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How Many Watts Does a Light Bulb Use? Consumption Chart & Power Saving Tips

hanging light bulbs

Light bulbs are an essential part of every household—they light up our homes without using a lot of energy. However, as every household typically uses multiple light bulbs, their power consumption adds up, which makes many people wonder if light bulbs consume a lot of power.

When it comes to their watt usage, light bulbs commonly use between 2 and 100 watts, depending on their type and size. If you’d like to know more about light bulbs, their watt usage, and energy consumption, read on below!

We’ll provide detailed explanations about the watt usage of traditional and LED bulbs, as well as how to save energy and money when using light bulbs.

light bulb divider

Different Types of Light Bulbs and Their Power Usage

The wattage of your light bulb will mostly depend on the type of bulb you use.

We can divide light bulbs into four main categories:
  • Incandescent light bulbs
  • Halogen light bulbs
  • CFL light bulbs
  • LED light bulbs

Each of these light bulbs has a different watt usage which we’ll showcase in the chart below.

Type of Light Bulb: Incandescent Halogen CFL LED
Wattage: 100 Watts 42 Watts 25 Watts 16 Watts

As you can see, LED lights typically use the least watts, while incandescent bulbs use the most watts.

a light bulb
Image By: AliceKeyStudio, Pixabay

Light Bulbs VS Household Appliances – Power Consumption

Before we get into the question of whether light bulbs consume lots of power, we want to show you the watt usage of light bulbs compared to other appliances people typically use in their households.

Appliance Power Consumption
Light Bulb 2–100 Watts
Coffee Maker 1,000 Watts
Hair Dryer 1,250 Watts
Washing Machine 1,150 Watts
Television 17–500 Watts
Electric Oven 2,150 Watts

Do Light Bulbs Consume Lots of Power?

Light bulbs are typically not huge spenders as long as you don’t keep all of them on simultaneously. However, if that happens, they could use a lot of watts, especially if you use incandescent light bulbs.

Luckily, there are a lot of easy things you can do to reduce the overall power consumption of your light bulbs, including:

  • Turning off the lights in your home when not using them
  • Trying to keep the lights turned off during the day, and relying on natural light instead
  • Turn on the lights during off-peak hours to lower your bills
  • Choose LED or CFL lights instead of incandescent light bulbs
a light bulb in a bar
Image Credit: holdosi, Pixabay

light bulb divider

Final Words

If you’re looking to spend less power and energy and live a greener life, you can start by reducing the usage of light bulbs in your household. It is a good idea to invest in new bulbs that have a lower watt usage, as they won’t affect the luminosity of your home, but you’ll certainly notice the differences in your energy bills.


Featured Image Credit: xegxef, Pixabay

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