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Cost to run a toaster oven

Each 20 minutes use of a toaster oven drawing 1,225 W costs 10.7p at 26.32p/kWh. Used 1 use a day of 20 minutes, 5 days a week, that comes to £2.33 a month.

Each use costs

10.7p a use

That is 0.41 kWh. Used as set, it comes to £2.33 a month and £28.02 a year.

On the label or in the manual.

Standby, thermostats and off-peak use

Drawn while plugged in and not running.

Electricity price

26.32p/kWh in the United Kingdom

Default Ofgem, 1 Oct – 31 Dec 2026.
Running cost, energy and emissions by period
PeriodCostEnergyCO2e
A use10.7p0.41 kWh89 g
A day, on average7.68p0.29 kWh63 g
A month£2.338.87 kWh1.9 kg
A year£28.02106 kWh23.1 kg

How we calculated this

Energy is power multiplied by time: 1,225 W for 20 minutes uses 0.41 kWh each time.

The starting use for a toaster oven, 1 use a day of 20 minutes, 5 days a week, is where the calculator starts, not a measurement of your home: change it to how you use yours. A day is the average across the week, and a month is a twelfth of a 365-day year.

Electricity costs 26.32p/kWh. That is the published figure for the United Kingdom, 1 Oct – 31 Dec 2026, from Ofgem. Average for England, Scotland and Wales, paying by Direct Debit. No VAT on electricity from 1 October 2026 to 31 March 2027.

Standing charges are left out: you pay them whether or not the appliance runs.

Emissions use 0.217 kg CO2e per kWh, the lifecycle intensity of electricity generated in the United Kingdom in 2025, from Ember, via Our World in Data. Lifecycle means building the power stations and supplying their fuel are counted too. It is the grid’s average, not the particular power station an extra appliance brings on.

What drives the cost

A toaster oven is a small oven, and for a small meal it can cost far less than heating a full-size one. It draws 1,225 W while its elements are on, and 20 minutes of that uses 0.41 kWh.

Also called: mini oven, countertop oven, benchtop oven.

What it costs in the UK, Europe and the US

For a toaster oven used as typical (1 use a day of 20 minutes, 5 days a week), at each country’s published average electricity price.

CountryElectricity priceA use
United Kingdom26.32p/kWh10.7p
United States (average)18.19¢/kWh7.43¢
Ireland€0.4042/kWh€0.17
Germany0,3869 €/kWh0,16 €
France0,2561 €/kWh0,10 €
Spain0,2669 €/kWh0,11 €
Italy0,2966 €/kWh0,12 €
Netherlands€ 0,2558/kWh€ 0,10

Compared with similar appliances

ApplianceTypical powerAn hourA year, typical use
Toaster oven1,225 W32.2p£28.02
Toaster1,000 W26.3p£4.80
Electric oven2,100 W55.3p£108.08
Microwave oven1,000 W26.3p£16.01

How to spend less on it

  • Use it instead of the main oven for small portions: it heats a much smaller space, so there is less to warm up.
  • Skip the preheat for things that do not need it, and switch it off a few minutes early: the heat left in it finishes the job.

Questions

How much does a toaster oven cost to run per hour?

At 26.32p/kWh, a toaster oven drawing 1,225 W costs 32.2p for every hour of running at full power.

How much does a toaster oven cost to run a year?

Used 1 use a day of 20 minutes, 5 days a week, it costs about £28.02 a year at 26.32p/kWh, or £2.33 a month.

Is a toaster oven cheaper than a full-size oven?

For a small amount of food, generally yes, because it heats a much smaller space. Its elements draw 1,225 W while they are on, and a typical use here costs 10.7p.

Sources

  1. ENERGY SERIES: Estimating Appliance and Home Electronic Energy Use, Virginia Cooperative Extension, Virginia Tech, 26 February 2020. “Toaster oven = 1225”

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Your prices

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Electricity

Default Ofgem, 1 Oct – 31 Dec 2026.

Default Ofgem, 1 Oct – 31 Dec 2026.

Gas

Default Ofgem, 1 Oct – 31 Dec 2026.

Default Ofgem, 1 Oct – 31 Dec 2026.