Electric oven Electricity Cost & Wattage
What an electric oven costs to run: typical 2400 W, about $74 a year. Adjust the figures to your own usage and electricity price.
Your Electric oven running cost
Costs about
/ month
- Per day
- Per year
- Energy per day
Change the hours and price to match your case.
Typical wattage
| Low | 2000 W |
|---|---|
| Typical | 2400 W |
| High | 3500 W |
| Typical use | 0.5 h/day |
An electric oven is a high-power appliance — typically 2,000 to 3,500 watts — but it is only used in short bursts, so its yearly cost depends heavily on how often you bake and roast. The heating elements draw full power to reach temperature, then cycle on and off to hold it, so an hour of baking uses less than the nameplate wattage would suggest across the whole hour. This page uses an hours-per-day approach; enter a realistic daily average (half an hour a day is a common household figure) and your price to see the cost.
Because the oven is powerful, small habits make a real difference. Preheating longer than needed, opening the door mid-bake (which drops the temperature and forces the elements back on), and heating a large oven for a single small dish all waste energy. For small portions a microwave, air fryer or toaster oven does the same job for a fraction of the power, which is why they are worth reaching for on weeknights.
The oven's thermal mass also works in your favour if you plan around it. Once it is hot, cooking several dishes together, or slipping something else in straight after, spreads the heat-up cost over more food. Retained heat means you can often switch a conventional oven off a few minutes before the end and let the residual warmth finish the job — a small habit that adds up across a year of cooking.
Fan (convection) ovens add one more lever: because the moving air transfers heat more evenly, most recipes cook just as well at a temperature roughly 20°C lower than a conventional static oven would need, or fit more food into the same batch at the same setting. That lower operating temperature, not any difference in element wattage, is where a fan oven's real running-cost saving over a conventional one comes from.
How to cut electric oven running costs
- Only preheat as long as the recipe needs — many dishes can go in as it heats.
- Cook several things at once while the oven is hot to spread the cost.
- Use the fan (convection) setting: it cooks at a lower temperature and faster.
- Resist opening the door; each peek drops the temperature and restarts the elements.
- For small portions use a microwave, air fryer or toaster oven instead.
Frequently asked questions
How much does it cost to run an electric oven for an hour?
A 2,400 W oven running for an hour uses under 2.4 kWh once cycling is accounted for — roughly $0.30–0.40 at $0.17/kWh. Higher temperatures and longer cooks cost more.
Is an air fryer cheaper than an oven?
For small portions, usually yes. An air fryer heats a much smaller space, so it reaches temperature faster and uses less energy for the same food. For large meals the oven can still win.
Does oven temperature change the cost much?
Yes. A higher setpoint means the elements run more to hold it, and longer cooks add up. Using the fan setting lets you drop the temperature by around 20 °C for the same result.