U.S. residential electricity EIA data: July 2026 US average 18.3¢/kWh Updated

Heating · Iowa

How Much Does It Cost to Run an Electric Blanket in Iowa?

The short answer

Running a 100W electric blanket in Iowa costs about $0.02 an hour. At 8 hours a day, that’s roughly $3.89 a month and $46.69 a year.

That’s based on Iowa’s average residential rate of 16.0¢/kWh (EIA, July 2026), 13% below the US average.

Source: U.S. EIA, July 2026 data · Updated

Electric Blanket cost by daily use in Iowa

Cost at 16.0¢/kWh, the Iowa average (EIA, Jul 2026)
Daily usekWh/monthPer dayPer monthPer year
1 hour/day 3.0 $0.02 $0.49 $5.84
2 hours/day 6.1 $0.03 $0.97 $11.67
4 hours/day 12.2 $0.06 $1.95 $23.35
8 hours/day 24.3 $0.13 $3.89 $46.69
12 hours/day 36.5 $0.19 $5.84 $70.04
24 hours/day 73.0 $0.38 $11.67 $140

Iowa vs other states

At typical use, an electric blanket costs $46.69 a year in Iowa — $93.47 less than in Hawaii and $9.55 more than in Louisiana.

Iowa has the 24th-cheapest residential electricity of the 50 states and DC. electricity prices in Iowa · all states ranked

Electricity price trend in Iowa

16.0¢/kWh in July 2026 — ▲ +4.4% from a year earlier.

How to lower the cost of running an electric blanket

Electric blankets and heated mattress pads warm your body directly instead of the air in the room, which is why they use so little power. Most queen-size blankets draw 50–200W on high and much less on low settings. Because you are only heating a few square feet, an electric blanket combined with a lower thermostat setting overnight is one of the cheapest ways to stay warm in winter.

  • Pre-warm the bed for 20–30 minutes, then switch to low or use the auto-off timer.
  • Turn the house thermostat down a few degrees at night — the blanket keeps you comfortable.
  • Choose a dual-control model so each side only heats as much as needed.
  • Winters in Iowa are long, so heating appliances often run more hours here than the national default — adjust the hours above to match your home.

Questions

Frequently asked questions

How much does it cost to run an electric blanket for 24 hours in Iowa?

Running a 100W electric blanket for 24 hours uses about 2.40 kWh, which costs about $0.38 at Iowa’s average rate of 16.0¢/kWh.

How many kWh does an electric blanket use per month?

At 8 hours a day, a typical electric blanket uses about 24.3 kWh a month. In Iowa that costs $3.89.

Is it expensive to run an electric blanket in Iowa?

Iowa has the 24th-cheapest residential electricity of the 50 states and DC at 16.0¢/kWh — close to the middle of the pack. Running an electric blanket here costs about $46.69 a year at typical use, compared with $53.47 at the national average rate.

What is the electricity rate in Iowa right now?

The average residential electricity rate in Iowa was 16.0¢ per kWh in July 2026, according to the latest EIA data — up 4.4% from a year earlier.

Is it cheaper to use an electric blanket or a space heater?

An electric blanket is far cheaper — about 100W versus 1,500W, so roughly 15 times less electricity per hour.

Sources & method