How To Calculate Your Electricity Bill | Electricity Bill Calculator

Have you ever wondered how to calculate the electricity bill by using Electricity Bill Calculator? Some of you might not be interested in knowing how to calculate the electricity bill but some of you might be interested in the logic behind electricity bill calculation.

In this article, we will learn how to calculate an electricity bill and provide an electricity bill calculator so that you can calculate your electricity bill. However, calculating the electricity bill will be different in a particular area for example, if we talk about India, the units rate would be different for the different states. So you need to calculate the electricity bill by visiting the official website of the state electricity board,

Basic Terms Related to Electricity Bill

Before understanding the electricity bill, we should know some basic terms which are as follows:

KWH (Kilowatt-Hour)

KWH is also known as Kilowatt-hour and measures how much energy you use per hour. KW is a measure of power.  1-kilowatt hour is the amount of energy you would have used if you kept a 1,000-watt electrical appliance running for an hour. 

Different appliances use a different amount of energy. For example, a mobile charger will use less power than a washing machine because of the less wattage they have. Energy consumption depends on the rated watt power of the appliances and it is mentioned on the name plate of the appliances.

  • A 20-watt alarm clock would take 20 hours to use 1 kWh
  • A 100-watt LED bulb would take 10 hours to use 1 kWh
  • A 2,000-watt oven would use 1 kWh in just half an hour

Calculate Energy Cost by Appliance

To calculate the energy costs by appliances, you can talk for the new technologies like smart metre otherwise you can also calculate the cost of appliance by manual method which is described below.

To calculate the cost of electricity of an electric appliance, you must know three things:

  • Wattage of an appliance
  • Elevtricity rate per unit
  • the average number of hours you use the appliance

Once you have all the data described above, calculate the cost of usage with this formula:

  1. Multiply the device’s wattage by the number of hours the appliance is used per day
  2. Divide by 1000
  3. Multiply by your kWh rate

Let us understand by an example:

So if you have a 1000 watt Microwae Oven that you watch two hours per day, it consumes 2000 watt-hours per day (1000 x 2 = 2000). Divide 2000 by 1000 to convert 2000 watt-hours into 2 kWh (2000 ÷ 1000 = 2). If your electricity rate is 5 rupees per kWh, that means it costs 10 rupees per day to use your television (2 x 5= 10). That should account for about Rs. 300 of your monthly electric bill (10 x 30 = 300).

Here are some (estimated!) examples of what might use 1 kWh:

  • Running an electric shower (10,000 watts) for 6 minutes will consume 1 KWh
  • Keeping an immersion heater (3,000 watts) on for 20 minutes will consume 1 KWh
  • Cooking in an oven (2,000 watts) for 30 minutes will consume 1 KWh
  • Using an iron (1,000 watts) for 60 minutes will consume 1 KWh
  • Running a dishwasher (1,000-1,500 watts) for less than an hour will consume 1 KWh
  • Keeping a fridge-freezer (200-400 watts) on for about three hours will consume 1 KWh
  • Watching a 42” LED TV (80 watts) for 12 and a half hours will consume 1 KWh
  • Keeping an electric blanket (130-200 watts) on all night will consume 1 KWh
  • Using a laptop (20-50 watts) all day will consume 1 KWh
  • Keeping a broadband router (7-10 watts) on for five days will consume 1 KWh

Calculte Electricity Cost by Visiting Electricity Board Website

The unit rate will be different for different states. You can calculate electricity cost by visiting the official website of the state board. Some of the official websites do not provide the electricity cost calculator. So to calculate the electricity cost you can use general electricity cost calculator given below:

Electricity Cost Calculator

Wattage of Appliance
Running Hours Per Day
KWH Rate (Unit Rate)

This calculator is very general and does not include taxes, surcharge, duty etc.

Also, Read about Energy Saving Tips

Frequently Asked Questions

What is difference between KW and KWH?

KWH is also known as Kilowatt-hour and measures how much energy you use per hour. KW is a measure of power.

What determines my electricity cost per kWh on my energy bill?

There are many things which determines your total electricity cost
Your supplier
You Plan
Meter Type
Your region(per unit kwh)
Electrcity Duty
Surcharge etc.