What an electric clothes dryer costs to run in Illinois
Illinois homes use 647 kWh a year on an electric clothes dryer. Priced on top of the rest of the bill, that costs $68.88 to $68.88 a year across 24 published Illinois plans — a $0.00 gap. Checked September 2, 2026.
Every priced plan, average
| Plan | Per year | vs cheapest | Effective |
|---|---|---|---|
| Residential Single Family With Electric Space Heat Delivery Class(Retail Delivery Service-Unbundled)flat rate · delivery charges only | $9.84 | −$59.04 | 4.5¢ |
| Residential Multi Family With Electric Space Heat Delivery Class(Retail Delivery Service-Unbundled)flat rate · delivery charges only | $11.76 | −$57.12 | 3.6¢ |
| Residential Single Family Without Electric Space Heat Delivery Class(Retail Delivery Service)flat rate · delivery charges only | $18.00 | −$50.88 | 5.5¢ |
| BESH- Residential Single Family With Electric Space Heat Delivery Class(Unbundled)demand charge · delivery charges only | $20.23 | −$48.65 | 6.1¢ |
| BESH- Residential Multi Family With Electric Space Heat Delivery Class(Unbundled)demand charge · delivery charges only | $22.15 | −$46.73 | 5.3¢ |
| Residential Multi Family Without Electric Space Heat Delivery Class(Retail Delivery Service-Unbundled)flat rate · delivery charges only | $22.68 | −$46.20 | 5.1¢ |
| RDS - Residential Multi Family With Electric Space Heat Delivery Classtime-of-use · delivery charges only | $28.20 | −$40.68 | 6.7¢ |
| BESH- Residential Single Family Without Electric Space Heat Delivery Class(Unbundled)demand charge · delivery charges only | $28.27 | −$40.61 | 7.1¢ |
| RDS - Residential Single Family with Electric Space Heat Delivery Classtime-of-use · delivery charges only | $29.16 | −$39.72 | 7.6¢ |
| BESH- Residential Multi Family Without Electric Space Heat Delivery Class(Unbundled)demand charge · delivery charges only | $32.95 | −$35.93 | 6.8¢ |
| RDS - Residential Multi Family Without Electric Space Heat Delivery Classtime-of-use · delivery charges only | $40.20 | −$28.68 | 8.4¢ |
| Electric Heat Residential Income Qualified Senior Citizen - Southern View (Rate 36)time-of-use · income-qualified rate | $58.48 | −$10.40 | 10.1¢ |
| Electric Heat Residential Income Qualified Senior Citizen (Rate 37)time-of-use · income-qualified rate | $58.48 | −$10.40 | 10.1¢ |
| BES - Residential Multi Family With Electric Space Heat Delivery Classtime-of-use · delivery charges only | $61.16 | −$7.72 | 11.8¢ |
| BES - Residential Single Family with Electric Space Heat Delivery Classtime-of-use · delivery charges only | $61.52 | −$7.36 | 12.6¢ |
| Regular Residential - Senior Citizen (Rate 33)time-of-use · senior citizens only | $62.08 | −$6.80 | 10.7¢ |
| Regular Residential- Southern View Senior Citizen (Rate 32)time-of-use · senior citizens only | $62.08 | −$6.80 | 10.7¢ |
| Electric Heat Residential (Rate 34)time-of-use · needs electric heating | $64.80 | −$4.08 | 11.3¢ |
| Electric Heat Residential - Southern View (Rate 35)time-of-use · needs electric heating | $64.80 | −$4.08 | 11.3¢ |
| Regular Residential (Rate 30)✓ cheapesttime-of-use | $68.88 | — | 11.9¢ |
| Regular Residential - Southern View (Rate 31)time-of-use | $68.88 | — | 11.9¢ |
| BES - Residential Multi Family Without Electric Space Heat Delivery Classtime-of-use · delivery charges only | $72.56 | +$3.68 | 13.4¢ |
| BES - Residential Single Family Without Electric Space Heat Delivery Classtime-of-use · delivery charges only | $81.72 | +$12.84 | 15.4¢ |
| RDS - Residential Single Family Without Electric Space Heat Delivery Classtime-of-use · delivery charges only | $133.08 | +$64.20 | 23.3¢ |
Cost across usage levels
The cheapest plan at each consumption level, showing whether the ranking holds as usage changes.
- Lighter use — cheapest $31.24 (Regular Residential (Rate 30)), dearest $31.24
- Average — cheapest $68.88 (Regular Residential (Rate 30)), dearest $68.88
- Heavier use — cheapest $92.56 (Regular Residential - Southern View (Rate 31)), dearest $92.56, a $0.00 spread
What an electric clothes dryer costs here
Across 24 plans priced in Illinois, an electric clothes dryer adds $68.88 to $68.88 a year — $5.74 to $5.74 a month. The median plan puts an electric clothes dryer at $68.88 a year.
Cheapest for an electric clothes dryer: Regular Residential (Rate 30), City of Springfield, Illinois (Utility Company). Dearest: Regular Residential - Southern View (Rate 31), City of Springfield, Illinois (Utility Company).
Those 647 kWh are billed at 10.6¢–10.6¢, against a 11.9¢ whole-bill average on the median plan, so on these plans the two rates are close.
What Illinois homes use
EIA's 2020 residential survey found 647 kWh a year across 212 sampled homes that run one, near the national 680 kWh. The middle half spans 293 kWh to 870 kWh, so an electric clothes dryer varies by 577 kWh between one household and another.
The heating element and drum motor across a year of loads. That average covers homes with an electric clothes dryer — 38% of homes here, against 67% nationally.
That makes an electric clothes dryer about 8% of the electricity an Illinois home uses. The remaining 7,804 kWh is what an electric clothes dryer is billed on top of, and on a tiered or time-of-use plan that is what sets the rate it meets.
Light and heavy use of an electric clothes dryer
A household in the lighter quarter runs an electric clothes dryer for 293 kWh a year and pays $31.24 on the cheapest plan. One in the heavier quarter runs it for 870 kWh and pays $92.56 — $61.32 more for an electric clothes dryer on the same tariff.
The winner changes with volume: Regular Residential (Rate 30) for lighter use, Regular Residential - Southern View (Rate 31) for heavier.
Limits
A 2020 survey average for Illinois, not a measurement of any one home, priced against the 24 Illinois tariffs WattClear has ingested — not every plan sold there.
New to these terms? The methodology page explains tiered bands, time-of-use periods and fixed charges, and sets out exactly what the rate engine assumes.
Estimate — your actual bill may differ.
Tariff structures from NREL/OpenEI Utility Rate Database (CC0 1.0), retrieved September 2, 2026.
Location resolved through the US Census Bureau Geocoder (Public domain) at 39.7817, -89.6501.