How much does a ceiling fan cost to run?

Figures on this page are calculated from typical appliance wattages and the price per kWh you enter, not looked up from a bill. See how we calculate this.

What a ceiling fan costs to run: typical 55 W, about $29 a year. Adjust the figures to your own usage and electricity price.

Wattage and running cost

Based on 8 h a day at $0.18/kWh, the US average. Change the hours and the price in the calculator above.

A ceiling fan is one of the cheapest ways to stay comfortable in warm weather, using a tiny fraction of the power of an air conditioner. Most fans draw only 15 to 75 watts depending on size and speed, so even running for a whole evening costs very little. A fan does not actually cool the air — it moves it, and the breeze makes your skin feel several degrees cooler, which is often enough to skip the air conditioning entirely.

That difference in power is the whole point. Where a room air conditioner might draw 1,000 watts or more, a ceiling fan doing much of the comfort job draws perhaps 55, so running the fan instead of, or alongside, the AC is one of the biggest summer savings available. Used together, a fan lets you set the thermostat a couple of degrees higher for the same comfort. Enter your fan's wattage and daily hours above to see just how little it costs.

A ceiling fan also complements heating in winter on its lowest, reversed setting, gently pushing the warm air that collects near the ceiling back down into the room. Either way its defining feature is the same: it does a real comfort job for a tiny, almost negligible amount of electricity, which is rare among climate appliances and makes it an easy first choice.

Motor type matters more than most buyers realise: an older AC-motor ceiling fan typically draws towards the higher end of the range even at moderate speed, while a modern DC-motor fan can move similar air for a third of the power thanks to a more efficient motor design, and usually offers finer speed steps too. If you are replacing an old fan, checking whether the new one uses a DC motor is a bigger lever on the running cost than any habit around when you switch it on and off.

What a ceiling fan costs in other countries

The figures above assume $0.18/kWh, the US average. A ceiling fan does not change when it crosses a border — the price of the electricity it drinks does. Here is what its 161 kWh a year cost in the 14 countries with a page here, dearest first.

Each figure is in that country's own currency at its average all-taxes-included price; the dollar column is there so they can be set against each other. Ireland to Canada is a factor of 3.8 — same appliance, same hours, 3.8 times the bill. Follow a country for its real retailer tariffs and what makes up that price, or see the full electricity price comparison by country.

How to cut ceiling fan running costs

• Use the fan instead of the AC when it's only mildly warm — a fraction of the power.
• Run the fan and AC together so you can set the thermostat a couple of degrees higher.
• Turn fans off in empty rooms — they cool people, not the air, so they do nothing when you leave.
• Lower speeds use noticeably less power and are often enough.
• In winter, a reverse setting gently pushes warm air down from the ceiling.

Frequently asked questions