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How much does it cost to run an LED bulb?

At the U.S. average residential price of 18.16¢ per kilowatt-hour (August 2026), running an LED bulb costs about $2.98 a year. Your own bill depends on your state's rate, which ranges from 12.72¢ to 47.18¢ across the country.

Per hour
0.2¢
Per day of use
0.8¢
Per month
24.9¢
Per year
$2.98

Assumption: 9 W, 5 hours a day, 365 days a year — 16 kWh a year. A 9 W LED producing about 800 lumens, the equivalent of an old 60 W incandescent.

Cost by state

Same appliance, same usage, 51 different prices. Sorted cheapest first.

StateRatePer monthPer year
Nevada12.72¢17.4¢$2.09
Louisiana12.87¢17.6¢$2.11
North Dakota13.31¢18.2¢$2.19
Utah13.31¢18.2¢$2.19
Idaho13.37¢18.3¢$2.20
Tennessee13.42¢18.4¢$2.20
Nebraska13.54¢18.5¢$2.22
Kentucky13.80¢18.9¢$2.27
Arkansas14.37¢19.7¢$2.36
Mississippi14.43¢19.8¢$2.37
Wyoming14.43¢19.8¢$2.37
Washington14.63¢20.0¢$2.40
Oklahoma14.82¢20.3¢$2.43
North Carolina14.95¢20.5¢$2.46
Florida14.99¢20.5¢$2.46
Arizona15.05¢20.6¢$2.47
South Dakota15.15¢20.7¢$2.49
Kansas15.47¢21.2¢$2.54
Montana15.57¢21.3¢$2.56
South Carolina15.76¢21.6¢$2.59
Georgia15.90¢21.8¢$2.61
Texas15.91¢21.8¢$2.61
Oregon15.92¢21.8¢$2.61
Missouri16.02¢21.9¢$2.63
West Virginia16.31¢22.3¢$2.68
Alabama16.33¢22.4¢$2.68
New Mexico16.51¢22.6¢$2.71
Indiana17.02¢23.3¢$2.80
Iowa17.06¢23.4¢$2.80
Colorado17.17¢23.5¢$2.82
Minnesota17.20¢23.5¢$2.83
Virginia17.64¢24.1¢$2.90
Delaware18.70¢25.6¢$3.07
Illinois19.32¢26.4¢$3.17
Ohio19.38¢26.5¢$3.18
Wisconsin19.41¢26.6¢$3.19
Maryland21.40¢29.3¢$3.51
Pennsylvania21.77¢29.8¢$3.58
Michigan22.99¢31.5¢$3.78
Vermont23.84¢32.6¢$3.92
Connecticut24.51¢33.5¢$4.03
New Jersey24.61¢33.7¢$4.04
District of Columbia25.98¢35.6¢$4.27
New Hampshire27.64¢37.8¢$4.54
Rhode Island28.18¢38.6¢$4.63
New York28.65¢39.2¢$4.71
Alaska29.41¢40.3¢$4.83
California29.75¢40.7¢$4.89
Massachusetts30.48¢41.7¢$5.01
Maine32.11¢44.0¢$5.27
Hawaii47.18¢64.6¢$7.75

Cutting the number down

Questions

How many watts does an LED bulb use?
About 9 W while running.
How much does an LED bulb cost per month?
About 24.9¢ a month at the U.S. average rate, or $2.98 a year.
Where is it cheapest to run?
Nevada, at $2.09 a year, versus $7.75 in Hawaii — a spread of $5.66.