Cost to run an aquarium in Connecticut (June 2026 rates)
At 24.32¢ per kilowatt-hour — Connecticut's average residential price in June 2026 — running an aquarium costs $144 a year. That is 33% more than the national average of $108. Connecticut's residential rate is down 10.6% from June 2025, which moves this appliance from $161 to $144 a year.
- Per hour
- 1.6¢
- Per day of use
- 39.4¢
- Per month
- $11.98
- Per year
- $144
Assumption: 150 W at a 45% duty cycle, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year — 591 kWh a year. A 55-gallon tank: heater, filter and light combined, averaged over a day. Use the calculator to swap in the numbers from your own model.
How Connecticut compares
Connecticut pays 24.32¢/kWh, the 12th most expensive residential electricity of the 51 U.S. jurisdictions EIA reports. For this appliance that works out to $35.36 more a year than the typical U.S. household pays for the same use. Running the same aquarium costs $77.52 a year in Nevada and $312 in Hawaii, so where you live changes this bill by $234 a year.
| State | Rate | Per month | Per year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Maryland | 21.84¢ | $10.76 | $129 |
| Michigan | 22.99¢ | $11.33 | $136 |
| Connecticut | 24.32¢ | $11.98 | $144 |
| District of Columbia | 24.39¢ | $12.02 | $144 |
| Vermont | 24.44¢ | $12.04 | $145 |
States ranked by average residential price, cheapest first. See all 51 states for an aquarium.
What else costs about the same in Connecticut
Cutting the number down
- The heater is nearly all of it, and its runtime depends on the room. A tank in a cool room costs more to keep warm.
- Insulating the back and sides of the tank cuts heater runtime without changing the view.
- A lid limits evaporative heat loss, which is the main way an open tank sheds the warmth you paid for.
Questions
- How much does an aquarium cost per month in Connecticut?
- About $11.98 a month, assuming 150 W at a 45% duty cycle, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year at 24.32¢/kWh.
- How many kilowatt-hours does an aquarium use?
- Roughly 591 kWh a year under these assumptions, or 0.07 kWh for every hour it runs.
- Is that expensive compared with other states?
- Connecticut has the 12th most expensive average residential rate in the country, so this appliance costs more here than the U.S. average of $108 a year.