How Much Electricity Does A TV Use?

With inflation on the rise worldwide, we have to save as much as possible to cover our needed expenses comfortably. Paying for energy is one thing we can’t avoid, and cutting out your usage is a step on the right path. 

Unsurprisingly, the television is one of the home appliances we typically ignore in this respect. I mean, it can’t possibly cost that much electricity, right? Well, you might be wrong.

Our article breaks down all the information you need to know about how much energy different types of TVs consume, so you know just when to turn on the energy-saving mode or switch it off completely.

How Much Electricity Does A TV Use

The electricity usage of modern TVs ranges between 16 watts and 120 watts depending on the TV size and display resolution. The more common averages stand at 58.6 watts when on, 1.3 watts while on standby, and an estimated total of 160 kilowatts hour (KWh) over the entire year.

Although these wattage averages give you an idea of what your new TV consumes, you don’t truly know except you directly test the TV used in your home. A multimeter is an excellent tool for doing this and you should always have it with you to also test what your other appliances consume.

If you don’t know how to use a multimeter yet, our recommended multimeter symbol guide would be of great help.

Now, we would break down the hourly and yearly wattage expected of different television types based on resolution and screen size. All these will be split into the lowest, average, and reasonably high-end categories. We would also show you the average wattage consumption expected from LED, OLED, and Plasma displays.

TV Electricity Consumption Based On Size

The table below presents the expected electricity usage of new LCD TVs sized between 19 inches and 75 inches.

TV Size	Categories	Watts While In Use	Watts While In Standby
19 Inches	Low	15 W	0.5 W
	Average	16.5 W	0.5 W
	High	17 W	0.5 W
24 Inches	Low	17.6 W	0.5 W
	Average	19.8 W	0.5 W
	High	20 W	0.7 W
32 Inches	Lowest	19 W	0.5 W
	Average	26 W	0.5 W
	High	28 W	0.8 W
40 Inches	Low	31 W	0.5 W
	Average	31.1 W	0.5 W
	High	34.1 W	0.9 W
43 Inches	Low	34 W	0.5 W
	Average	34 W	0.5 W
	High	47.8 W	0.9 W
50 Inches	Low	48 W	0.5 W
	Average	71 W	0.5 W
	High	74 W	1.1 W
55 Inches	Low	57  W	0.5 W

 

	Average	77 W	0.5 W
	High	82 W	1.4 W
65 Inches	Low	72 W	0.5 W
	Average	88 W	2.1 W
	High	99 W	3 W
70 Inches	Low	83 W	0.5 W
	Average	108 W	2.3 W
	High	109 W	3 W
75 Inches	Low	87.3 W	0.5 W
	Average	115 W	2.6 W
	High	117 W	3 W

Using the table, on average, small-sized televisions consume between 16.5 watts and 26 watts of power while on and between 0.5 watts and 0.7 watts while on standby. Large-sized televisions consume an average of between 57 watts and 115 watts while in use and between 1.4 watts to 2.6 watts of power while in standby mode.

TV Electricity Consumption Based On Screen Type

Now, we show you how LED TVs, OLED TVs, and Plasma TVs compare to each other. You will see that people didn’t just abandon the use of plasma TV models just because of aesthetics.

Screen Type	TV Size	Watts While In Use	Watts While On Standby
LED TV	32 Inches	28 W	0.5 W
	45 Inches	37 W	0.9 W
	55 Inches	77 W	1.4 W
	65 Inches	88 W	2.1 W
	75 Inches	115 W	2.6 W
OLED	32 Inches	57 W	0.5 W
	45 Inches	80 W	0.9 W
	55 Inches	98 W	1.4 W
	65 Inches	116 W	2.1 W
	75 Inches	134 W	2.6 W
Plasma	32 Inches	150 W	3 W
	42 Inches	220 W	4.4 W
	50 Inches	300 W	6 W

You see that LED TVs use the lowest amount of electricity, while plasma TVs use more than double the amount of electricity an OLED TV uses in relation to size. A 50-Inch plasma TV even uses more than double the amount of electricity a 75-Inch OLED uses.

There’s even more. 42-inch Plasma TVs may use up to 500 watts per hour and 50-Inch TVs may use up to 600 watts per hour. This is the same or even higher than the energy cost of using some refrigerators.

To save energy and cost in the long run, it’s better to replace your plasma TV if you still have one.

TV Electricity Consumption Based On Resolution

Here, we show you the disparity between 720p, 1080p, and 4K displays. Note that these also depend on the screen size and could be either lower or higher. This is why you need to check or test the exact energy specifications for your new TV.

TV Resolution	Categories	Watts While In Use	Watts While In Standby
720p	Low	14.5 W	0.5 W
	Average	20 W	0.5 W
	Common	26 W	0.6 W
1080p	Low	15 W	0.5 W
	Average	31 W	0.5 W
	Common	33.3 W	0.6 W
2160p (4K)	Low	47.5 W	0.5 W
	Average	80 W	0.5 W
	Common	98 W	0.6 W

 

As expected, the higher the resolution, the higher the energy usage.

TV Electricity Usage Per Year

Your overall electricity usage now depends on how much TV you watch per day. The watt values presented above show how much the TVs use per hour, with 1 watt representing 0.001-kilowatt hours (KWh)

Using a 55-Inch LED TV for 5 hours per day means you use an average of 385 watts per day or, in electricity billing terms, 0.385KWh. Over 365 days of the year, you are then estimated to use up more or less 140KWh (140,525 watts).

The amount you spend on each of these depends on how much is charged in your residence. In the US, for example, residents are charged an average of 10.42 cents per kWh. This means residents spend about 0.04 cents for 5 hours of TV per day and a total of $14 per year.

Although the Sceptre – E18 is termed the most energy-efficient TV out there, other energy-efficient TVs recommended by Energy Star include products from Sansui, IMPECCA, PHILLIPS, and Caixun. Energy Star is a program run by the US government to promote the use of energy-efficient products.

Regardless of these Energy Star recommendations, Samsung and TCL offer energy-efficient products that look more pleasing in the living room.

Conclusion

The amount of electricity a TV uses depends on multiple factors, with the most important being the type, the screen size, and the screen resolution. Plasma TVs are not great for energy-saving, LCDs are the best if you want to save the most, and OLEDs provide the best balance between electricity usage and value.

Remember that your usage ultimately depends on how much television you watch, so if you want to lower your TV electricity usage, you simply reduce how much you watch it.

FAQs

How Much Power Does It Take To Run A Tv All Day?

To power a TV over 24 hours, you expect to use an average of 1.4KWh or 1406 watts. With the average U.S adult spending about 3 hours in front of a TV per day, this reasonably reduces to 0.175KWh.

Does Turning Tv Off At The Wall Save Electricity?

Yes, the most efficient way to totally cut the electricity usage of your TV is to power it off at the wall outlet. When the TV is in standby mode, it still uses between 0.5 watts and 3 watts.

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