How Much Does It Cost to Run a Hair Dryer?

Many full-size dryers sold in the US and Canada are rated at 1,875 W, which is 15 amps at 125 V. Conair's 1,875 W travel dryer is one example.

In Japan, where the supply is 100 V, dryers such as Panasonic's Nanocare are rated at about 1,200 W. Panasonic's version for 220 V countries is rated at about 1,800 W.

We use 1,800 W as a typical figure. A 10-minute blow-dry at full heat uses 0.3 kWh: about $0.05 in the US, £0.08 in the UK and €0.11 in Germany. Every day for a month, that's about 9 kWh, or $1.66 in the US and £2.41 in the UK.

Long, thick hair that takes 20 minutes costs twice as much. Short hair that dries in 5 minutes costs half as much.

Most of a hair dryer's power goes into its heating element, and the rating is for the hottest, fastest setting.

Lower heat settings draw less, and the cool shot runs only the fan, so it costs very little.

Towel-drying first shortens the drying time, which cuts the cost of every use.

A higher-wattage dryer costs more per minute but may dry your hair faster, so the cost per blow-dry can come out about the same.

A daily blow-dry is a small part of most electricity bills. At about 9 kWh a month, it uses roughly a quarter of what one 8-minute electric shower a day uses.

Hair dryers draw a lot of power for a short time, so they can trip a breaker or overload a small backup inverter, UPS or generator. Panasonic tells Japanese users to plug dryers over 1,000 W into a 15 A outlet on its own.

Dual-voltage travel dryers work on both 125 V and 240 V; Conair's detects the voltage and adjusts automatically. A single-voltage dryer used on the wrong supply can burn out or run weakly.

The rating is printed on the dryer's handle or on a label near the cord. Use it with your own drying time in the calculator: 10 minutes is about 0.17 hours.

• Towel-dry or use a microfibre wrap first, so the dryer runs for less time.
• Use a medium heat setting where it works for your hair; it draws less power and is gentler on hair.
• Finish with the cool shot, which uses very little electricity.
• Clean lint from the air intake so the dryer doesn't overheat and cut out.
• On a small backup inverter or UPS during power cuts, avoid using a hair dryer; it can draw more than the inverter can supply.

• Gaming PC
• Home UPS or inverter
• TV
• Wi-Fi router
• Bill analyzer