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How much does it cost to run a chest freezer?
At the U.S. average residential price of 18.31¢ per kilowatt-hour (July 2026), running a chest freezer costs about $54.93 a year. Your own bill depends on your state's rate, which ranges from 12.72¢ to 48.00¢ across the country.
- Per day
- 15.0¢
- Per month
- $4.58
- Per year
- $54.93
Assumption: 300 kWh a year. A 7 cubic-foot manual-defrost chest freezer. Upright frost-free models run considerably higher.
Cost by state
Same appliance, same usage, 51 different prices. Sorted cheapest first.
| State | Rate | Per month | Per year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Louisiana | 12.72¢ | $3.18 | $38.16 |
| Nevada | 12.77¢ | $3.19 | $38.31 |
| Utah | 13.12¢ | $3.28 | $39.36 |
| North Dakota | 13.41¢ | $3.35 | $40.23 |
| Tennessee | 13.71¢ | $3.43 | $41.13 |
| Idaho | 13.73¢ | $3.43 | $41.19 |
| Nebraska | 13.78¢ | $3.45 | $41.34 |
| Kentucky | 13.81¢ | $3.45 | $41.43 |
| Arkansas | 14.33¢ | $3.58 | $42.99 |
| Oklahoma | 14.35¢ | $3.59 | $43.05 |
| Wyoming | 14.36¢ | $3.59 | $43.08 |
| Mississippi | 14.54¢ | $3.63 | $43.62 |
| Washington | 14.71¢ | $3.68 | $44.13 |
| Montana | 14.99¢ | $3.75 | $44.97 |
| Florida | 15.03¢ | $3.76 | $45.09 |
| North Carolina | 15.16¢ | $3.79 | $45.48 |
| Kansas | 15.27¢ | $3.82 | $45.81 |
| South Dakota | 15.37¢ | $3.84 | $46.11 |
| Arizona | 15.38¢ | $3.85 | $46.14 |
| South Carolina | 15.47¢ | $3.87 | $46.41 |
| West Virginia | 15.78¢ | $3.94 | $47.34 |
| Texas | 15.88¢ | $3.97 | $47.64 |
| Oregon | 15.97¢ | $3.99 | $47.91 |
| Iowa | 15.99¢ | $4.00 | $47.97 |
| Missouri | 16.09¢ | $4.02 | $48.27 |
| New Mexico | 16.09¢ | $4.02 | $48.27 |
| Georgia | 16.27¢ | $4.07 | $48.81 |
| Alabama | 16.40¢ | $4.10 | $49.20 |
| Indiana | 16.73¢ | $4.18 | $50.19 |
| Colorado | 17.00¢ | $4.25 | $51.00 |
| Minnesota | 17.45¢ | $4.36 | $52.35 |
| Virginia | 17.55¢ | $4.39 | $52.65 |
| Delaware | 18.48¢ | $4.62 | $55.44 |
| Wisconsin | 19.06¢ | $4.76 | $57.18 |
| Illinois | 19.22¢ | $4.80 | $57.66 |
| Ohio | 19.45¢ | $4.86 | $58.35 |
| Maryland | 21.41¢ | $5.35 | $64.23 |
| Pennsylvania | 21.72¢ | $5.43 | $65.16 |
| Michigan | 23.05¢ | $5.76 | $69.15 |
| Vermont | 23.75¢ | $5.94 | $71.25 |
| Connecticut | 24.16¢ | $6.04 | $72.48 |
| New Jersey | 25.19¢ | $6.30 | $75.57 |
| District of Columbia | 25.21¢ | $6.30 | $75.63 |
| New Hampshire | 26.60¢ | $6.65 | $79.80 |
| Rhode Island | 28.29¢ | $7.07 | $84.87 |
| Alaska | 28.83¢ | $7.21 | $86.49 |
| New York | 29.90¢ | $7.48 | $89.70 |
| Massachusetts | 30.49¢ | $7.62 | $91.47 |
| Maine | 32.41¢ | $8.10 | $97.23 |
| California | 33.61¢ | $8.40 | $101 |
| Hawaii | 48.00¢ | $12.00 | $144 |
Cutting the number down
- A full freezer holds its temperature through each door opening better than an empty one. Jugs of water are free thermal mass.
- Manual-defrost models use less energy than frost-free ones, at the cost of an annual chore.
- Keeping it somewhere cool matters: an unconditioned garage in summer raises the running cost all season.
Questions
- How many watts does a chest freezer use?
- Usage is better expressed as 300 kWh a year.
- How much does a chest freezer cost per month?
- About $4.58 a month at the U.S. average rate, or $54.93 a year.
- Where is it cheapest to run?
- Louisiana, at $38.16 a year, versus $144 in Hawaii — a spread of $106.