Electricity cost by state: what your appliances cost to run
Electricity cost by state: homes paid 18.16¢ per kWh on average in August 2026, from 12.72¢ in Nevada to 47.18¢ in Hawaii. Pick your state: the tool prices five appliances.
Example at the U.S. average price — change any figure to see your own result
Five certified appliances, a year at the U.S. average price
$338
1,859 kWh at 18.16¢, August 2026 (17.57¢ a year earlier)
| Full-size refrigerator (465 kWh) | $84 |
| Upright freezer (438 kWh) | $80 |
| Clothes washer (110 kWh) | $20 |
| Electric dryer (607 kWh) | $110 |
| Dishwasher (239 kWh) | $43 |
At last year’s price the same set cost $327.
Compiled by Radif Partners · How the figures are built
Electricity cost by state varies more than appliance efficiency does. In August 2026, the average residential price was 18.16 cents per kWh across the country, against 17.57 cents in August 2025, according to the Energy Information Administration (EIA), the statistics agency of the Department of Energy. Hawaii paid the most, 47.18 cents, and Nevada the least, 12.72 cents. Prices rose in 44 of the 51 states and DC entries over the year. The tool applies those prices to five certified appliances at the median of the ENERGY STAR list of November 12, 2026: a full-size refrigerator, an upright freezer, a clothes washer, an electric dryer and a dishwasher, 1,859 kWh a year together. That set costs $338 a year at the U.S. average price, $877 in Hawaii and $236 in Nevada. These are prices of one month; summer and winter months differ, and your own utility's rate and fixed charges are on your bill.
Electricity cost by state, August 2026
The table ranks the states by the average price homes paid per kWh in August 2026, with the price a year earlier, the change and the cost of running the five certified appliances of the tool for a year.
| State | August 2026, ¢/kWh | August 2025, ¢/kWh | Change | Five appliances a year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hawaii | 47.18 | 38.53 | +22% | $877 |
| Maine | 32.11 | 28.14 | +14% | $597 |
| Massachusetts | 30.48 | 30.55 | -0% | $567 |
| California | 29.75 | 30.92 | -4% | $553 |
| Alaska | 29.41 | 27.79 | +6% | $547 |
| New York | 28.65 | 26.64 | +8% | $533 |
| Rhode Island | 28.18 | 26.53 | +6% | $524 |
| New Hampshire | 27.64 | 24.44 | +13% | $514 |
| District of Columbia | 25.98 | 23.18 | +12% | $483 |
| New Jersey | 24.61 | 24.7 | -0% | $457 |
| Connecticut | 24.51 | 30.17 | -19% | $456 |
| Vermont | 23.84 | 22.1 | +8% | $443 |
| Michigan | 22.99 | 20.73 | +11% | $427 |
| Pennsylvania | 21.77 | 19.93 | +9% | $405 |
| Maryland | 21.4 | 19.89 | +8% | $398 |
| Wisconsin | 19.41 | 18.44 | +5% | $361 |
| Ohio | 19.38 | 17.55 | +10% | $360 |
| Illinois | 19.32 | 18.03 | +7% | $359 |
| Delaware | 18.7 | 16.85 | +11% | $348 |
| Virginia | 17.64 | 15.85 | +11% | $328 |
| Minnesota | 17.2 | 16.89 | +2% | $320 |
| Colorado | 17.17 | 16.21 | +6% | $319 |
| Iowa | 17.06 | 15.48 | +10% | $317 |
| Indiana | 17.02 | 16.21 | +5% | $316 |
| New Mexico | 16.51 | 15.98 | +3% | $307 |
| Alabama | 16.33 | 16.26 | +0% | $304 |
| West Virginia | 16.31 | 15.62 | +4% | $303 |
| Missouri | 16.02 | 15.32 | +5% | $298 |
| Oregon | 15.92 | 15.85 | +0% | $296 |
| Texas | 15.91 | 15.4 | +3% | $296 |
| Georgia | 15.9 | 15.55 | +2% | $296 |
| South Carolina | 15.76 | 15.16 | +4% | $293 |
| Montana | 15.57 | 14.29 | +9% | $289 |
| Kansas | 15.47 | 14.65 | +6% | $288 |
| South Dakota | 15.15 | 13.9 | +9% | $282 |
| Arizona | 15.05 | 15.09 | -0% | $280 |
| Florida | 14.99 | 15.33 | -2% | $279 |
| North Carolina | 14.95 | 14.59 | +2% | $278 |
| Oklahoma | 14.82 | 14.42 | +3% | $276 |
| Washington | 14.63 | 13.65 | +7% | $272 |
| Mississippi | 14.43 | 13.61 | +6% | $268 |
| Wyoming | 14.43 | 14.33 | +1% | $268 |
| Arkansas | 14.37 | 13.33 | +8% | $267 |
| Kentucky | 13.8 | 13.1 | +5% | $257 |
| Nebraska | 13.54 | 12.8 | +6% | $252 |
| Tennessee | 13.42 | 13.09 | +3% | $249 |
| Idaho | 13.37 | 12.08 | +11% | $249 |
| North Dakota | 13.31 | 12.97 | +3% | $247 |
| Utah | 13.31 | 13.62 | -2% | $247 |
| Louisiana | 12.87 | 12.55 | +3% | $239 |
| Nevada | 12.72 | 12.54 | +1% | $236 |
The five appliances
The set is the median certified model of each kind: full-size refrigerator 465 kWh, upright freezer 438 kWh, clothes washer 110 kWh, electric dryer 607 kWh, dishwasher 239 kWh. The refrigerator and the freezer run all year, so their figure is close to real use; the washer, dryer and dishwasher figures assume the number of cycles of the federal test. A gas dryer moves part of the dryer's cost to the gas bill.
Five appliances priced in your state
Example at the U.S. average price — change any figure to see your own result
Five certified appliances, a year at the U.S. average price
$338
1,859 kWh at 18.16¢, August 2026 (17.57¢ a year earlier)
| Full-size refrigerator (465 kWh) | $84 |
| Upright freezer (438 kWh) | $80 |
| Clothes washer (110 kWh) | $20 |
| Electric dryer (607 kWh) | $110 |
Where the prices come from
The prices are the residential averages of EIA table 5.6.A, a public statistic of the Department of Energy. They are prices of a single month and are revised in later releases. They are not updated automatically here; the month used is shown on each figure.
Each appliance in detail
The refrigerator, dryer and window air conditioner pages give the yearly or hourly use of every certified model of those kinds.
Why prices differ
The state average blends many utilities, cooperatives and municipal systems, each with its own rate. The mix of power plants, the cost of the grid and state policies all weigh on it, and the EIA table reports the outcome, not the causes. Within one state, two neighbors on different utilities can pay quite different prices; the bill gives yours.