Cost to run

How much does a washing machine cost per load?

The washer's own motor and electronics use modest electricity; the expensive part of laundry is heating water, which belongs to your water heater when it is a separate appliance.

Reviewed 2026-07-15 · methodology appliance-energy-1.0.0 · data vintage 2026-04-ytd

Example costs using the Texas state-average rate

These are generated examples for a consistent location. Enter your own ZIP and usage below for a more relevant state-average estimate.

Scenario	Assumption	kWh/month	Monthly range	Most likely/year
Cold-water loads	One-hour cold cycles, twelve per month	3.30	$0.35–$0.78	$16.14
Family laundry	One-hour cycles, twenty per month	6.00	$0.64–$1.43	$17.61
Warm wash, internal heater	90-minute cycles with onboard heating, twenty per month	19.80	$2.11–$4.71	$58.11

Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration, Electric Power Monthly Table 5.6.B. Data vintage 2026-04-ytd. State-average pricing is not your exact utility tariff.

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Motor electricity is the small line item

Agitation, tumbling, draining, and spinning together draw a few hundred watts across a cycle with plenty of pauses. Even frequent laundry keeps the washer's own share of the bill low compared with drying and water heating.

Where the hot water cost lives

Machines fed from the household hot-water line shift heating energy onto the water heater's bill, not the washer's. Models with internal heaters — common in front-loaders — pull that energy at the washer's own plug, which the warm-wash scenario represents.

Spin speed quietly affects dryer cost

Faster final spins extract more water mechanically, shortening dryer time at trivial extra washer energy. Cold-water detergents have also made cold cycles a genuine cost lever, though fabric and stain needs are outside this model's scope.

Frequently asked questions

Why is my washer's electricity cost so low per load?

Motors doing intermittent mechanical work simply use less energy than heating elements. Water heating and drying are where laundry energy concentrates.

Do cold washes really save money?

Yes — they eliminate the water-heating energy entirely, whether that heating happens in the machine or at the water heater. The washer's motor cost barely changes.

Front-loader or top-loader: which is cheaper to run?

Front-loaders typically use less water and extract more in the spin, lowering downstream heating and drying costs; their own motor draw is comparable.

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