How much does a central air conditioner cost per month in Virginia?

About $33.75 a month, assuming 3,500 W at a 70% duty cycle, 8 hours a day, 120 days a year at 17.22¢/kWh.

How many kilowatt-hours does a central air conditioner use?

Roughly 2,352 kWh a year under these assumptions, or 2.45 kWh for every hour it runs.

Is that expensive compared with other states?

Virginia has the 22nd most expensive average residential rate in the country, so this appliance costs less here than the U.S. average of $431 a year.

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Cost to run a central air conditioner in Virginia (June 2026 rates)

At 17.22¢ per kilowatt-hour — Virginia's average residential price in June 2026 — running a central air conditioner costs $405 a year. That is 6% less than the national average of $431. Virginia's residential rate is up 13.1% from June 2025, which moves this appliance from $358 to $405 a year.

Per hour: 42.2¢
Per day of use: $3.38
Per month: $33.75
Per year: $405

Assumption: 3,500 W at a 70% duty cycle, 8 hours a day, 120 days a year — 2,352 kWh a year. A 3-ton central system draws roughly 3,500 W with the air handler running. Older or oversized units cycle harder and land higher. Use the calculator to swap in the numbers from your own model.

How Virginia compares

Virginia pays 17.22¢/kWh, the 22nd most expensive residential electricity of the 51 U.S. jurisdictions EIA reports. For this appliance that works out to $26.34 less a year than the typical U.S. household pays for the same use. Running the same central air conditioner costs $308 a year in Nevada and $1,240 in Hawaii, so where you live changes this bill by $932 a year.

State	Rate	Per month	Per year
Alabama	16.40¢	$32.14	$386
Colorado	17.13¢	$33.57	$403
Virginia	17.22¢	$33.75	$405
Indiana	17.51¢	$34.32	$412
Minnesota	17.52¢	$34.34	$412

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

What else costs about the same in Virginia

Hot tub$430 a year in VA Heat pump$372 a year in VA Pool pump$298 a year in VA

Cutting the number down

Each degree you raise the thermostat in summer trims roughly 3% off cooling energy. Two degrees is a rounding error in comfort and a visible line on the bill.
A clogged filter makes the blower work against restriction for an entire season. Replacing it is the cheapest maintenance in the house.
Cooling load tracks the indoor/outdoor gap, so the same thermostat setting costs far more in a 100 F week than an 85 F one.

Questions

How much does a central air conditioner cost per month in Virginia?: About $33.75 a month, assuming 3,500 W at a 70% duty cycle, 8 hours a day, 120 days a year at 17.22¢/kWh.
How many kilowatt-hours does a central air conditioner use?: Roughly 2,352 kWh a year under these assumptions, or 2.45 kWh for every hour it runs.
Is that expensive compared with other states?: Virginia has the 22nd most expensive average residential rate in the country, so this appliance costs less here than the U.S. average of $431 a year.