How much does it cost to run a clothes iron?
A typical clothes iron draws about 1500 watts. Used 1 hours a day, that works out to roughly $0.26 per day, $3.19 per month, and $38.25 per year on an average electricity rate of 17¢ per kWh. A typical clothes iron uses 1,200–1,800 watts and operates only during occasional ironing sessions.
Clothes Iron running cost calculator
- Per day
- $0.26
- Per month
- $3.19
- Per year
- $38.25
- CO₂ / year
- 90 kg
Based on 225 kWh per year. Adjust the price per kWh to match your latest electricity bill for an exact figure.
The number that matters most is your own electricity rate. Rates range from under 11¢ per kWh in some regions to over 30¢ in others, so the same clothes iron can cost two or three times as much depending on where you live. Enter your exact rate in the calculator above to get a figure tailored to your bill.
Laundry appliances like the clothes iron are driven by how many loads you run. Most of the energy goes into heating — water or air — so washing cooler and drying less aggressively is where the savings are. The estimate above assumes a typical household's weekly routine.
At 1500 watts, the clothes iron is a high-draw appliance — the kind that can briefly become the single biggest load in your home while it runs. On a time-of-use tariff, shifting it to off-peak hours is often the easiest way to cut its cost without using it any less.
Over a full year this clothes iron uses about 225 kWh of electricity and is responsible for roughly 90 kg of CO₂ emissions on an average grid. Since it is used only part of the year, your real footprint scales with the season — the annual figure assumes a typical usage pattern.
To put the draw in everyday terms, one hour of running this clothes iron uses about as much electricity as charging a smartphone 125 times. It is a rough comparison, but it makes an abstract wattage figure easier to picture.
If this clothes iron is one you use daily, even small efficiency gains compound. Cutting its usage or wattage by 20% would save around $7.65 every year — money that an efficient replacement can recover over its lifetime.
Frequently asked questions
- How much does it cost to run a clothes iron per hour?
- At 1500 watts and a 17¢/kWh rate, a clothes iron costs about $0.26 per hour to run.
- How much electricity does a clothes iron use per month?
- Running 1 hours a day, a clothes iron uses roughly 18.8 kWh per month, costing about $3.19.
- How many kWh does a clothes iron use per year?
- Used 1 hours a day for 150 days a year, a clothes iron consumes about 225 kWh annually — that is the figure your electricity rate is multiplied by to get the $38.25 yearly cost.
- Is a clothes iron expensive to run?
- Not particularly — at around $38.25 per year, a clothes iron is a relatively minor part of most electricity bills.
- How much CO₂ does a clothes iron produce?
- On an average grid, a clothes iron used this much is responsible for roughly 90 kg of CO₂ per year. The exact figure depends on how clean your local electricity supply is.
- How can I reduce my clothes iron running costs?
- Use it during off-peak hours if your utility offers time-of-use pricing, reduce daily run time, and consider an ENERGY STAR rated clothes iron, which uses less power for the same job.