How much does it cost to run a hair dryer?
We've pre-filled a typical hair dryer below. Set your electricity rate and adjust the hours to match how you use yours — the cost updates instantly.
A hair dryer looks scary on the nameplate — 1,500 watts or more, right up there with a space heater — but the bill never matches the fear, because you're only running it for a few minutes, not a few hours. That's the entire story of hair dryer cost: high wattage, tiny duration. A 1,500-watt dryer run for 15 minutes a day only draws about 0.375 kWh, so even at a high electricity rate you're looking at a few cents a day.
Where the cost actually moves is the heat setting and how long you dry, not the dryer itself. Cranking a dual-voltage travel dryer or a salon-grade unit up near 1,875 watts on high, or air-drying longer because you skipped a towel-dry first, pushes the runtime and wattage up together — and unlike a fridge or a space heater, that's a habit you control every single time you use it.
What drives the cost of running a hair dryer
- Wattage on the heat/speed setting used — typical dryers run 1,000-1,875W, and high heat draws far more than the cool-shot or low setting
- Minutes per session — the calculator assumes about 0.2 hours (roughly 12 minutes) a day, so doubling your drying time roughly doubles the cost
- Your electricity rate (cents per kWh) — since a hair dryer's total energy use is so small, rate differences matter less here than for big always-on appliances
How to cut it
- Towel-dry or air-dry first so the dryer only has to finish the job, not start from soaking wet
- Use the lower heat setting when you can — it's the single biggest lever since wattage and cost move together
- Keep the dryer's air intake filter free of hair and lint; a clogged filter makes it work harder and run longer to finish
- Skip drying hair you're about to put up or cover — a few fewer minutes a day adds up over a year
Common questions
How much does it cost to run a hair dryer per month?
At a typical 1,500W and about 0.2 hours a day, a hair dryer costs roughly $1.53 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 a hair dryer?
Towel-dry or air-dry first so the dryer only has to finish the job, not start from soaking wet
Is a hair dryer actually expensive to run compared to other appliances?
No — despite the high wattage, a hair dryer is one of the cheapest appliances on this site to run because it's only used for minutes a day, not hours. A space heater or clothes dryer running for hours will cost far more per month even at a lower wattage.
Does a more powerful (higher-wattage) hair dryer cost more to run?
Only if you actually use the extra power — many high-wattage professional dryers dry hair faster, so the higher draw is offset by a shorter runtime. A cheap dryer run twice as long at lower wattage can end up costing about the same.
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