How much does a security camera cost per month in North Carolina?

About 53.8¢ a month, assuming 5 W, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year at 14.74¢/kWh.

How many kilowatt-hours does a security camera use?

Roughly 44 kWh a year under these assumptions, or 0.01 kWh for every hour it runs.

Is that expensive compared with other states?

North Carolina has the 11th cheapest average residential rate in the country, so this appliance costs less here than the U.S. average of $8.03 a year.

Home › Security camera › North Carolina

Cost to run a security camera in North Carolina (June 2026 rates)

At 14.74¢ per kilowatt-hour — North Carolina's average residential price in June 2026 — running a security camera costs $6.46 a year. That is 20% less than the national average of $8.03. North Carolina's residential rate is up 10.2% from June 2025, which moves this appliance from $5.86 to $6.46 a year.

Per hour: under 0.1¢
Per day of use: 1.8¢
Per month: 53.8¢
Per year: $6.46

Assumption: 5 W, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year — 44 kWh a year. Per wired camera, including night-vision illuminators averaged over a day. Use the calculator to swap in the numbers from your own model.

How North Carolina compares

North Carolina pays 14.74¢/kWh, the 11th cheapest residential electricity of the 51 U.S. jurisdictions EIA reports. For this appliance that works out to $1.58 less a year than the typical U.S. household pays for the same use. Running the same security camera costs $5.74 a year in Nevada and $23.09 in Hawaii, so where you live changes this bill by $17.35 a year.

State	Rate	Per month	Per year
Oklahoma	14.33¢	52.3¢	$6.28
Idaho	14.37¢	52.5¢	$6.29
North Carolina	14.74¢	53.8¢	$6.46
Mississippi	14.88¢	54.3¢	$6.52
Washington	14.91¢	54.4¢	$6.53

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

What else costs about the same in North Carolina

Electric pressure cooker$6.19 a year in NC Rice cooker$6.19 a year in NC Electric lawn mower$6.13 a year in NC

Cutting the number down

Individually trivial, collectively real: eight cameras around the clock is an always-on load worth knowing about.

Questions

How much does a security camera cost per month in North Carolina?: About 53.8¢ a month, assuming 5 W, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year at 14.74¢/kWh.
How many kilowatt-hours does a security camera use?: Roughly 44 kWh a year under these assumptions, or 0.01 kWh for every hour it runs.
Is that expensive compared with other states?: North Carolina has the 11th cheapest average residential rate in the country, so this appliance costs less here than the U.S. average of $8.03 a year.