In the US, on average, it costs 2.7 cents per hour of gaming on the Xbox Series X. At maximum capacity, it costs over 4 cents per hour, while in standby mode it costs just close to ⅓ of 1 cent. On average, in Canada, it costs 3.2 cents (CAD) per hour when gaming on the Series X.
From standby mode, to gaming and max capacity, get a cost breakdown of running the Xbox Series X per hour, month and year. And get 4 tips that’ll save you money and minimize your carbon footprint.
Games consoles are becoming more and more powerful. More power usually means more power consumption. So let’s take a look at the electricity cost of running one of the most powerful consoles on the market, the Xbox Series X.
On average, in the US, it costs 2.7 cents per hour of gaming on the Xbox Series X. The average US gamer can expect to pay 19 cents per week, 80 cents per month and $9.64 per year in electricity to run their Xbox Series X.
The instant-on standby mode can cost as much as $31.61 per year in electricity costs for the average US gamer.
Continue reading to see how these costs have been worked out and get 4 simple tips that you can use to reduce the cost of running your Xbox Series X.
Your TV will add to your electriccity bills too – don’t miss this related post: Cost To Run A TV Revealed [8 Cost Saving Tips + Calculator].
Xbox Series X electricity consumption
Eurogamer analysed Xbox Series X power consumption in detail.
To summarize, taking the highest rating recorded, the table below breaks down the different Xbox Series X electricity consumption levels for different modes.
Mode Electricity Consumption Power Off (Max) 2W Standby (Instant-On) 29W Dashboard 42W Gaming (Max Found To Date) 211W Max Capacity 315W
The different modes consume different amounts of electricity.
In standby mode, the Xbox Series X consumes 29W.
When powered off, but still plugged in, the Xbox Series X can consume up to 2W.
The console has a power rating of 315W and the maximum consumption recorded when gaming was 211W.
How much does it cost to run an Xbox Series X per hour
Now that we know the power consumption, we can simply use the average cost of electricity (per kWh) to work out the costs of running a Series X for an hour across the different modes.
The table below shows how much it costs to run an Xbox Series X for an hour in the US, Canada and the UK.
Mode Consumption Cost p/h US (13c kWh) Cost p/h Canada (C$0.15 kWh) Cost p/h UK (17p kWh) Power Off (Max) 2W $0.00026 C$0.00030 £0.00034 Standby (Instant-On) 29W $0.0038 C$0.0044 £0.0049 Dashboard 42W $0.0055 C$0.0063 £0.0071 Gaming (Max Found To Date) 211W $0.027 C$0.032 £0.036 Max Capacity 315W $0.041 C$0.047 £0.054
In the US, on average, it costs 2.7 cents per hour of gaming on the Xbox Series X. At maximum capacity, it costs over 4 cents per hour, while in standby mode it costs just close to ⅓ of 1 cent.
On average, in Canada, it costs 3.2 cents (CAD) per hour when gaming on the Series X. It costs closer to 5 cents (CAD) per hour at max capacity and nearly ½ of 1 cent (CAD) per hour on standby.
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In the UK, it costs 3.6p per hour of gaming on the Xbox Series X. At maximum capacity, it costs 5.4p per hour to run. While on standby, it costs just under ½ of 1p.
But how much does it cost over a longer period of time?
Xbox Series X cost to run per week, month and year
Now that we know the running cost for each mode per hour, let’s take a look at how much our electricity costs could be per week (p/w), per month (p/m) and per year (p/y).
To work this out let’s use the average number of ours gamers in the US spend gaming – 6.76 hours p/w.
The table below shows the average weekly, monthly and annual cost that US gamers can expect to pay in electricity charges to run their Xbox Series X.
Mode Cost p/w Cost p/m Cost p/y Gaming (Max Found To Date) $0.19 $0.80 $9.64 Max Capacity $0.28 $1.20 $14.39
In the US, on average, gamers can expect to pay 19 cents per week, 80 cents per month and $9.64 per year in electricity to run their Xbox Series X.
At maximum capacity, it costs US gamers 28 cents per week, $1.20 per month and $14.39 per year, on average, in electricity costs to power their Xbox Series X.
Notably, it costs Xbox Series X gamers $1.60 less per year at max capacity compared to PS5 gamers playing the same amount. See how much it costs to run a PS5 per week, month and year in the US. Alternatively, get the direct PS5 vs Xbox Series X power consumption comparison, here.
So now we know what it costs on average while gaming, but what about when the console is not in use?
Xbox Series X standby cost per week, month and year
US gamers spend 6.76 hours per week gaming. So obviously they spend 161.24 hour per week not gaming (at least not on their consoles).
Let’s take the extreme case. Let’s assume that gamers don’t use their console for anything else, like streaming.
Let’s also assume that they leave their console in standby mode when they’re not gaming.
Then how much does standby mode on Xbox Series X cost over a longer period of time?
Mode Cost p/w Cost p/m Cost p/y Power Off (Max) $0.04 $0.18 $2.18 Standby (Instant-On) $0.61 $2.63 $31.61
Also included in the table is the power off mode where the console can consume up to 2W while still plugged in.
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In the US, on the average price per kWh, if gamers leave their Xbox Series X on standby mode (instant-on) when not gaming they can expect to pay 61 cents per week, $2.63 per month and $31.61 per year in electricity costs.
Standby mode can cost over twice as much in electricity per year compared to gaming.
Again, this is an extreme case and not likely to occur. But it does help put the potential wastage into perspective.
We can obviously save money and reduce our carbon footprints when turning off the console completly.
I mentioned this alarming statistic when working out PS5 electricity costs, but it’s worth repeating:
Carbon-dioxide emissions from gaming in the US is equivalent to running over 5,000,000 cars.
And with that, let’s take a look at how you can reduce your carbon footprint when gaming, while also reducing your electricity bills.
4 simple Xbox Series X energy saving tips
Unplug. This can stop you wasting over $30 p/y while also reducing your energy wastage. Use the Xbox Series X energy-saving mode. To change to this mode, go to My Games and Apps > Settings > Power mode and Startup from the General tab > Select Power Mode. And while you’re at it, set your controllers to turn off automatically too. Don’t stream. If you have a Smart TV or a streaming stick, like Chromecast, use that. Xbox Series X is a games console not an unnecessarily powerful streaming device (I need to remind myself of this sometimes). Be careful of your set up. Don’t set your console up between your set-top box and TV. This can require your console to be turned on unnecessarily when using your set-top box.
How do PS5 consumption costs compare?
As I mentioned, it costs Xbox Series X gamers $1.60 less per year at max capacity compared to PS5 gamers playing for the same duration. But which is cheaper to run when powered off and when gaming?
Get the direct PS5 vs Xbox Series X power consumption comparison, here.
Alternatively, get more details about the cost of electricity required to run a PS5 and see how overall gaming consumption compares with other household appliances.
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