How much does a refrigerator cost per month in California?

About $9.92 a month, assuming 400 kWh a year at 29.75¢/kWh.

How many kilowatt-hours does a refrigerator use?

Roughly 400 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 $72.64 a year.

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Cost to run a refrigerator in California (August 2026 rates)

At 29.75¢ per kilowatt-hour — California's average residential price in August 2026 — running a refrigerator costs $119 a year. That is 64% more than the national average of $72.64. California's residential rate is down 3.8% from August 2025, which moves this appliance from $124 to $119 a year.

Per day: 32.6¢
Per month: $9.92
Per year: $119

Assumption: 400 kWh a year. A current ENERGY STAR top-freezer lands near 400 kWh a year. A 2000s-era side-by-side can be double, and a garage fridge in a hot climate higher still. 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 $46.36 more a year than the typical U.S. household pays for the same use. Running the same refrigerator costs $50.88 a year in Nevada and $189 in Hawaii, so where you live changes this bill by $138 a year.

State	Rate	Per month	Per year
New York	28.65¢	$9.55	$115
Alaska	29.41¢	$9.80	$118
California	29.75¢	$9.92	$119
Massachusetts	30.48¢	$10.16	$122
Maine	32.11¢	$10.70	$128

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

What else costs about the same in California

Desktop computer$119 a year in CA Air purifier$130 a year in CA Electric oven$99.01 a year in CA

Cutting the number down

The second fridge in the garage is often the most expensive appliance in a house, because it is usually the oldest one and it works against garage heat.
Coils packed with dust make the compressor run longer for the same cooling. Vacuuming them takes minutes.
A door gasket that no longer grips a dollar bill is leaking cold around the clock.

Questions

How much does a refrigerator cost per month in California?: About $9.92 a month, assuming 400 kWh a year at 29.75¢/kWh.
How many kilowatt-hours does a refrigerator use?: Roughly 400 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 $72.64 a year.