How many watts does a vacuum cleaner use?
A vacuum cleaner uses 500–1,500 W (about 1,000 W on average). Running 0.5 hours/day, that is about 0.50 kWh a day and 15.0 kWh a month — roughly $2.75 a month at the U.S. average rate of 18.34 ¢/kWh.
This is the vacuum cleaner electricity usage reference: watts, amps on a 120 V circuit, the kWh math, and links to what that usage costs in each state.
Watts, amps, and kWh for a vacuum cleaner
| Measure | Value |
|---|---|
| Rated wattage range | 500–1,500 W |
| Average draw used in our math | 1,000 W |
| Amps at 120 V | 4.2–13 A (8.3 A at the average draw) |
| kWh per hour | 1.00 kWh |
| kWh per day at 0.5 hours/day | 0.50 kWh |
| kWh per month | 15.0 kWh |
| Cost per month at the U.S. average (18.34 ¢/kWh) | $2.75 |
The math is kWh = watts × hours ÷ 1000 and amps = watts ÷ volts. A standard 120 V household circuit on a 15 A breaker carries about 1,800 W. For the dollars in your state, open cost to run a vacuum cleaner in Texas and switch states from there.
Vacuum Cleaner electricity usage profile
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| kWh per hour | 1.00 kWh |
| kWh per day (typical) | 0.50 kWh |
| kWh per month (typical) | 15.0 kWh |
| kWh per year (typical) | 182.5 kWh |
| Low runtime scenario | 0.5 hours/day |
| High runtime scenario | 2.5 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 vacuum cleaner use?
A vacuum cleaner uses 500–1,500 W (about 1,000 W on average). Our usage and cost math uses 1,000 watts running 0.5 hours/day.
How many amps does a vacuum cleaner draw?
On a 120 V circuit, 500–1,500 W works out to about 4.2–13 A; at the 1,000 W we use in the math that is 8.3 A.
How much electricity does a vacuum cleaner use per month?
About 15.0 kWh a month at 0.5 hours/day. Lighter use (0.5 hours/day) comes to roughly 15.0 kWh and heavier use (2.5 hours/day) roughly 75.0 kWh.
How much does it cost to run a vacuum cleaner?
About $2.75 a month at the U.S. average rate of 18.34 ¢/kWh — from roughly $1.97 in Nevada to $7.91 in Hawaii at the same usage. The state cost-to-run pages price it at every state's rate.