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ENERGY · RUNNING COSTS

What a games console costs to run

On the price cap from 1 October to 31 December 2026, a 216.8 W games console at full power costs 5.7p an hour, in Great Britain on average and paying by Direct Debit. Put in your own model and region below.

What you know about it

Consoles have no energy label. Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo publish average power for gaming, the home menu and rest or sleep on their own sites.

Each time it runs

Every day is 7; once a fortnight is 0.5.

How you pay

An hour at full power

5.7p

At 26.32p a kWh: the cap's Great Britain average on Direct Debit, 1 October 2026 to 31 December 2026.

Each time
11.4p
A week
79.9p
A month
£3.47
A year
£41.66

The working

  1. 216.8 W for 2 hours uses 0.434 kWh at full power.
  2. 0.434 kWh × 26.32p a kWh (Great Britain average, Direct Debit, VAT included) = 11.4p each time.
  3. 7 times a week is 79.9p; × 52.14 weeks = £41.66 a year, or £3.47 a month.

The standing charge (54.83p a day here) isn't in these figures: you pay it whatever you run. On Economy 7 or another time-of-use tariff, the cost depends on when it runs and your supplier's rates.

Real models

Ratings from each maker's or retailer's page. Great Britain average, Direct Debit.

ModelRatingAn hour
PlayStation 5 (CFI-2016), gaming216.8 W5.7p
PlayStation 5 Pro (CFI-7021), gaming215.2 W5.7p
Xbox Series X, gaming154 W4.1p
Xbox Series S, gaming74 W1.9p
Nintendo Switch 2, gaming (TV mode)19 W0.5p
Nintendo Switch (HAC-001(-01)), gaming (TV mode)7 W0.2p

Where you live

A 216.8 W games console at full power, on Direct Debit. The Great Britain average is 27.80p a kWh paying on receipt of a bill, and 25.52p on prepayment.

RegionA kWhAn hourA year
Great Britain average26.32p5.7p£41.66
Eastern England26.61p5.8p£42.12
East Midlands25.36p5.5p£40.13
London26.60p5.8p£42.09
Merseyside and North Wales27.86p6p£44.10
West Midlands25.60p5.6p£40.52
North East England25.46p5.5p£40.29
North West England26.49p5.7p£41.92
Southern England26.47p5.7p£41.89
South East England26.88p5.8p£42.54
South Wales26.55p5.8p£42.03
South West England26.58p5.8p£42.07
Yorkshire25.60p5.6p£40.52
South Scotland26.11p5.7p£41.32
North Scotland26.35p5.7p£41.70

A year is 2 hours a day, every day, from Nintendo UK: eco-design information (two hours a day).

What it uses

Consoles have no energy label. Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo publish average power for gaming, the home menu and rest or sleep on their own sites.

Does it always use this much? No. Power depends on what the console is doing: menus and loading screens draw much less than gameplay, and Microsoft says power varies with a game's resolution, frame rate and graphics settings. Sony gives the PS5 (CFI-2016) 46.4 W on the home menu against 216.8 W gaming; Microsoft gives the Xbox Series X about 105 W on loading screens against 154 W in play.

Spending less

  • On Xbox, choose the Shutdown (energy saving) power option: Microsoft says it cuts power use by up to 20 times when the console is off compared with Sleep. Remote wake isn't available while it's shut down. (Xbox Wire: 'Xbox Is Now the First Carbon Aware Console' (11 Jan 2023))
  • Have the console turn itself off sooner when idle. Xbox turns off after 1 hour of inactivity by default; you can pick a shorter time in Settings > General > Power options > Customize power options. On PS5 the setting is Settings > Power Saving > Set Time Until PS5 Enters Rest Mode (defaults: 240 minutes during media playback, 20 minutes otherwise). (Xbox Wire (11 Jan 2023))
  • On PS5, leave rest-mode extras off if you don't need them (Settings > System > Power Saving > Features Available in Rest Mode). Sony measures the CFI-2016 at 0.31 W in default rest mode and 3.8 W with USB power and internet both kept on. (PlayStation UK: Ecodesign)

Questions

How much does a games console cost to run?

A 216.8 W games console at full power costs 5.7p an hour at the price cap's 26.32p a kWh (Great Britain average, Direct Debit, from 1 October to 31 December 2026). For 2 hours a day, every day, that's £41.66 a year. The calculator above takes your own model, use, region and how you pay.

Does PS5 rest mode use a lot of electricity?

No. Sony measures the PS5 (CFI-2016) at 0.31 W in rest mode on its default low-power setting, rising to 3.8 W if you keep USB charging and the internet connection on.

Should I put my Xbox to sleep or shut it down?

Shutting down uses less. Microsoft says an Xbox draws 0.5 W fully shut down against 10-15 W in Sleep, and that Shutdown (energy saving) still lets the console take system, game and app updates overnight.

How much electricity does a Nintendo Switch 2 use?

Nintendo gives 19 W while gaming in TV mode (measured with Mario Kart World) and 8 W on the HOME Menu. The original Switch is 7 W while gaming in TV mode.

Sources

Other appliances

Compare energy tariffs to see what a year would cost you on each.