How Much Electricity Does a Toaster Use?

Calculate the energy cost of running a pop-up toaster for breakfast.

2 min readUpdated July 28, 2026WattPocket
A modern toaster on a counter with bread inside.

Related wattage and runtime estimate

This supporting tool converts watts and equivalent full-power hours per day into daily, 30-day, and yearly energy costs. It does not replace the guide-specific formula below.

A standard 900W toaster running for 6 minutes a day easily covers breakfast for a household without impacting the electric bill.

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hr
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$0.51/ month
$0.02/ day
$6.19/ year

This setup uses about 3 kWh in a 30-day month.

01

A tiny daily expense

Most two-slice toasters use around 800 to 900 watts. Since it only takes a couple of minutes to toast bread, the total electricity used is incredibly small. You would have to make toast for hours to see a real difference on your bill.

02

Four-slice models

Larger toasters draw more watts, often up to 1,500. However, they toast twice as much bread in the same amount of time, so the cost per slice stays exactly the same.

03

Vampire power

Some digital toasters draw a tiny amount of standby power when plugged in. If you want to be completely efficient, unplug it when you are done with breakfast.

Rate source and limits

The default rate is the EIA U.S. residential average for April 2026, retrieved July 16, 2026. It is an average revenue per kilowatt-hour, not a quote for your utility plan. Fixed fees, taxes, tiers, and time-of-use prices can change the bill.

Open the EIA source