Cost of keeping cool: Households to save nearly £20 million on weekly air con bill this summer as energy prices cool
Energy bills for the two million households with air conditioning units have plummeted by a quarter from £71 million to £52 million in 12 months[1][2]
Households will spend more than £2 million a week using desktop fans as the year’s first heat wave arrives this week[3]
Homes with air con units could save £41 a week by using a desktop fan instead[4]
The fall in the price cap will save Brits a further £189,000 a week powering fans and nearly £5 million on air conditioning bills from 1 July[5]
Uswitch.com offers hacks on how to stay cool during hot spells without increasing your bill.
The two million UK households with an air conditioning unit will save nearly £20 million in running costs this summer compared with last year – as the year’s first heat wave arrives this week, according to Uswitch.com, the comparison and switching service.
Tumbling energy prices have reduced the weekly bill for households with portable and built-in air-conditioning units by 26% over the past 12 months.
Of the two million households with air con, over 840,000 have built-in units that can consume up to 2.7kW[6]. In a typical week, households use their units for almost three hours, but when temperatures are high, they use them for four hours 18 minutes on average during the day and four hours 48 minutes at night, sending the cost soaring from £1.98 a week to £42.14 a week.
More than one million homes have portable air conditioning units that use 1kW of power[6], and typically use them for almost two hours a week at a cost of 49p. During hot spells when they are used for more than nine hours a day, this bill rises to £15.61 a week.
The four million households that use desktop fans to keep cool will also enjoy significant savings this summer, with their weekly bill falling from £3 million in June 2023 to £2.1 million based on current rates.
A 35W desktop fan uses just 1% of the power of built-in air conditioning units, meaning households that switch could reduce their energy consumption by 99% and save themselves £56 a week[2].
| Device | Power | April - June 2023 (33p/kWh) | July - Sept 2023 (30p/kWh) | Currently (24p/kWh) | July - Sept 2024 (22p/kWh) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Handheld fan | 3W | 6p | 6p | 4.7p | 4.3p |
| Desktop fan | 35W | 74p | 67p | 55p | 50p |
| Pedestal fan | 35W | £1.26 | £1.15 | 94p | 85p |
| Air cooler | 35W | £1.58 | £1.43 | £1.17 | £1.07 |
| Portable air con unit | 35W | £21.02 | £19.11 | £15.61 | £14.24 |
| Built-in air con unit | 35W | £56.76 | £51.60 | £42.14 | £38.46 |
With the energy price cap falling to £1,568 a year for the average household from 1 July, the cost of keeping cool will fall further. Running a 2.7kW air con unit for a week will drop from £42.14 to £38.46 – a saving of £3.68.
Uswitch.com is offering tips and tricks for staying cool and saving energy.
Uswitch’s five tips for keeping cool
Create a cooling breeze: Place a bowl of ice cubes in front of an electric fan to create a refreshing breeze as it blows the ice-cold air around the room.
Close the curtains: Keep your curtains shut during the day. It may be tempting to let the light in, but the sunshine will heat the room, turning your home into a greenhouse.
Unplug the tech: Plugged-in gadgets produce heat, including those that are on standby. Unplug them when you are not using them to keep the room cool.
Take advantage of the daylight: Switch the lights off during the day. Lightbulbs release heat causing a room to get warmer, so turning them off or switching to LED bulbs that give off less heat can help reduce the overall temperature. With the sun setting late in the evening during summer you can keep the lights off for longer and therefore keep the room cooler.
Use a hot water bottle: You don’t have to use a hot water bottle just to keep warm. Instead, you can fill it with cold water to keep you cool during the night.
Elise Melville, energy expert at Uswitch.com, comments: “It’s amazing to enjoy the sunshine after months of rain, and there’s more good news for households as the price for staying cool this summer has fallen substantially compared with last year.
“With energy prices falling again on July 1 the cost of running fans and air conditioning units is set to drop even further.
“It’s important to remember that if you leave air conditioning running around the clock it’s easy to build-up a hefty bill, especially during a heatwave.
“There are other simple tricks you can use to keep the temperature down inside your home.
“Keeping your curtains closed during the day will stop sunlight from warming up your property, while filling a hot water bottle with cold water can help keep you cool.”
Notes
1. 1.1 million households (See Note 6) own portable air con units with a typical power rating of 1kW. Running one for 9.1 hours a day for a week costs 1kW x 7 days x 9.1 hours = 63.7kWh of energy. At electricity unit rates of £0.33/kWh (April 2023) this equals £0.33 x 63.7kWh = £21.02 a week. For 1.1 million households this equals 1.1 million x £21.02 = £23 million a week. 843,000 households own built-in air con units with a typical power rating of 2.7kW. Running one for 9.1 hours a day for a week costs 2.7kW x 7 days x 9.1 hours = 171.99kWh of energy. At electricity unit rates of £0.33/kWh (April 2023) this equals £0.33 x 171.99kWh = £56.76 a week. For 843,000 households this equals 843,000 x £56.76 = £47.8 million a week. Total weekly air con bill is £47.8 million + £23 million = £70.8 million.
2. 1.1 million households (See Note 6) own portable air con units with a typical power rating of 1kW. Running one for 9.1 hours a day for a week costs 1kW x 7 days x 9.1 hours = 63.7kWh of energy. At current electricity unit rates of £0.24/kWh this equals £0.24 x 63.7kWh = £15.64 a week. For 1.1 million households this equals 1.1 million x £15.64 = £17.2 million a week. 843,000 households own built-in air con units with a typical power rating of 2.7kW. Running one for 9.1 hours a day for a week costs 2.7kW x 7 days x 9.1 hours = 171.99kWh of energy. At current electricity unit rates of £0.24/kWh this equals £0.24 x 171.99kWh = £42.14 a week. For 843,000 households this equals 843,000 x £42.14 = £35.5 million a week. Total weekly air con bill is £35.5 million + £17.2 million = £52.7 million.
3. 3.9 million households (See Note 6) own desktop fans with a typical power rating of 35W. Running one for 9.1 hours a day for a week costs 0.035kW x 7 days x 9.1 hours = 2.23kWh of energy. At current electricity unit rates of £0.24/kWh this equals £0.24 x 2.23kWh = 55p a week. For 3.9 million households this equals 3.9 million x £0.55 = £2.14 million a week.
4. Weekly cost of built-in air con unit is £42.14. £42.14 - £0.55 = £41.59.
5. Unit price of electricity is currently 24p/kWh. From 1 July it will fall to 22p/kWh, a reduction of 9%. 9% of £52.3 million is £4.7 million. 9% of £2.87 million is £258,000.
6. Research conducted online by Opinium, 29th April to 3rd May 2022, among 2,000 UK residents, weighted to be nationally representative. Respondents were asked, ‘Which of the following do you have?’ 3% said built-in air con system. 3% of 28.1 million UK households = 843,000 households. 14% said desktop fan = 3.9 million households. 4% said portable air con unit = 1.1 million households.
7. Opinium surveyed a sample of 2,001 UK adults from the 9th to 11th June 2020. Results were weighted to reflect a nationally representative criteria. Average air con owner uses the device for 4.3 hours a day and 4.8 hours a night = 9.1 hours.
About Uswitch
Uswitch is one of the UK’s top comparison websites for home services switching, including energy, broadband and mobiles.
More people go to Uswitch to switch their energy, broadband and mobile than any other site, and we have saved consumers over £2.7 billion off their bills since we launched in September 2000.
Free mobile app Utrack also helps households manage their home energy usage and make potential savings.
Uswitch is part of RVU, a group of online brands with a mission to empower consumers to make more confident home services, insurance and financial decisions.