How much does a microwave cost per month in District of Columbia?

About $2.30 a month, assuming 1,200 W, 15 minutes a day, 365 days a year at 25.21¢/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?

District of Columbia has the 9th 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 District of Columbia (July 2026 rates)

At 25.21¢ per kilowatt-hour — District of Columbia's average residential price in July 2026 — running a microwave costs $27.60 a year. That is 38% more than the national average of $20.05. District of Columbia's residential rate is up 9.4% from July 2025, which moves this appliance from $25.23 to $27.60 a year.

Per hour: 30.3¢
Per day of use: 7.6¢
Per month: $2.30
Per year: $27.60

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 District of Columbia compares

District of Columbia pays 25.21¢/kWh, the 9th most expensive residential electricity of the 51 U.S. jurisdictions EIA reports. For this appliance that works out to $7.56 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
Connecticut	24.16¢	$2.20	$26.46
New Jersey	25.19¢	$2.30	$27.58
District of Columbia	25.21¢	$2.30	$27.60
New Hampshire	26.60¢	$2.43	$29.13
Rhode Island	28.29¢	$2.58	$30.98

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

What else costs about the same in District of Columbia

Incandescent bulb$27.60 a year in DC Electric kettle$27.60 a year in DC Box fan$28.36 a year in DC

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 District of Columbia?: About $2.30 a month, assuming 1,200 W, 15 minutes a day, 365 days a year at 25.21¢/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?: District of Columbia has the 9th most expensive average residential rate in the country, so this appliance costs more here than the U.S. average of $20.05 a year.