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Wi-Fi RouterCost: Purchase Price & Running Cost
A home Wi-Fi router uses about 10-15 watts and runs 24/7. While the wattage is low, it adds up over a year — roughly $15-20 annually.
Average Purchase Price
$80–$400
Basic single-band to Wi-Fi 6E/mesh systems
watts
hrs/day
$/kWh
Daily Cost
$0.05
0.3 kWh
Monthly Cost
$1.38
8.6 kWh
Yearly Cost
$16.82
105.1 kWh
For perspective...
At $16.82/year, this costs about the same as 3 streaming service months. A minor line item.
Energy-Saving Tips for Your Wi-Fi Router
- Mesh systems with multiple nodes will multiply this cost
- There's no meaningful way to reduce router power draw — just factor it in
- Rebooting weekly can improve performance but won't save energy