How many watts does a heat pump use?
A heat pump uses 1,000–5,000 W (about 3,000 W on average). Running 8 hours/day, that is about 24.00 kWh a day and 720.0 kWh a month — roughly $132.05 a month at the U.S. average rate of 18.34 ¢/kWh.
This is the heat pump electricity usage reference: watts, amps on a 240 V circuit, the kWh math, and links to what that usage costs in each state.
Watts, amps, and kWh for a heat pump
| Measure | Value |
|---|---|
| Rated wattage range | 1,000–5,000 W |
| Average draw used in our math | 3,000 W |
| Amps at 240 V | 4.2–21 A (13 A at the average draw) |
| kWh per hour | 3.00 kWh |
| kWh per day at 8 hours/day | 24.00 kWh |
| kWh per month | 720.0 kWh |
| Cost per month at the U.S. average (18.34 ¢/kWh) | $132.05 |
The math is kWh = watts × hours ÷ 1000 and amps = watts ÷ volts. A heat pump is normally wired for 240 V in US homes; a 120 V unit of the same wattage would draw twice the amps. For the dollars in your state, open cost to run a heat pump in Texas and switch states from there.
Heat Pump electricity usage profile
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| kWh per hour | 3.00 kWh |
| kWh per day (typical) | 24.00 kWh |
| kWh per month (typical) | 720.0 kWh |
| kWh per year (typical) | 8760.0 kWh |
| Low runtime scenario | 4 hours/day |
| High runtime scenario | 12 hours/day |
Connect usage to cost tools
Related appliance usage pages
Source & Method
Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) Retail Sales of Electricity. Last dataset period: June 2026. Usage calculations use fixed appliance wattage and runtime assumptions so results stay comparable across pages.
Frequently asked questions
How many watts does a heat pump use?
A heat pump uses 1,000–5,000 W (about 3,000 W on average). Our usage and cost math uses 3,000 watts running 8 hours/day.
How many amps does a heat pump draw?
On a 240 V circuit, 1,000–5,000 W works out to about 4.2–21 A; at the 3,000 W we use in the math that is 13 A.
How much electricity does a heat pump use per month?
About 720.0 kWh a month at 8 hours/day. Lighter use (4 hours/day) comes to roughly 360.0 kWh and heavier use (12 hours/day) roughly 1080.0 kWh.
How much does it cost to run a heat pump?
About $132.05 a month at the U.S. average rate of 18.34 ¢/kWh — from roughly $94.39 in Nevada to $379.58 in Hawaii at the same usage. The state cost-to-run pages price it at every state's rate.