3D printing · Running costs
3D printer electricity cost calculator.
Enter the average watts the printer draws while printing, the hours and your price per kWh, and the calculator returns the energy in kWh and what it costs. Example: Prusa lists 80 W for its MK4S on PLA settings, so a 10-hour print uses 0.8 kWh. At the US residential average of 18.16 cents per kWh (EIA, August 2026) that is 14.5 cents; at Hawaii’s 47.18 cents it is 37.7 cents.
Your numbers
Result
Working out the result.
How the cost is calculated
Electricity is billed in kilowatt-hours. A device drawing 80 watts for 10 hours uses 80 × 10 = 800 watt-hours, which is 0.8 kWh, and the cost is kWh multiplied by your price per kWh. This calculator adds an optional heating line (watts × minutes ÷ 60) and scales the result to a month. The hard part is the wattage, because a printer does not draw a constant amount: the heater cycles and the heat-up draws more than steady printing. The honest inputs are a figure from a plug-in meter, or a maker’s published consumption figure. This page uses the maker figures below and says which are ceilings.
Published figures (read 26 October 2026): Prusa’s MK4S page lists “Power consumption: PLA settings: 80W / ABS settings: 120W” and a 240 W power supply. Bambu Lab’s A1 specification sheet lists “Max Power: 1300W@220V, 350W@110V”. The price default is the U.S. Energy Information Administration’s Table 5.6.A: U.S. residential 18.16 cents per kWh for August 2026 (preliminary; August 2025 was 17.57). Across states that month it ran from 12.72 (Nevada) to 47.18 (Hawaii), with Texas at 15.91, New York at 28.65 and California at 29.75.
Worked examples with real numbers
- MK4S, PLA, 10 hours. 80 W × 10 h = 0.8 kWh. At 18.16 cents that is $0.145; at Nevada’s 12.72 cents $0.102; at Hawaii’s 47.18 cents $0.377.
- MK4S, ABS, 10 hours. 120 W × 10 h = 1.2 kWh, $0.218 at the US average.
- A month of 5-hour PLA prints. 80 W × 5 h = 0.4 kWh a print, $0.073. Twenty a month is 8 kWh and $1.45.
- The wrong way: the power supply rating. Using the MK4S’s 240 W supply for the same 10 hours gives 2.4 kWh and $0.436, three times the maker’s PLA figure.
- Bambu A1 at its 350 W ceiling, 5 hours. 1.75 kWh and $0.318 at the US average. That is the most it could draw on 110 V, so treat it as an upper bound, not a typical cost.
What this calculator leaves out
It does not include the filament, the enclosure heater, a heated chamber, idle or standby draw when the printer waits, or the computer running the slicer. A heated bed set hotter and a cold room both push consumption up, which is why a meter reading beats any table. For the full cost of a print, pair this with the filament cost calculator.
Common mix-ups
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Often assumedA printer draws as much as its power supply is rated for.
What the source saysPrusa lists a 240 W power supply for the MK4S but a power consumption of 80 W on PLA settings and 120 W on ABS settings. Costing a print at the supply rating would overstate PLA energy three times over. [1]
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Often assumedA printer has one wattage figure.
What the source saysBambu Lab’s A1 sheet gives a maximum of 1300 W at 220 V and 350 W at 110 V for the same printer. A maximum depends on the mains voltage and is a ceiling, not what a print averages. [2]
- Prusa3D: Original Prusa MK4S product page (read 26 Oct 2026)
- Bambu Lab: A1 specification sheet (read 26 Oct 2026)
Checked against these sources on .
Frequently asked questions
How much electricity does a 3D printer use?
Prusa lists 80 W for its MK4S on PLA settings and 120 W on ABS settings, so a 10-hour print uses 0.8 to 1.2 kWh. Your printer, bed temperature and room will differ, and a plug-in power meter gives the real number.
How much does it cost to run a 3D printer per hour?
At 80 W and the US residential average of 18.16 cents per kWh (EIA, August 2026) it is about 1.45 cents an hour. At 120 W it is about 2.2 cents. Multiply watts by your price per kWh and divide by 1000.
Should I use the power supply rating?
No. It is the most the supply can deliver. Prusa's MK4S has a 240 W supply but lists 80 W for PLA. Use a measured average or the maker's consumption figure.
What price per kWh should I enter?
The rate on your own bill, including delivery charges if you want the full cost. The default is the US residential average from the EIA, which ranged from 12.72 to 47.18 cents between states in August 2026.
Does heating up cost extra?
Heating draws more than steady printing, but the sources here give no heat-up figure, so the extra-watts fields start at zero. If you measure one with a meter, enter it.
Does this include filament?
No, only electricity. Use the 3D print filament cost calculator for material and failure allowance.
Sources
Retrieved
- Prusa3D: Original Prusa MK4S — power consumption 80 W PLA, 120 W ABS, 240 W power supply (read 2026-10-26)
- Bambu Lab: A1 specification sheet — Max Power 1300 W at 220 V and 350 W at 110 V (read 2026-10-26)
- U.S. EIA: Electric Power Monthly, Table 5.6.A — average price of electricity by sector and state, August 2026 (preliminary) and 2025 (read 2026-10-26)
Maker figures, not measurements
Not affiliated with Prusa Research, Bambu Lab or the EIA. Wattages are the makers’ published figures and do not describe your printer. The EIA figure for August 2026 is preliminary. Nothing you type is sent or stored.