Power bill: Your power bill will include a measure of your monthly power consumption.ĭiscuss Your kWh Rate with Your Electricity Company in Corpus Christi.These meters are useful to find the trickle power consumption of devices that use electricity even when turned off. Inline power meter: You can buy an inline power meter then measure s the power consumption of the devices plugged into it.Building meter: You can read the electric meter of your home or business at the beginning and end of the month and calculate the difference.There are other ways to find your power consumption: To calculate your home’s or business’s power consumption, add up the power consumption for each device. This 60-watt lightbulb that we used for 90 hours in a month when we were charged $0.09/kWh cost us approximately 50 cents for the month. Step 2: Determine your hours of use per month To calculate the kWh for a specific appliance, multiply the power rating (watts) of the appliance by the amount of time (hrs) you use the appliance and divide by 1000.Įxample: Calculating Your Electricity Costs Step 1: Find the lightbulb’s kilowattage The “kilowatt-hours” you see on your power bill expresses the amount of power that you consumed in a month. For example, your microwave probably has a power rating between 600 W and 800 W.Ī kilowatt-hour (kWh) expresses the amount of power consumed over a fixed period. The manufacturer calculates the power rating for each of your major appliances and electronics and prints that power rating on a label on the device. You will often see power consumption expressed in kilowatts. (kW) because watts are relatively small units of power. A 60 W incandescent light bulb consumes seven and a half times more power than an 8 W LED light bulb to produce light of equal brightness. To translate watts into more familiar terms, the power consumption of light bulbs is rated in watts. Calculating Kilowatt Hours (kWh)Ī watt (W) is a measure of power.

Once you have that number, you can use the following formula to calculate how much you pay for power.įor example, if your total monthly power bill is $327, your electricity taxes are $27, and your monthly power consumption is 2,500 kWh, your power cost is $0.12 per kWh. To calculate your kilowatt-hour rate, divide your total power bill, minus any taxes, by your total power consumption. The kilowatt-hour rate is the price of power supplied by your electric provider. These numbers are important to know because they can tell you how power efficient you are and whether your electricity provider in Texas offers rates that are higher, lower, or the same as other providers. The kilowatt-hour rate is the amount you pay for power.

Your electric meter reads your electricity consumption in kilowatt-hours (kWh). Now’s a good time to learn how to calculate your kWh rate, so that you can start saving. We all have received a high energy bill at some point.

How to calculate electricity bill