Air conditioner cost per hour calculator
With your own tariff: nothing is downloaded or assumed.
Your inputs
Your inputs are processed on your device and are not sent to a server.
Example loaded. You can change any value.
There is no figure yet: nothing is calculated until you ask for it.
- Enter your measurements.
- Check the units and the assumptions.
- Press Calculate, or load the example.
Rather see a worked case? Press “Load example” and change any value afterwards.
Next step
What decides the bill is not one hour but the whole month.
Where each number comes from Conversion constants are exact; densities and coverage rates come from cited sources; everything else is an assumption you can change. Methodology · Sources and updates
How to use it
- Enter your unit's electrical power, or its capacity and efficiency.
- Type your real price per kWh: no tariff is downloaded.
- Choose the currency.
- The result gives cost per hour, day and month.
How it is calculated
Cost is consumption times price, and nothing more:
You enter the price per kWh, and that is deliberate. Tariffs vary by country, supplier, time band and season; downloading a "current" price would give a sense of accuracy that would not be real.
Take your average price per kWh from your last bill (energy charge divided by kWh used) and you will have the figure that actually matches your case.
Worked example
A 1,000 W unit with electricity at $0.17/kWh:
- Per hour: 1 x 0.17 = $0.17
- 8 hours a day: $1.36
- 30 days: $40.80 a month
If the unit drew 1,500 W, the same schedule would cost $2.04 a day and $61 a month: power matters as much as price.
Good to know
- A bill includes more than this. The calculation covers the energy used, not standing charges, taxes or meter rental.
- Time-of-use tariffs. If you are on a time-banded tariff, running the AC off-peak changes the cost noticeably.
- Real consumption varies. An inverter does not draw its rated power continuously: this is a reasonable upper bound.
Frequently asked questions
How much does it cost to run an air conditioner per hour?
With a 1,000 W unit and electricity at $0.17/kWh, about 17 cents per hour of continuous running. At 1,500 W it would be 26 cents.
How do I work out my price per kWh?
Divide the energy charge on your last bill by the kWh used. That average is more useful than the headline tariff rate.
Why do you not download the electricity price?
Because it varies by country, contract and hour, and an automatic figure would create false precision. Your bill is the right source.
Does the calculation include taxes?
Only if the price you enter already includes them. Using the average price from your bill including taxes gives a result that includes them.