Smart Energy GB has updated its appliance energy calculator, a tool that estimates what household appliances cost to run and compares those costs across three price cap periods. The calculator was last updated on 01/01/20261. The pages carrying it were last updated on 16 March 20261.
The calculator shows a cost estimate for the current price cap (January to March 2026) and compares it with the previous price cap (October to December 2025) and the one before that (July to September 2025)1. Its headline figure is £43 a month based on the current energy price cap, which is £2 more than under the previous cap and £3 more than under the cap before that1. Users set their own usage through drop-down menus covering a kettle, TV, air fryer, laptop, games console, electric oven, electric shower, LED lighting and an energy panel heater1.
Smart Energy GB states the limits of the figures. It says it has used average power ratings because appliance electricity use varies by make and model, and that it has used price cap figures for a standard variable rate, so the calculator does not take fixed tariffs or additional costs into account1.
"This calculator was last updated on 01/01/2026."
Separately, the same pages give worked running costs for individual appliances, calculated at an electricity rate of £0.2635 per kWh2:
| Appliance | Energy use | Running cost |
|---|---|---|
| Heated clothes airer | 0.2 to 0.3 kWh | 51p to 77p for a ten-hour drying session |
| Tumble dryer | 1.8 to 5 kWh | 46p to £1.29 for a one-hour cycle |
| Air fryer | 1.4 to 1.7 kWh | 36p to 44p per hour |
| Oven | 2 to 5 kWh | 64p to £1.61 for 15 minutes preheating plus an hour cooking |
| Electric blanket | 0.15 kWh | about 39p per hour |
| Electric heater | 2.5 kWh | 64p per hour |
The appliance figures carry a footnote stating that electricity costs are calculated using the price cap electricity rate of £0.26 per kWh July 2025, while the arithmetic shown alongside them uses £0.2635 per kWh2. The pages also cite a OnePoll survey for Smart Energy GB of 2,000 nationally representative GB adults carried out between 3 and 7 March 2023, which found that 56% were investing in new household gadgets to reduce energy costs2.
Why it matters for households
Running costs are the part of a bill a household controls most directly, and the calculator puts a figure on the gap between appliances that do similar jobs. The published comparisons show a heated clothes airer costing 51p to 77p for a ten-hour drying session against 46p to £1.29 for a single tumble dryer cycle, and an air fryer at 36p to 44p an hour against an oven at 64p to £1.61 for a shorter combined period2. For a home trying to hold down consumption without losing warmth or hot food, those differences are the practical margin.
The calculator's own caveats matter as much as its numbers. Because it uses average power ratings and standard variable price cap rates, it does not reflect a specific appliance or a fixed tariff, so a household's actual cost can sit outside the range shown1. The £43 monthly figure is an illustration of the cap periods rather than a bill forecast1. The wider context for how cap levels translate into household costs is set out in the site's guide to appliance running costs and its bills and price cap coverage, including how payment method changes what a household pays under the cap in prepayment versus direct debit and standard credit versus direct debit. Policy costs built into standing charges and unit rates are covered in policy costs and levies on energy bills, and the relationship between bills and self-sufficiency in energy bills and energy independence.
What happens next
No further update date has been reported beyond the 01/01/2026 calculator update and the 16 March 2026 page updates1. The calculator is built around the January to March 2026 price cap, and no information has been published on when it will be revised for later cap periods1.
Sources2 cited
- DIY draught proofing tips for your home | Smart Energy GB, smartenergygb.org
- Which appliances use more electricity | Smart Energy GB, smartenergygb.org