Cost to run a microwave in Hawaii (June 2026 rates)
At 52.72¢ per kilowatt-hour — Hawaii's average residential price in June 2026 — running a microwave costs $57.73 a year. That is 187% more than the national average of $20.08. Hawaii's residential rate is up 28.7% from June 2025, which moves this appliance from $44.85 to $57.73 a year.
- Per hour
- 63.3¢
- Per day of use
- 15.8¢
- Per month
- $4.81
- Per year
- $57.73
Assumption: 1,200 W, 15 minutes a day, 365 days a year — 110 kWh a year. Draw while cooking; the 1,100 W on the label is delivered power and the wall draw is a little higher. Assumes 15 minutes a day of actual use. Use the calculator to swap in the numbers from your own model.
How Hawaii compares
Hawaii pays 52.72¢/kWh, the most expensive residential electricity of the 51 U.S. jurisdictions EIA reports. For this appliance that works out to $37.65 more a year than the typical U.S. household pays for the same use. Running the same microwave costs $14.36 a year in Nevada and $57.73 in Hawaii, so where you live changes this bill by $43.37 a year.
| State | Rate | Per month | Per year |
|---|---|---|---|
| New York | 29.49¢ | $2.69 | $32.29 |
| Maine | 29.59¢ | $2.70 | $32.40 |
| Massachusetts | 29.61¢ | $2.70 | $32.42 |
| California | 34.74¢ | $3.17 | $38.04 |
| Hawaii | 52.72¢ | $4.81 | $57.73 |
States ranked by average residential price, cheapest first. See all 51 states for a microwave.
What else costs about the same in Hawaii
Cutting the number down
- Reheating in a microwave is close to the cheapest way to put heat into food, because nearly all of it lands in the food rather than the air.
- The clock display draws a couple of watts around the clock, which over a year is a meaningful share of a lightly used microwave's total.
Questions
- How much does a microwave cost per month in Hawaii?
- About $4.81 a month, assuming 1,200 W, 15 minutes a day, 365 days a year at 52.72¢/kWh.
- How many kilowatt-hours does a microwave use?
- Roughly 110 kWh a year under these assumptions, or 1.20 kWh for every hour it runs.
- Is that expensive compared with other states?
- Hawaii has the most expensive average residential rate in the country, so this appliance costs more here than the U.S. average of $20.08 a year.