What a dehumidifier costs to run in California
California homes use 705 kWh a year on a dehumidifier. Priced on top of the rest of the bill, that costs $108.84 to $365.46 a year across 115 published California plans — a $256.62 gap. Checked September 2, 2026.
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Cheapest 25 of 115 priced plans, average
| Plan | Per year | vs cheapest | Effective |
|---|---|---|---|
| Residential Smart Pricing Pilot Weekday Value Plan - Single Phase (Closed)time-of-use · closed to new customers | $75.40 | −$33.44 | 14.4¢ |
| Residential Smart Pricing Pilot Weekday Value Plan - Three Phase (Closed)time-of-use · closed to new customers | $75.40 | −$33.44 | 22.3¢ |
| Residential TOD (Option B - Currently Closed)time-of-use · closed to new customers | $81.83 | −$27.01 | 15.4¢ |
| Residential Lifeline Rate Discounttiered · lifeline rate | $81.96 | −$26.88 | 13.7¢ |
| Residential Service✓ cheapestflat rate | $108.84 | — | 18.2¢ |
| E-7 -Residential Time of Use Baseline Region P; Closed Ratetime-of-use · tiered · closed to new customers | $112.64 | +$3.80 | 15.1¢ |
| E-7 -Residential Time of Use Baseline Region R; Closed Ratetime-of-use · tiered · closed to new customers | $112.91 | +$4.07 | 15.2¢ |
| E-7 -Residential Time of Use Baseline Region S; Closed Ratetime-of-use · tiered · closed to new customers | $115.57 | +$6.73 | 15.2¢ |
| E-7 -Residential Time of Use Baseline Region W; Closed Ratetime-of-use · tiered · closed to new customers | $122.41 | +$13.57 | 15.4¢ |
| E-7 -Residential Time of Use Baseline Region Y; Closed Ratetime-of-use · tiered · closed to new customers | $125.07 | +$16.23 | 15.4¢ |
| E-6 -Residential Time of Use Baseline Region Y; Closed Ratetime-of-use · tiered · closed to new customers | $127.05 | +$18.21 | 17.9¢ |
| E-7 -Residential Time of Use Baseline Region X; Closed Ratetime-of-use · tiered · closed to new customers | $129.63 | +$20.79 | 13.8¢ |
| E-7 -Residential Time of Use Baseline Region Q; Closed Ratetime-of-use · tiered · closed to new customers | $139.78 | +$30.94 | 16.6¢ |
| E-7 -Residential Time of Use Baseline Region V; Closed Ratetime-of-use · tiered · closed to new customers | $142.09 | +$33.25 | 16.3¢ |
| Residential Service (R1A): Zone 1 - Tier 1 (Less than 350 kWh)time-of-use · a single tier of a larger tariff | $143.04 | +$34.20 | 20.7¢ |
| Residential Multi-Family (R-3)time-of-use · demand charge | $155.07 | +$46.23 | 22.0¢ |
| E-7 -Residential Time of Use Baseline Region T; Closed Ratetime-of-use · tiered · closed to new customers | $155.35 | +$46.51 | 17.5¢ |
| Residential Time of Use (R1B)time-of-use | $162.40 | +$53.56 | 24.5¢ |
| R-2 Low-Income Residential Servicetime-of-use · tiered · low-income rate | $163.14 | +$54.30 | 15.7¢ |
| E-7 -Residential Time of Use Baseline Region Z; Closed Ratetime-of-use · tiered · closed to new customers | $169.25 | +$60.41 | 17.9¢ |
| E-TOU Option B - Residential Time of Use Service (All Baseline Regions)time-of-use | $171.88 | +$63.04 | 24.4¢ |
| Residential Service (R1A): Zone 2time-of-use · tiered | $172.92 | +$64.08 | 24.2¢ |
| Residential Service (R1A): Zone 1time-of-use · tiered | $174.04 | +$65.20 | 24.3¢ |
| REV-1 Experimental Electric Vehicle Programtime-of-use · tiered · experimental | $174.72 | +$65.88 | 19.3¢ |
| E-6 -Residential Time of Use- Baseline Region P; Closed Ratetime-of-use · tiered · closed to new customers | $175.44 | +$66.60 | 23.5¢ |
90 further schedules are published and priced but not listed here — mostly regional and seasonal variants of the plans above. The dearest of them costs $365.46 a year at this usage.
Cost across usage levels
The cheapest plan at each consumption level, showing whether the ranking holds as usage changes.
- Lighter use — cheapest $17.52 (Residential Service), dearest $58.80, a $41.28 spread
- Average — cheapest $108.84 (Residential Service), dearest $365.46, a $256.62 spread
- Heavier use — cheapest $178.68 (Residential Service), dearest $599.82, a $421.14 spread
What a dehumidifier costs here
Across 115 plans priced in California, a dehumidifier adds $108.84 to $365.46 a year — $9.07 to $30.46 a month. The median plan puts a dehumidifier at $268.70 a year.
Cheapest for a dehumidifier: Residential Service, City of Redding, California (Utility Company). Dearest: DR - Inland Baseline Region, San Diego Gas & Electric Co.
Those 705 kWh are billed at 15.4¢–51.8¢, against a 39.5¢ whole-bill average on the median plan: they land in the last tier the household reaches, so the average rate understates them by up to 12.4¢ per kWh.
What California homes use
EIA's 2020 residential survey found 705 kWh a year across 49 sampled homes that run one, 29% under the national 999 kWh. The middle half spans 114 kWh to 1,158 kWh, so a dehumidifier varies by 1,044 kWh between one household and another.
Portable and whole-home dehumidifiers. That average covers homes with a dehumidifier — 4% of homes here, against 17% nationally.
That makes a dehumidifier about 11% of the electricity a California home uses. The remaining 5,776 kWh is what a dehumidifier is billed on top of, and on a tiered or time-of-use plan that is what sets the rate it meets.
By provider
On each California provider's cheapest plan: City of Redding, California (Utility Company), $108.84; Los Angeles Department of Water & Power, $155.07; Pacific Gas & Electric Co, $171.88; City & County of San Francisco (Utility Company), $233.04; San Diego Gas & Electric Co, $268.70.
San Diego Gas & Electric Co charges $159.86 a year more than City of Redding, California (Utility Company) on Residential Service for the same 705 kWh.
Light and heavy use of a dehumidifier
A household in the lighter quarter runs a dehumidifier for 114 kWh a year and pays $17.52 on the cheapest plan. One in the heavier quarter runs it for 1,158 kWh and pays $178.68 — $161.16 more for a dehumidifier on the same tariff.
Limits
A 2020 survey average for California, not a measurement of any one home, priced against the 115 California 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 40.5865, -122.3917.