Learn how to calculate your home's load factor with simple steps and examples to better understand your everyday energy usage.
Watt Calculator: How to Calculate Watts
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Finding the wattage of your appliances starts with checking product labels, packaging, or metal nameplates for amperage and voltage information.
Electrical panel upgrades cost $1,200 to $2,000, with average costs around $1,600, and can improve your home's energy efficiency over time.
Calculate wattage by multiplying amps times volts to understand how much power your appliances consume at any given moment.
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Trying to cut back on your energy costs? Understanding how much electricity your appliances use is a good starting point. To do that, you’ll need to learn how to calculate watts—or the amount of power consumed by an electrical product.
How Many Watts Your Appliances Use
At any given moment, the average house uses 1,083 to 1,375 watts of electricity. However, your home’s watt usage could be lower or higher, depending on your energy consumption habits.
Here’s an overview of some common household appliances and their watt usage:
| Appliance | Average Watts Used |
|---|---|
| Light bulb | 7–100 |
| TV | 50–200 |
| Refrigerator | 400–1,300 |
| Coffee maker | 500–1,500 |
| Hair dryer | 750–1,900 |
| Microwave | 800–1,000 |
| Dishwasher | 1,200–2,400 |
| Central air conditioner | 3,000–3,500 |
How to Calculate Watts for Your Home Appliances
Looking for the wattage of an appliance? You’ll often see it on the product label, packaging, or metal nameplate. If you can’t find it, you can use the following formula to determine the wattage of an appliance:
Watts = Amps x Volts
How to Find Amps and Volts to Calculate Watts
Before you can calculate the wattage of an appliance, you’ll first need to determine its amperage and voltage. For reference, amps (or amperes) measure the volume of electrical current, while volts describe electrical potential (or the “pressure” that pushes electrons along).
Like wattage, the easiest way to find amperage or voltage is by looking at the product label or user manual, both of which should list the product’s electrical requirements. If that’s not an option, you can check the manufacturer’s website or call a local electrician.
Who to Hire for Electrical Work
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It’s safest to hire a licensed electrician for any type of electrical work in your home. It may even be required by law, depending on the nature of the project and where you live.
Whether you’re adding new power outlets, installing lighting, or rewiring your house, here are some questions to ask electricians during the interview phase:
Are you licensed, insured, and bonded?
Are you experienced with this type of project?
Will you bring in any subcontractors? If so, how many and are they covered under your insurance?
Can you share references?
Frequently Asked Questions
Electrical services reviews from real Angi homeowners in Columbus, OH
4.7★ avg. • 107 total reviews
- Jeff B.
Great company! Price was competitive, technician showed up on time and completed the job (exterior electric Radon fan replacement) quickly. Would hire them again.
MaGen Property Inspections and Radon Mitigation - Regina H.
I conferred with 2 other contractors before Armstrong Electric. Nick and his crew showed me that the project was not as convoluted as the other contractors made it appear to be. They completed the entire project on time. They were professional, friendly and cleaned up after at completion. I...
Armstrong Electric LLC - Jeffrey J.
The techs on my project, Shawn and Cliff, were great. They were prompt, courteous, and efficient. I am very happy with the results and would definitely contact Mr. Electric for any future electrical projects.
Mr. Electric of Columbus - William R.
Victor was wonderful. He was on time, professional, and explained everything he was doing. He was thorough and figured out that the problem was electrical instead of with my HVAC system. Very knowledgeable. I will be using this company in the future for any HVAC needs. Thanks!
Hubbs Heating & Air LLC - Jerald W.
They were excellent. They did a great job. I was totally satisfied. They put tremendous effort in making sure the work was completed. They were great. They provided immediate response to any inquires I made. I would hire them again. I would recommend them to anyone who needs electrical work....
Property-Tech Industries, LLC - Paul H.
Initially, the repairman could not find the problem. Apparently, there was some electrical shortage, but he could not find the definite problem. He left, but called back later to say he had a new idea. He returned and replaced the light switches on the doors. The refrigerator seemed to return...
Appliance Pro LLC - Sarah C.
The initial quoted price from a walk-through seemed high, but we discussed that the quote represented worst case scenario (re-wiring to two floors) and we were excited about the opportunity to have the work done in a timely manner with closing for fire safety reasons, etc. When the job was...
- Erin W.
I have to tell you I am all about customer service - I will go out of my way and even pay more for it if you give me great customer service. <br> <br>In a world where this is hard to find, these guys were awesome! I can not sing their praises enough. They were prompt, personable, funny, got...
Waibel Electric - Bradley H.
When I challenged the markup on the generator, Bruder Electric withdrew its bid. They only want naïve customers.
- Gregory B.
We had no power to any of the electrical outlets in the MBR. We'd had an intermittent problem for a few years and they finally went out all together. We live on the 3rd floor of a 100 year old building and I know from past experience the wiring has been added to in hodgepodge ways over the...
The homeowners guide to electrical services
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