What a washing machine costs to run in California
California homes use 62 kWh a year on a washing machine. Priced on top of the rest of the bill, that costs $9.48 to $32.04 a year across 115 published California plans — a $22.56 gap. Checked September 2, 2026.
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 | $6.63 | −$2.85 | 14.4¢ |
| Residential Smart Pricing Pilot Weekday Value Plan - Three Phase (Closed)time-of-use · closed to new customers | $6.63 | −$2.85 | 22.3¢ |
| Residential TOD (Option B - Currently Closed)time-of-use · closed to new customers | $7.17 | −$2.31 | 15.4¢ |
| Residential Lifeline Rate Discounttiered · lifeline rate | $7.20 | −$2.28 | 13.7¢ |
| Residential Service✓ cheapestflat rate | $9.48 | — | 18.2¢ |
| E-7 -Residential Time of Use Baseline Region P; Closed Ratetime-of-use · tiered · closed to new customers | $10.30 | +$0.82 | 15.1¢ |
| E-7 -Residential Time of Use Baseline Region R; Closed Ratetime-of-use · tiered · closed to new customers | $10.32 | +$0.84 | 15.2¢ |
| E-7 -Residential Time of Use Baseline Region W; Closed Ratetime-of-use · tiered · closed to new customers | $10.90 | +$1.42 | 15.4¢ |
| E-7 -Residential Time of Use Baseline Region S; Closed Ratetime-of-use · tiered · closed to new customers | $11.04 | +$1.56 | 15.2¢ |
| E-6 -Residential Time of Use Baseline Region Y; Closed Ratetime-of-use · tiered · closed to new customers | $11.48 | +$2.00 | 17.9¢ |
| E-7 -Residential Time of Use Baseline Region Y; Closed Ratetime-of-use · tiered · closed to new customers | $11.72 | +$2.24 | 15.4¢ |
| Residential Service (R1A): Zone 1 - Tier 1 (Less than 350 kWh)time-of-use · a single tier of a larger tariff | $12.54 | +$3.06 | 20.7¢ |
| E-7 -Residential Time of Use Baseline Region X; Closed Ratetime-of-use · tiered · closed to new customers | $12.87 | +$3.39 | 13.8¢ |
| E-7 -Residential Time of Use Baseline Region V; Closed Ratetime-of-use · tiered · closed to new customers | $13.08 | +$3.60 | 16.3¢ |
| E-7 -Residential Time of Use Baseline Region Q; Closed Ratetime-of-use · tiered · closed to new customers | $13.49 | +$4.01 | 16.6¢ |
| Residential Multi-Family (R-3)time-of-use · demand charge | $13.61 | +$4.13 | 22.0¢ |
| Residential Time of Use (R1B)time-of-use | $14.26 | +$4.78 | 24.5¢ |
| R-2 Low-Income Residential Servicetime-of-use · tiered · low-income rate | $14.28 | +$4.80 | 15.7¢ |
| E-7 -Residential Time of Use Baseline Region Z; Closed Ratetime-of-use · tiered · closed to new customers | $14.83 | +$5.35 | 17.9¢ |
| E-7 -Residential Time of Use Baseline Region T; Closed Ratetime-of-use · tiered · closed to new customers | $14.85 | +$5.37 | 17.5¢ |
| E-TOU Option B - Residential Time of Use Service (All Baseline Regions)time-of-use | $15.08 | +$5.60 | 24.4¢ |
| REV-1 Experimental Electric Vehicle Programtime-of-use · tiered · experimental | $15.24 | +$5.76 | 19.3¢ |
| Residential Service (R1A): Zone 2time-of-use · tiered | $15.28 | +$5.80 | 24.2¢ |
| Residential Service (R1A): Zone 1time-of-use · tiered | $15.28 | +$5.80 | 24.3¢ |
| E-6 -Residential Time of Use- Baseline Region P; Closed Ratetime-of-use · tiered · closed to new customers | $15.40 | +$5.92 | 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 $32.04 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 $5.16 (Residential Service), dearest $17.46, a $12.30 spread
- Average — cheapest $9.48 (Residential Service), dearest $32.04, a $22.56 spread
- Heavier use — cheapest $11.76 (Residential Service), dearest $39.60, a $27.84 spread
What a washing machine costs here
Across 115 plans priced in California, a washing machine adds $9.48 to $32.04 a year — $0.79 to $2.67 a month. The median plan puts a washing machine at $23.56 a year.
Cheapest for a washing machine: Residential Service, City of Redding, California (Utility Company). Dearest: DR - Inland Baseline Region, San Diego Gas & Electric Co.
Those 62 kWh are billed at 15.3¢–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 62 kWh a year across 943 sampled homes that run one, near the national 69 kWh. The middle half spans 34 kWh to 76 kWh, so a washing machine varies by 43 kWh between one household and another.
The washer's own motor and controls. Heating the water is billed to the water heater, not here. That average covers homes with a washing machine — 76% of homes here.
That makes a washing machine about 1% of the electricity a California home uses. The remaining 6,420 kWh is what a washing machine 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), $9.48; Los Angeles Department of Water & Power, $13.61; Pacific Gas & Electric Co, $15.08; City & County of San Francisco (Utility Company), $20.46; San Diego Gas & Electric Co, $23.56.
San Diego Gas & Electric Co charges $14.08 a year more than City of Redding, California (Utility Company) on Residential Service for the same 62 kWh.
Light and heavy use of a washing machine
A household in the lighter quarter runs a washing machine for 34 kWh a year and pays $5.16 on the cheapest plan. One in the heavier quarter runs it for 76 kWh and pays $11.76 — $6.60 more for a washing machine 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.