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

How Much Does It Cost to Run a Laptop in Virginia?

The short answer

A typical 60W laptop costs about $0.01 per hour to run in Virginia, or $2.56 a month at 8 hours a day.

That’s based on Virginia’s average residential rate of 17.6¢/kWh (EIA, July 2026), 4% below the US average.

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

Laptop cost by daily use in Virginia

Cost at 17.6¢/kWh, the Virginia average (EIA, Jul 2026)
Daily usekWh/monthPer dayPer monthPer year
1 hour/day 1.8 $0.01 $0.32 $3.84
2 hours/day 3.7 $0.02 $0.64 $7.69
4 hours/day 7.3 $0.04 $1.28 $15.37
8 hours/day 14.6 $0.08 $2.56 $30.75
12 hours/day 21.9 $0.13 $3.84 $46.12
24 hours/day 43.8 $0.25 $7.69 $92.24

Virginia vs other states

At typical use, a laptop costs $30.75 a year in Virginia — $53.35 less than in Hawaii and $8.46 more than in Louisiana.

Virginia has the 20th-most-expensive residential electricity of the 50 states and DC. Virginia price per kWh · all states ranked

Electricity price trend in Virginia

17.6¢/kWh in July 2026 — ▲ +11.2% from a year earlier.

How to lower the cost of running a laptop

Laptops are designed to run on batteries, so they're inherently efficient. Typical use draws 30–60W from the charger, with gaming laptops and mobile workstations reaching 100–200W under load. Even working full time on a laptop costs only a few dollars a month in most states.

  • Use battery-saver mode and lower screen brightness.
  • Unplug once charged if your laptop lacks charge-limiting features.
  • Put it to sleep instead of leaving it idle overnight.

Questions

Frequently asked questions

How much does it cost to run a laptop for 24 hours in Virginia?

Running a 60W laptop for 24 hours uses about 1.44 kWh, which costs about $0.25 at Virginia’s average rate of 17.6¢/kWh.

How many kWh does a laptop use per month?

At 8 hours a day, a typical laptop uses about 14.6 kWh a month. In Virginia that costs $2.56.

Is it expensive to run a laptop in Virginia?

Virginia has the 20th-most-expensive residential electricity of the 50 states and DC at 17.6¢/kWh — pricier than most. Running a laptop here costs about $30.75 a year at typical use, compared with $32.08 at the national average rate.

What is the electricity rate in Virginia right now?

The average residential electricity rate in Virginia was 17.6¢ per kWh in July 2026, according to the latest EIA data — up 11.2% from a year earlier.

Laptop costs in nearby states

Cheapest and priciest states

Comparisons

Sources & method