LED vs Incandescent Savings Calculator
Enter how many bulbs, their watts before and after and the hours a day they're on, pick your state, and see the kWh and the dollars per year, and the payback on the new bulbs.
LED vs incandescent savings
G03Scenario A
Sets the electricity rate. Pick US average if you're not sure.
From EIA for US average. Use the rate on your bill if you know it.
Rate used: 18.4¢/kWh · US average · EIA reference 2025–26 (data as of 2026-09-26) ·
Estimated savings per year
1,489 kWh a year less.
- kWh per year, incandescent
- 1,752
- kWh per year, LED
- 263
- Savings per year
- $274.01
- Payback (LEDs at $3.00 each)
- 0.2 years
Estimate. Formula and sources are under “How it works”. Change any input; the result updates as you type.
Formula
How it works
- kWh per year = number of bulbs × watts ÷ 1,000 × hours per day × 365, for the old bulbs and for the LEDs
- Yearly difference = (old kWh − LED kWh) × electricity rate
- Payback = number of bulbs × $3 per LED ÷ yearly difference
A 60 W incandescent and a 9 W LED give about the same light, 800 lumens. The LED uses 15% of the power for it.
Sources: 60 W ≈ 800 lumens ≈ 9 W LED (ENERGY STAR); the 2023 federal efficiency standard for general-service bulbs (at least 45 lumens per watt), which most incandescents can't meet. Electricity rate: EIA Electric Power Monthly table 5.6.A. The $3 LED price is our assumption.
Worked example
A worked example
Thirty 65 W bulbs on 5 hours a day use about 3,559 kWh a year. Thirty 10 W LEDs doing the same job use 548 kWh. At California's rate of 32.0¢/kWh, the estimated difference is $963.60 a year, and at $3 a bulb the LEDs pay for themselves in about 0.1 years, a little over a month.
Reference
By state, at the default inputs
Estimated savings per year, with this page's default inputs and each state's reference prices (EIA reference 2025–26, data as of 2026-09-26).
| US average | $274.01 | 18.4¢/kWh |
|---|---|---|
| Alabama | $230.83 | 15.5¢/kWh |
| Alaska | $372.30 | 25.0¢/kWh |
| Arizona | $223.38 | 15.0¢/kWh |
| Arkansas | $193.60 | 13.0¢/kWh |
| California | $476.54 | 32.0¢/kWh |
| Colorado | $238.27 | 16.0¢/kWh |
| Connecticut | $446.76 | 30.0¢/kWh |
| Delaware | $253.16 | 17.0¢/kWh |
| District of Columbia | $282.95 | 19.0¢/kWh |
| Florida | $223.38 | 15.0¢/kWh |
| Georgia | $215.93 | 14.5¢/kWh |
| Hawaii | $625.46 | 42.0¢/kWh |
| Idaho | $178.70 | 12.0¢/kWh |
| Illinois | $253.16 | 17.0¢/kWh |
| Indiana | $230.83 | 15.5¢/kWh |
| Iowa | $201.04 | 13.5¢/kWh |
| Kansas | $215.93 | 14.5¢/kWh |
| Kentucky | $193.60 | 13.0¢/kWh |
| Louisiana | $186.15 | 12.5¢/kWh |
| Maine | $387.19 | 26.0¢/kWh |
| Maryland | $282.95 | 19.0¢/kWh |
| Massachusetts | $431.87 | 29.0¢/kWh |
| Michigan | $290.39 | 19.5¢/kWh |
| Minnesota | $230.83 | 15.5¢/kWh |
| Mississippi | $201.04 | 13.5¢/kWh |
| Missouri | $193.60 | 13.0¢/kWh |
| Montana | $193.60 | 13.0¢/kWh |
| Nebraska | $178.70 | 12.0¢/kWh |
| Nevada | $223.38 | 15.0¢/kWh |
| New Hampshire | $402.08 | 27.0¢/kWh |
| New Jersey | $327.62 | 22.0¢/kWh |
| New Mexico | $223.38 | 15.0¢/kWh |
| New York | $372.30 | 25.0¢/kWh |
| North Carolina | $215.93 | 14.5¢/kWh |
| North Dakota | $171.26 | 11.5¢/kWh |
| Ohio | $245.72 | 16.5¢/kWh |
| Oklahoma | $193.60 | 13.0¢/kWh |
| Oregon | $215.93 | 14.5¢/kWh |
| Pennsylvania | $275.50 | 18.5¢/kWh |
| Rhode Island | $431.87 | 29.0¢/kWh |
| South Carolina | $223.38 | 15.0¢/kWh |
| South Dakota | $193.60 | 13.0¢/kWh |
| Tennessee | $201.04 | 13.5¢/kWh |
| Texas | $230.83 | 15.5¢/kWh |
| Utah | $178.70 | 12.0¢/kWh |
| Vermont | $327.62 | 22.0¢/kWh |
| Virginia | $230.83 | 15.5¢/kWh |
| Washington | $178.70 | 12.0¢/kWh |
| West Virginia | $230.83 | 15.5¢/kWh |
| Wisconsin | $260.61 | 17.5¢/kWh |
| Wyoming | $186.15 | 12.5¢/kWh |
Questions
FAQ
How much do LED bulbs save per year?
Per 60 W bulb on 4 hours a day at the US average rate, about $13.70 a year. Twenty of them come to an estimated $274.01 a year. The more hours a bulb is on, the more the swap is worth.
Are LEDs worth it in rooms I rarely use?
Less, but still yes. A 60 W bulb used 1 hour a day costs about $4.03 a year; the LED version about $0.60. The $3.43 difference pays for a $3 LED in under a year.
Do LEDs work with dimmers?
Many do; look for "dimmable" on the package. Old dimmers built for incandescent bulbs can make LEDs flicker or buzz; an LED-rated dimmer fixes that. Dimming doesn't change this estimate.
Can I still buy incandescent bulbs?
Most common household incandescents no longer meet the federal minimum of 45 lumens per watt that took effect in 2023, so stores mostly sell LEDs. Some specialty bulbs are exempt.
What about CFLs?
If you have compact fluorescents, enter their watts as the old bulb. The difference with LEDs is smaller than with incandescents.
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