How much does it cost to run a washing machine?
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Typical power 500W
Usual range 350–1,000W
Category Laundry & water
A washing machine's motor is surprisingly cheap to run — a few hundred watts for the wash and spin. The cost people don't see is the hot water: if you wash warm or hot, most of the energy is your water heater heating that water, not the machine itself.
That's why 'wash cold' is the single biggest laundry-saving tip — it sidesteps the water-heating cost almost entirely.
What drives the cost of running a washing machine
- Water temperature dominates — hot washes pull from your (often electric) water heater.
- The machine's own motor draw is small by comparison.
- High-efficiency front-loaders use less water, and so less water heating.
How to cut it
- Wash in cold water — modern detergents are built for it and it cuts most of the cost.
- Run full loads and use the high-spin option to wring out more water before drying.
- Skip 'sanitize'/extra-hot cycles unless you truly need them.