How Much Electricity Does an Oven Use? (2024 Update)

Ovens are large appliances that are the focal point of the family kitchen. Many people use ovens on a daily basis to make everything from family dinners to baked goods. Do ovens contribute to your electric bill? How much electricity do ovens use on a regular basis?

Ovens use quite a bit of power, and the more you use your oven, the more electricity it is going to draw. People that cook a lot will see higher bills than people who rarely use their ovens.

How much electricity do ovens use compared to other common household appliances? This quick guide will cover all of those questions and more as we get to the bottom of typical oven power usage.

Oven Power Use

Typical ovens use between 1,000 and 5,000 watts of electricity per hour. Generally, the larger the oven, the more power it will use. The amount of heat an oven also generates plays into the wattage. An oven running at 300 degrees Fahrenheit will use less power than an oven running at 450 degrees Fahrenheit. The average amount of electricity an oven uses hovers right around 3,000 watts per hour.

Oven Power Costs

The average cost of electricity in the United States is about 15 cents per kilowatt hour (kWh). We just established that ovens use between 1 kWh and 5 kWh on average. That means that ovens use between fifteen and seventy-five cents per hour. The average person uses an oven for less than an hour per day. If we take the averages, an oven will cost roughly thirteen dollars per month to run. If you have a larger oven or bake more than average, you will likely see numbers higher than that.

Oven Power Use Compared

How does an oven compare to other large household appliances? Ovens rank near the top of the list for appliance power usage. The high end for ovens, 5,000W, would rank as one of the top energy-using appliances in a typical home. The one saving grace for ovens is the fact that they are not used as frequently as other appliances in terms of run time. Refrigerators run continuously. Air conditioners run almost continuously. Televisions run for hours per day. Ovens run for an hour or less per day.

So, while they have a high wattage per hour, they rarely run for multiple hours at a time. Some people don’t even use their ovens every day. It is important to take in the hours used as well as the wattage to get an idea of the general cost. A refrigerator will use more power in a day than an oven does, even though it has lower wattage because it runs all of the time.

In terms of raw wattage, ovens are one of the highest energy users on a per-hour basis. Here is how ovens stack up against some of the most common home appliances in terms of overall wattage.

Oven vs. Stove

An oven is the enclosed area where you bake things. The chamber heats up, and you put food into the oven and close the door. A stove is an oven with a stovetop. Most people have stoves without realizing it since stoves include an oven and a stovetop. The oven is the most power-hungry part of the stove.

All stoves have ovens.

Not all ovens are stoves.

Stovetops can be installed separately from a stove or oven.

Conclusion

Ovens use quite a bit of power, but they are an important appliance necessary for safely preparing food. Ovens use anywhere from 1,000 to 5,000 watts per hour. Unlike other appliances like refrigerators air conditioners, or water heaters, ovens are not used continuously. Most people use their ovens for less than an hour per day, which means that their relative costs are fairly low compared to similarly sized appliances.

Featured Image Credit: mgattorna, Pixabay