Tumble dryer electricity use: what one cycle costs
The tumble dryer is often the laundry appliance that uses the most power. Here is what it costs at your price.
Checked by Radif Partners · Editorial policy · Method and sources
A tumble-dryer cycle uses 1.5 to 3 kWh depending on the machine’s age and energy class, and the dryer uses two to three times more energy than the washing machine, according to the Swedish Energy Agency. In a house in Helsingborg on Öresundskraft’s grid, at the Statistics Sweden average variable price for SE4, each kilowatt-hour costs 192.9 öre/kWh with tax and VAT. One cycle then costs between SEK 2.89 and SEK 5.79. Drying three times a week at the upper figure comes to SEK 903 a year. The same cycle in SE1 would have cost SEK 4.19 on the same grid fee, so the bidding zone matters. The calculator works with your own dryer, how often you dry and your grid area, and can show the cheapest start time if you paste today’s prices.
Tumble dryer: cost per use
SEK 5.79
SEK 903 a year at 3.0 uses a week
| All-in price per kWh | 192.9 öre/kWh |
| Energy per use | 3.00 kWh |
| Cost per week | SEK 17 |
| Cost per year | SEK 903 |
Assumptions
Energy per drying cycle from the Swedish Energy Agency (1.5–3 kWh), upper value pre-filled. The price per kWh is worked out as in the main calculator: your spot price, mark-up, Ei’s transfer fee for Öresundskraft Elnät AB, energy tax and VAT. Method and sources
Yearly drying cost in Helsingborg
| Cycles per week | At 1.5 kWh | At 3 kWh |
|---|---|---|
| 1 cycle | SEK 150 | SEK 301 |
| 3 cycles | SEK 451 | SEK 903 |
| 5 cycles | SEK 752 | SEK 1,505 |
The low and high figures differ by a factor of two, and the difference comes from the machine: an older dryer in a lower energy class sits near the upper value. Replacing it shows on the bill, especially if you dry often. If the energy label gives the consumption, enter it in the calculator instead of the default.
The dryer in an electrically heated house
In a house heated by electricity, part of the dryer’s heat escapes into the room. In winter it then replaces some heating, but heat leaving through the ventilation is lost. How large the net cost is depends on the house and does not show in a simple calculation, so count the dryer’s full consumption as a cost; the estimate is then on the high side rather than the low.
Quarter-hour prices, power and timers
On a quarter-hour contract you can paste today’s prices and see when drying is cheapest to start, using the programme length as the window. With a power charge it is wise not to run the dryer alongside other large loads. Compare with the washing machine’s cost for the same load.