In this article, we will go through how much electricity a fan uses. Fans have always been a great way to cool down and save money on electricity bills!
How much electricity does a fan use?
A typical table fan may consume around 50 to 100 watts of power when running at high speed, while a ceiling fan may use between 10 to 100 watts depending on its size and speed settings. Portable fans, such as those powered by USB, may use even less power, typically around 5 to 15 watts.
The electricity consumption of a fan can vary depending on factors such as its size, motor efficiency, and speed settings. However, fans are relatively low-power devices that consume much less energy than most other household appliances.
It’s worth noting that the actual energy consumption of a fan also depends on how often and for how long it is used. To estimate the electricity usage of a fan, you can multiply its wattage by the number of hours it runs per day, then multiply that by the cost per kilowatt-hour (kWh) charged by your electricity provider.
Why It’s Important to Know How Much Electricity A Fan Uses
More than half of the energy used in the USA is estimated to be wasted. Knowing how much energy you use when you turn a fan on or leave it on overnight can help you establish how much it costs you and the environment.
How Much Electricity is Being Used?
There are specific ways to determine how much electricity an appliance uses. These will be rough estimations. These figures should be enough to make the right call on when to operate fans, how many, or whether there are alternatives to using less electricity. To work out exactly how much you will be spending on a fan, you need to know:
- What is the cost of your electricity? This is on average, $0.13/kWh, though it varies by state
- The wattage of the fan in question. Wattage is the only power measurement needed. (This is simply the power measured in Volts x Amps).
- The length of time you are using the fan for, in hours. It is usually easiest to work out a ‘per hour’ rate.
How to Work Out The Electricity Usage
Firstly, multiply the wattage of the fan by the hours of use.
An 80W fan will use 80 watts in an hour.
We then multiply this by the electricity rate. Assuming it is $0.13/kWh, the national average in the USA: Calculating 80(wattage) x 0.13 (kWh) = 10.4
Then dividing the result (10.4) by 1,000 = $0.0104
This means an 80-watt fan is using just over $0.01 or 1 cent per hour to run.
If you want to extrapolate this to work out a monthly figure, multiply the hourly rate of $0.01 by the hours of use per day. In the summer months, fan manufacturers such as Lasko estimate 8-12 hours a day of use. We’ve gone with 12 to make our calculations.
So, 12 hours at $0.01 means $0.12 per day. Over a month of 30 days, this particular fan would cost $3.60 to run.
You don’t have to follow these steps to come up with the calculation. There is an energy appliance calculator that can be found here, and as long as you know the wattage of your fan and what you pay for electricity, it can do the sums for you.
EnergyStar Rating in Fans
EnergyStar is a system whereby fans and other appliances can be certified with the EnergyStar badge due to being energy efficient. The program is run by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and is designed to encourage people to upgrade old or inefficient appliances. The criteria they set out mean the appliance must have above-average economic performance.
If you don’t want to do the sums, you can rely on this badge to know you are getting good performance when buying a fan.
How Much Electricity Do Different Types of Fans Use?
Different types of fans use different amounts of energy. Though the style of the fan doesn’t directly impact the consumption, and the wattage is far more important, wattage tends to go hand-in-hand with types of fans. Some styles tend to be lower in their wattage than others.
Box Fans
Box fans are a straightforward design of a fan. They consist of a spinning blade inside a simple plastic casing. They’re usually smaller and can be used in the window to extract hot air.
How much electricity does a box fan use?
Box fan power consumption tends to be pretty low at around just 55 watts.
Based on our calculations, this means that it costs far less than $0.01 per hour to run, making it extremely economical. Running that calculation again means: Calculating 55 (wattage) x 0.13 (kWh) = 7.15 Then dividing the result (7.15) by 1,000 = $0.00715.
This means a box fan is using $0.007 per hour (just above half a cent) to run. So you could run the fan 12 hours a day, and it would cost just $0.08 or 8 cents per day. Per month, this works out at around $2.50.
Tower Fans
Tower fans stand independently and have a tall yet narrow design, hence their name. Tower fans can save on space and are popular because they can usually rotate and cool a larger space than box fans. Also, they tend to have more features, such as timers.
How much electricity does a tower fan use?
Tower fans usually run at a bit higher wattage of 80-100W.
If you’re wondering, “Do high-velocity fans use more electricity?” then the answer is yes, as proved by these types of higher-wattage fans. This means that when you run the numbers, your tower fan will probably cost $0.01-$0.02 per hour to run, depending on your electricity costs per kWh.
A conservative estimated cost per month is around $6-8 to run an 80W-100W fan for 12 hours a day.
Ceiling Fans
Ceiling fans are very beneficial. They are effective in shifting a lot of air. However, adding one if you don’t already have one installed can be a big investment.
How much electricity does a ceiling fan use?
Ceiling fans tend to use the same amount of electricity as tower fans. 100W is a reasonable estimation, but this varies depending on the model you own. Depending on electricity costs, this will mean around $0.02 to run per hour.
This costs $7-8 monthly if used for 12 hours a day. As you can see, there are a lot of variables, so giving one specific answer for an exact price to run your fan is challenging.
The Importance of Time
As you can see, time is the key to all equations when calculating electricity use. Wattage is measured per hour, as is the kWh electricity cost. If you can minimize the time a fan is running, the electricity used will be reduced.
For instance, if you want a fan on while you fall asleep and leave it on all night, even once the air has cooled down, you are using electricity you may not need. A timer function is a brilliant way to combat this. Some fans allow you to set a sleep timer.
Fans Vs Other Appliances
Consider a space heater which will use roughly 1,500 watts per hour. You could run 30 fans using 50 watts for the same power consumption!
A central air conditioner can use 10,000-15,000 watts. As you can see, a fan will use a fraction of this.
A 10,000-watt AC running 12 hours a day at full capacity would cost up to $468 a month to run!
You probably won’t run it at full capacity, so it may not use the full wattage. Even if it uses 1/3rd of this, it is still around $150 per month.
Compare this to fans that cost between $2 and $8 a month to run, and you can see where the savings come in.
So, How Much Electricity Does a Fan Use?
Fans are among the most efficient small appliances you can add to your home. You can save even more money by using a product such as the BN-Link 24 hour Plug-in Timer to control your electricity. Ultimately, fans can be a brilliant way to cool your home without spending lots of money, especially if you use them to their maximum potential.
Has this article answered the question of how much electricity a fan uses? Do you have any questions about using fans efficiently and the electricity your fan uses? Feel free to leave us a comment below! If you want to learn how to save electricity while keeping your home cool, check out our eBook!
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