How much electricity does air conditioning cost per day?
Updated on 4 min read
A fixed air conditioner (single split) uses about 0.7 kWh per hour of cooling. A simple sum and three examples show what a day of cooling costs.
All articlesA single-split air conditioner (one indoor and one outdoor part) uses about 0.7 kWh per hour of cooling. Cool for eight hours and that is roughly 5.8 kWh: at 21 cents per kWh about 1.20 euros per day. A mobile air conditioner uses more per hour, about 1 kWh. What it costs you depends on how many hours it runs and what you pay per kWh.
The sum: kWh per hour times hours times power price
Air conditioningYou work out what air conditioning costs per day in three steps. First the use per hour in kWh. Then the number of hours it cools that day. Then your power price per kWh. Multiply the three and you have the cost of that day.
For the use per hour we work from the figures of Milieu Centraal, the Dutch energy information centre: over 110 hours of cooling, a single-split air conditioner uses 80 kWh, a mobile one 110 kWh and a multi split for several rooms 180 kWh. Per hour that is about 0.7, 1 and 1.6 kWh. Milieu Centraal calculates with 21 cents per kWh; on your contract it may differ.
What does a day of cooling cost?
Below are three days with a single-split air conditioner: a short afternoon, an ordinary warm day and a heatwave day when it runs for a long time. We use the consumption and power price from the Milieu Centraal overview: 80 kWh per 110 hours of cooling and 21 cents per kWh.
| Day | Hours of cooling | Use | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Low | 4 hours | about 2.9 kWh | about €0.61 |
| Average | 8 hours | about 5.8 kWh | about €1.22 |
| High | 12 hours | about 8.7 kWh | about €1.83 |
Based on 80 kWh per 110 hours (Milieu Centraal) and 21 cents per kWh. A mobile air conditioner uses over a third more per hour, a multi split more than double. Your power price and settings set the real amount.
To calculate with your own power price, replace the 21 cents with the price on your energy bill. If you pay 30 cents per kWh, for example, the average day from the table costs about 1.75 euros: 5.8 kWh times 30 cents. If the air conditioner runs regularly through a whole summer, simply add those days together.
Why one air conditioner uses more than another
A fixed air conditioner is more economical than a mobile one, because the warm side of the appliance sits outside. A mobile air conditioner blows its heat outside through a hose while warm air comes back in through the window, so it has to work harder for the same coolness.
Your own use also makes a big difference. The bigger the gap between the indoor and outdoor temperature, the harder it has to work. Setting it a few degrees less cold, keeping doors closed and lowering sun shading all reduce the use per hour. And cooling only the room you are in uses less than keeping the whole house cool.
Cooling on your own solar power
You mostly cool on warm, sunny days, exactly when solar panels generate a lot. If you have panels, air conditioning that cools during the day can therefore run largely on your own power instead of power from the grid. That applies to cooling; heating with air conditioning happens in the colder months, when panels generate less.
A fixed air conditioner with a heating function is technically an air-to-air heat pump. To see what heating with a heat pump costs in power, look at the power use of a heat pump. The difference between air-to-air and air-to-water is in this comparison.
How SolarFast works it out for you
During the advice we look at the rooms you want to cool, how many indoor units go with that and which model fits. That way you see in advance roughly what cooling uses in your situation. Send us your question or see our air conditioning page.
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Frequently asked questions
With a single-split air conditioner and eight hours of cooling, about 5.8 kWh. At 21 cents per kWh that is roughly 1.20 euros per day. At four hours it is half that, at twelve hours one and a half times as much.
According to Milieu Centraal about 0.7 kWh per hour for a single-split air conditioner, about 1 kWh for a mobile one and about 1.6 kWh for a multi split serving several rooms.
Yes. A mobile air conditioner uses over a third more power per hour of cooling than a single split, because it has to blow its heat outside through a hose.
During the day largely yes: you mostly cool on sunny days, when panels generate a lot. In the evening and when heating in winter, the power comes mostly from the grid.
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