cooling 3%, 2023) but not for electricity alone; electricity shares here are an approximation that treats roughly half of Canadian homes as electrically heated. Some of these shares are derived rather than published; see the note.
What drives this household's bill
- The fridge is usually the single largest item because it never switches off.
- Cooking with the oven instead of the microwave or air fryer is the easiest cost to cut.
- Standby draw across router, TV, console and chargers can reach a fifth of the total.
Appliance by appliance
Each end-use bucket above is spread over this household's appliances in proportion to their typical use, never at more than twice that use. What the listed appliances cannot account for appears as "not listed" rows, so the table still adds up to the official figures. Hours are implied, not measured.
| Appliance | End use | Typical | Hours/day | Per year | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Refrigerator | Refrigeration & freezing | 150 W | 12.0 h | 658 kWh | C$92.16 |
| LED Light Bulb ×5 | Lighting | 9 W | 10.0 h | 164 kWh | C$23.00 |
| Television | TV, computing & network | 100 W | 4.2 h | 153 kWh | C$21.35 |
| Washing Machine ×0.4 | Washing, drying & dishwashing | 500 W | 2.0 h | 146 kWh | C$20.44 |
| Laptop | TV, computing & network | 45 W | 8.4 h | 137 kWh | C$19.22 |
| Induction Cooktop ×0.5 | Cooking | 1,800 W | 21 min | 115 kWh | C$16.05 |
| Hair Dryer | Other appliances | 1,800 W | 9 min | 99 kWh | C$13.80 |
| Wi-Fi Router | TV, computing & network | 10 W | 24.0 h | 88 kWh | C$12.26 |
| Vacuum Cleaner ×0.5 | Other appliances | 1,000 W | 15 min | 46 kWh | C$6.39 |
| Electric Kettle | Cooking | 2,000 W | 3 min | 38 kWh | C$5.35 |
| Microwave | Cooking | 1,000 W | 5 min | 32 kWh | C$4.46 |
| Toaster | Cooking | 1,000 W | 2 min | 13 kWh | C$1.78 |
| Phone Charger | TV, computing & network | 10 W | 2.1 h | 8 kWh | C$1.07 |
| Streaming Stick or Box | TV, computing & network | 4 W | 4.2 h | 6 kWh | C$0.85 |
| Small appliances, standby and items not listed | Other appliances | – | – | 1,107 kWh | C$154.92 |
| Extra loads or older machines not listed | Washing, drying & dishwashing | – | – | 249 kWh | C$34.86 |
| Additional lights and fittings | Lighting | – | – | 231 kWh | C$32.30 |
| Other screens, chargers, standby | TV, computing & network | – | – | 4 kWh | C$0.55 |
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The same household in other countries
| Country | Official benchmark | Per year | Per month |
|---|---|---|---|
| United States (average) | 7,184 kWh | $1,293 | $107.76 |
| United Kingdom | 1,600 kWh | £416.00 | £34.67 |
| Germany | 1,200 kWh | €444.00 | €37.00 |
| France | 1,905 kWh | €381.00 | €31.75 |
| Australia | 3,109 kWh | A$1,088 | A$90.68 |
| Canada (average) | 6,583 kWh | C$921.62 | C$76.80 |
Each row uses that country's own regulator benchmark and average price, in local currency. Differences reflect climate, heating fuel and appliance ownership as much as price.
Compare this household
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