What does a washing machine cost to run?
Around 20p a load at 40°C — and the temperature dial is the only control that meaningfully changes it.
Price cap is 26.11p
21p per load, 208 loads a year, 166 kWh in total — about £4 a month.
Washing at 30°C instead of 40°C
Heating the water is nearly all of the energy, so dropping the temperature cuts the cost by roughly a third. Modern detergents are formulated for cold washes.
£13 a year cheaper — £30 instead of £43.
As with a dishwasher, the drum and motor barely register. Around 90% of the electricity goes on heating the water, which is why a 60°C wash costs roughly twice a 30°C one for the same clothes.
Eco settings work the same way as they do in a dishwasher: less water, heated less, agitated for longer. The cycle time roughly doubles and the cost falls by a third. Nothing is being sacrificed except your patience.
The 60°C wash still has a place for towels, bedding and anything that has been ill on, where you want the temperature for hygiene rather than cleaning. Everything else can go on at 30.
The short answer: 15–25p a load. Washing at 30°C rather than 40°C saves about a third, and the machine costs the same either way.
What actually helps
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This is the small stuff
Every appliance on this site put together is usually less than a third of a typical energy bill. Heating the house is the rest of it. If the numbers here bothered you, the number that actually matters is what your heating costs — and whether a heat pump would make it better or worse in your particular house.
Work out your heating costOther appliances
Energy figures checked 2026-08-26. Electricity priced at the Ofgem cap for 1 July – 30 September 2026. Your own machine and tariff will differ — put your figures in above.