How much does it cost to run a game console?
We've pre-filled a typical game console below. Set your electricity rate and adjust the hours to match how you use yours — the cost updates instantly.
Typical power 150W
Usual range 90–220W
Category Entertainment & office
A modern game console draws around 100–200W while you're playing — modest by itself, but a few hours a day adds up, and there's a sting people miss: rest/instant-on standby can quietly pull 10–15W every hour of every day, all year.
Active play is the main cost, but the round-the-clock standby is the easy money left on the table.
What drives the cost of running a game console
- Hours of active play, and whether you're running graphics-heavy titles.
- Rest/instant-on mode keeps it sipping power 24/7 for fast resume.
- Streaming video through the console adds time at a lower wattage.
How to cut it
- Switch off instant-on/rest mode if you don't need quick resume — it runs all day otherwise.
- Fully power down after a session rather than leaving it idling on a menu.
- Use a cheaper streaming stick for video instead of the console.