What a humidifier costs to run in Minnesota
Minnesota homes use 120 kWh a year on a humidifier. Priced on top of the rest of the bill, that costs $10.36 to $19.36 a year across 24 published Minnesota plans — a $9.00 gap. Checked September 2, 2026.
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Every priced plan, average
| Plan | Per year | vs cheapest | Effective |
|---|---|---|---|
| Residential Heat Pump Service (E06)time-of-use · needs a heat pump | $6.72 | −$3.64 | 6.0¢ |
| Energy Controlled Service/Non-Demand Metered (E10 )-Residentialtime-of-use · needs controlled load equipment | $7.00 | −$3.36 | 6.2¢ |
| Energy Controlled Service Non-demand metered Residential (A05)flat rate · needs controlled load equipment | $8.76 | −$1.60 | 8.0¢ |
| Residential Time of Day Service (D02/D04) Electric Space Heatingtime-of-use · needs electric heating | $9.94 | −$0.42 | 10.5¢ |
| Residential Time of Day Service (D02/D04) Standard✓ cheapesttime-of-use | $10.36 | — | 10.9¢ |
| Residential Service (D01/D03) Standardtime-of-use | $10.52 | +$0.16 | 10.8¢ |
| Residential Service (D01/D03) Electric Space Heatingtime-of-use · needs electric heating | $10.96 | +$0.60 | 11.1¢ |
| Residential Service - Underground (E03) Electric Space Heatingtime-of-use · tiered · needs electric heating | $11.08 | +$0.72 | 10.6¢ |
| Residential Service Time Of Day - Overhead (E02) Electric Space Heatingtime-of-use · needs electric heating | $12.20 | +$1.84 | 11.5¢ |
| Residential Service Time Of Day - Undergound (E04) Electric Space Heatingtime-of-use · needs electric heating | $12.20 | +$1.84 | 11.8¢ |
| Residential Service Time Of Day - Overhead (E02)time-of-use | $12.81 | +$2.45 | 12.1¢ |
| Residential Service Time Of Day - Underground (E04)time-of-use | $12.81 | +$2.45 | 12.3¢ |
| Residential Service - Underground (E03)time-of-use · tiered | $13.24 | +$2.88 | 12.4¢ |
| Residential Service - Overhead (E01) Electric Space Heatingtime-of-use · tiered · needs electric heating | $13.24 | +$2.88 | 12.1¢ |
| Residential Service - Overhead (E01)time-of-use · tiered | $13.88 | +$3.52 | 12.6¢ |
| Residential TOD Underground Electric Space Heating (A04)time-of-use · needs electric heating | $16.35 | +$5.99 | 14.5¢ |
| Residential TOD Overhead Electric Space Heating (A02)time-of-use · needs electric heating | $16.35 | +$5.99 | 14.5¢ |
| Residential Service - Underground Electric Space Heating (A03)time-of-use · needs electric heating | $16.64 | +$6.28 | 14.7¢ |
| Residential Service - Overhead Electric Space Heating (A01)time-of-use · needs electric heating | $16.64 | +$6.28 | 14.7¢ |
| Residential TOD Underground Standard (A04)time-of-use | $17.90 | +$7.54 | 15.8¢ |
| Residential TOD Overhead Standard (A02)time-of-use | $18.58 | +$8.22 | 16.3¢ |
| Residential Electric Vehicle Service (A08)time-of-use · needs an electric vehicle | $19.06 | +$8.70 | 16.7¢ |
| Residential Service - Overhead Standard (A01)time-of-use | $19.36 | +$9.00 | 17.0¢ |
| Residential Service - Underground Standard (A03)time-of-use | $19.36 | +$9.00 | 17.0¢ |
Cost across usage levels
The cheapest plan at each consumption level, showing whether the ranking holds as usage changes.
- Lighter use — cheapest $5.00 (Residential Time of Day Service (D02/D04) Standard), dearest $9.36, a $4.36 spread
- Average — cheapest $10.36 (Residential Time of Day Service (D02/D04) Standard), dearest $19.36, a $9.00 spread
- Heavier use — cheapest $11.52 (Residential Time of Day Service (D02/D04) Standard), dearest $21.56, a $10.04 spread
What a humidifier costs here
Across 24 plans priced in Minnesota, a humidifier adds $10.36 to $19.36 a year — $0.86 to $1.61 a month. The median plan puts a humidifier at $13.56 a year.
Cheapest for a humidifier: Residential Time of Day Service (D02/D04) Standard, Northern States Power Co - Minnesota (North Dakota). Dearest: Residential Service - Underground Standard (A03), Northern States Power Co - Minnesota.
Those 120 kWh are billed at 8.7¢–16.2¢, against a 12.5¢ 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 3.7¢ per kWh.
What Minnesota homes use
EIA's 2020 residential survey found 120 kWh a year across 127 sampled homes that run one, near the national 139 kWh. The middle half spans 58 kWh to 133 kWh, so a humidifier varies by 75 kWh between one household and another.
Portable and whole-home humidifiers. That average covers homes with a humidifier — 37% of homes here, against 24% nationally.
That makes a humidifier about 1% of the electricity a Minnesota home uses. The remaining 9,211 kWh is what a humidifier 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 Minnesota provider's cheapest plan: Northern States Power Co - Minnesota (North Dakota), $10.36; Northern States Power Co - Minnesota (South Dakota), $12.81; Northern States Power Co - Minnesota, $17.90.
Northern States Power Co - Minnesota charges $7.54 a year more than Northern States Power Co - Minnesota (North Dakota) on Residential Time of Day Service (D02/D04) Standard for the same 120 kWh.
Light and heavy use of a humidifier
A household in the lighter quarter runs a humidifier for 58 kWh a year and pays $5.00 on the cheapest plan. One in the heavier quarter runs it for 133 kWh and pays $11.52 — $6.52 more for a humidifier on the same tariff.
Limits
A 2020 survey average for Minnesota, not a measurement of any one home, priced against the 24 Minnesota 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 44.9778, -93.2650.