How much does a microwave cost per month in Delaware?

About $1.69 a month, assuming 1,200 W, 15 minutes a day, 365 days a year at 18.48¢/kWh.

How many kilowatt-hours does a microwave use?

Roughly 110 kWh a year under these assumptions, or 1.20 kWh for every hour it runs.

Is that expensive compared with other states?

Delaware has the 19th most expensive average residential rate in the country, so this appliance costs more here than the U.S. average of $20.05 a year.

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Cost to run a microwave in Delaware (July 2026 rates)

At 18.48¢ per kilowatt-hour — Delaware's average residential price in July 2026 — running a microwave costs $20.24 a year. That is about the same as the national average. Delaware's residential rate is up 11.5% from July 2025, which moves this appliance from $18.16 to $20.24 a year.

Per hour: 22.2¢
Per day of use: 5.5¢
Per month: $1.69
Per year: $20.24

Assumption: 1,200 W, 15 minutes a day, 365 days a year — 110 kWh a year. Draw while cooking; the 1,100 W on the label is delivered power and the wall draw is a little higher. Assumes 15 minutes a day of actual use. Use the calculator to swap in the numbers from your own model.

How Delaware compares

Delaware pays 18.48¢/kWh, the 19th most expensive residential electricity of the 51 U.S. jurisdictions EIA reports. For this appliance that works out to 18.6¢ more a year than the typical U.S. household pays for the same use. Running the same microwave costs $13.93 a year in Louisiana and $52.56 in Hawaii, so where you live changes this bill by $38.63 a year.

State	Rate	Per month	Per year
Minnesota	17.45¢	$1.59	$19.11
Virginia	17.55¢	$1.60	$19.22
Delaware	18.48¢	$1.69	$20.24
Wisconsin	19.06¢	$1.74	$20.87
Illinois	19.22¢	$1.75	$21.05

States ranked by average residential price, cheapest first. See all 51 states for a microwave.

What else costs about the same in Delaware

Incandescent bulb$20.24 a year in DE Electric kettle$20.24 a year in DE Box fan$20.79 a year in DE

Cutting the number down

Reheating in a microwave is close to the cheapest way to put heat into food, because nearly all of it lands in the food rather than the air.
The clock display draws a couple of watts around the clock, which over a year is a meaningful share of a lightly used microwave's total.

Questions

How much does a microwave cost per month in Delaware?: About $1.69 a month, assuming 1,200 W, 15 minutes a day, 365 days a year at 18.48¢/kWh.
How many kilowatt-hours does a microwave use?: Roughly 110 kWh a year under these assumptions, or 1.20 kWh for every hour it runs.
Is that expensive compared with other states?: Delaware has the 19th most expensive average residential rate in the country, so this appliance costs more here than the U.S. average of $20.05 a year.