How much does it cost to run a slow cooker?
We've pre-filled a typical slow cooker below. Set your electricity rate and adjust the hours to match how you use yours — the cost updates instantly.
A slow cooker is one of the cheapest ways to make dinner with electricity. It runs on 150 to 300 watts — a fifth of what a space heater draws — and most of that low, steady wattage goes into holding a gentle simmer, not blasting heat like a stovetop burner or oven element. Cook a pot roast for eight hours and you'll spend less than running a single incandescent bulb for the same stretch.
The reason slow cookers stay cheap even though they run for hours is that low wattage matters more than long runtime. An oven pulls 2,000+ watts to preheat and hold temperature, so even a 1-hour bake can cost more than an 8-hour slow-cooker meal. The only real lever on cost is size and setting — a big 7-quart pot on High pulls closer to 300W, while a small 3-quart pot on Low can sip under 150W for the same meal.
What drives the cost of running a slow cooker
- Wattage, not runtime, dominates the math — 150-300W is low enough that even an all-day 8-hour cook stays cheap, unlike high-draw appliances where hours matter a lot.
- Pot size and setting: larger multi-quart cookers and the High setting pull toward the top of the 150-300W range; smaller pots on Low sit near the bottom.
- Your electricity rate (cents/kWh) swings the final dollar figure more than anything about the cooker itself, since the wattage range is narrow to begin with.
How to cut it
- Cook on Low instead of High when your schedule allows — it draws less wattage and the extra time costs almost nothing given how low the base draw already is.
- Match pot size to the meal; a half-empty 7-quart cooker wastes capacity, and downsizing to a 3-4 quart pot for small meals trims watts without changing the recipe.
- Resist lifting the lid to check food — every peek lets heat escape and makes the heating element work (and draw power) longer to recover.
- Compare it to the alternative: if a slow cooker replaces a 2,000W+ oven for the same meal, you're saving money even if the slow cooker runs 6-8x longer.
Common questions
How much does it cost to run a slow cooker per month?
At a typical 200W and about 8 hours a day, a slow cooker costs roughly $8.16 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 slow cooker?
Cook on Low instead of High when your schedule allows — it draws less wattage and the extra time costs almost nothing given how low the base draw already is.
Is a slow cooker cheaper to run than an oven?
Yes, usually by a wide margin. A slow cooker draws 150-300W versus 2,000W+ for an oven, so even cooking for 8 hours instead of 1 hour typically still costs less — ovens spend a lot of that wattage just preheating and reheating every time the door opens or the thermostat cycles.
Does the Low or High setting change the cost much?
A little, not dramatically. High pulls toward the top of the 150-300W range and Low toward the bottom, but because both settings are already low-wattage, switching from Low to High for the same recipe usually changes the total cost by well under a dollar.
Compare other appliances
Put an honest running-cost calculator in front of ready-to-buy shoppers
WattDollar reaches people at the exact moment they're deciding whether an appliance, heat pump or EV charger is worth it — and what a more efficient model would save. A warm, high-intent audience, with no lead form in the way.
- Embeddable & co-brandable — drop the calculator on your product or store page so shoppers see real running costs without leaving.
- Warm, high-intent traffic — visitors arrive already shopping by appliance type; the results screen is the natural place to recommend an efficient model.
- Affiliate & revenue-share friendly — one editable config points the "shop a more efficient model" link at your store, Amazon tag or charger lineup.