Christmas Lights running cost

How much does it cost to run Christmas lights?

We've pre-filled typical Christmas lights below. Set your electricity rate and adjust the hours to match how you use yours — the cost updates instantly.

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Typical power 200W Usual range 10–500W Category Lighting & small

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Power

watts

Hours used per day6 h

Your electricity rate

Price per kWh

$/kWh

LED holiday lights sip ~10–50W total; old incandescent strings can pull hundreds.

Running Christmas lights at 200W for 6 h a day costs about

$6.21/ month · $74.46 / year

$0.03

per hour

$0.20

per day

$6.21

per month

$74.46

per year

That's about 4.1% of a typical home's monthly electricity use.

Each day it uses 1.20 kWh — roughly what a refrigerator uses in a day.

Running it just one hour less a day would save about $12.41 a year. Switch to LED strings — the savings pay for the lights within a season or two.

Shopping for a more efficient one?

A newer, higher-efficiency Christmas lights can cut what it costs to run — here's where to compare.

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Holiday light costs come down almost entirely to one choice: LED or old-style incandescent. A big LED display might draw only 20–50W total and cost a few dollars for the whole season. The same coverage in old incandescent bulbs can pull hundreds of watts and cost many times more.

After bulb type, it's just hours: a timer that runs the display in the evening rather than around the clock cuts the bill cleanly.

What drives the cost of running Christmas lights

Bulb type is everything — incandescent strings use roughly 10× the watts of LEDs.
How many strings and how big the display is.
Hours per day — dusk-to-bedtime vs. left on all night and all day.

How to cut it

Switch to LED strings — the savings pay for the lights within a season or two.
Put the display on a timer or smart plug so it runs only in the evening.
Skip the always-on daytime running; nobody sees lights at noon.

Common questions

How much does it cost to run Christmas lights per month?

At a typical 200W and about 6 hours a day, Christmas lights costs roughly $6.12 a month at $0.17/kWh. Set your own rate and hours above for an exact figure.

How can I cut the cost of running Christmas lights?

Switch to LED strings — the savings pay for the lights within a season or two.

Compare other appliances

LED light bulb Incandescent bulb String / fairy lights Phone charger Space heater Central air conditioner

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