How much does an electric clothes dryer cost per month in California?

About $19.34 a month, assuming 3.00 kWh per cycle, 5 cycles a week at 29.75¢/kWh.

How many kilowatt-hours does an electric clothes dryer use?

Roughly 780 kWh a year under these assumptions.

Is that expensive compared with other states?

California has the 4th most expensive average residential rate in the country, so this appliance costs more here than the U.S. average of $142 a year.

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Cost to run an electric clothes dryer in California (August 2026 rates)

At 29.75¢ per kilowatt-hour — California's average residential price in August 2026 — running an electric clothes dryer costs $232 a year. That is 64% more than the national average of $142. California's residential rate is down 3.8% from August 2025, which moves this appliance from $241 to $232 a year.

Per cycle: 89.2¢
Per day: 63.6¢
Per month: $19.34
Per year: $232

Assumption: 3.00 kWh per cycle, 5 cycles a week — 780 kWh a year. A standard vented electric dryer. Heat-pump dryers use roughly half this per load. Use the calculator to swap in the numbers from your own model.

How California compares

California pays 29.75¢/kWh, the 4th most expensive residential electricity of the 51 U.S. jurisdictions EIA reports. For this appliance that works out to $90.40 more a year than the typical U.S. household pays for the same use. Running the same electric clothes dryer costs $99.22 a year in Nevada and $368 in Hawaii, so where you live changes this bill by $269 a year.

State	Rate	Per month	Per year
New York	28.65¢	$18.62	$223
Alaska	29.41¢	$19.12	$229
California	29.75¢	$19.34	$232
Massachusetts	30.48¢	$19.81	$238
Maine	32.11¢	$20.87	$250

States ranked by average residential price, cheapest first. See all 51 states for an electric clothes dryer.

What else costs about the same in California

Portable air conditioner$251 a year in CA Space heater$257 a year in CA Window air conditioner$206 a year in CA

Cutting the number down

The spin speed of the washer sets the dryer's workload. A faster final spin removes water mechanically instead of thermally, which is far cheaper.
A blocked lint screen or crushed vent hose makes every load run longer at full heat.
Back-to-back loads reuse a drum that is already hot.

Questions

How much does an electric clothes dryer cost per month in California?: About $19.34 a month, assuming 3.00 kWh per cycle, 5 cycles a week at 29.75¢/kWh.
How many kilowatt-hours does an electric clothes dryer use?: Roughly 780 kWh a year under these assumptions.
Is that expensive compared with other states?: California has the 4th most expensive average residential rate in the country, so this appliance costs more here than the U.S. average of $142 a year.