How much electricity does a TV use per hour?

A typical 50-inch LED TV uses about 75W, costing roughly $0.012 per hour at $0.16/kWh; a large 65-75 inch set can cost $0.02-$0.03 per hour.

Does OLED use more electricity than LED?

On bright content, yes, typically 10-30% more at the same screen size, because OLED pixels emit light individually rather than using a shared backlight. On dark scenes OLED can actually use less.

Is it expensive to leave a TV on standby?

Modern TVs draw under 0.5W in standard standby, adding only cents a year. 'Quick start' mode can raise this to 3-10W, adding roughly $1-$4 a year if left enabled continuously.

Does a bigger TV cost much more to run?

A 75-inch TV typically draws more than double a 32-inch model, but because televisions are low-wattage devices overall, the difference is usually only $3-$4 a month even with several hours of daily viewing.

Does picture mode really affect electricity use?

Yes. Switching from a 'Vivid' or 'Dynamic' demo mode to 'Standard' or 'Movie' mode can cut a TV's power draw by 30-50%, since store-demo modes maximize backlight brightness.

Entertainment

TV Power Consumption: LED vs OLED vs Large Screen Cost Per Hour

A 50-inch LED TV typically draws 60-100W, costing about $0.01-$0.02 per hour or roughly $3-$5 a month watching 5 hours a day at the US average rate of $0.16/kWh. A similarly sized OLED draws somewhat more, 80-120W, costing about $4-$6 a month, while a large 65-75 inch set of either technology can draw 100-200W, roughly doubling the monthly cost.

Televisions have gotten much larger over the past decade while, thanks to LED backlighting, generally becoming more energy-efficient per inch than older plasma or CCFL-backlit sets. Even so, a large modern TV left running for hours a day, particularly a bright OLED or a very large screen size, adds up over a year. This guide compares LED, OLED and QLED technology at common screen sizes, and shows what daily viewing actually costs on an electricity bill.

How screen size and technology change the wattage

TV power draw scales primarily with screen area and secondarily with the display technology and average picture brightness. A 32-inch LED set typically draws only 30-50W, a common 50-inch LED draws 60-100W, and a large 65-inch LED can draw 100-150W. OLED panels, which light each pixel individually rather than using a backlight, are more efficient at displaying dark scenes but draw more power on bright, high-contrast content because each lit pixel consumes energy directly; a 55-inch OLED typically averages 90-140W across mixed content, somewhat higher than an equivalent LED. QLED and other premium LED variants with local dimming and higher peak brightness for HDR content sit between standard LED and OLED, typically 80-130W at 55 inches.

Cost per hour and per month by size and type

Using the standard formula, a 50-inch LED TV at 75W run for 5 hours a day uses 0.375 kWh, costing about $0.06 a day and roughly $1.80 a month at $0.16/kWh — genuinely one of the cheapest appliances in the home to run per hour of use. A 65-inch OLED at 130W for the same 5 hours a day uses 0.65 kWh, costing about $0.10 a day and $3.12 a month. Even a household running two or three TVs several hours a day rarely adds more than $10-$15 a month collectively, which is why televisions are almost never the main driver of a high electricity bill, despite often being blamed for it. Enter your TV's wattage, found on the rear panel label or in the manual, into the calculator on the home page for an exact figure.

32-inch LED (~40W): about $0.006/hour, $1/month at 5 h/day
50-inch LED (~75W): about $0.012/hour, $1.80/month at 5 h/day
55-inch OLED (~110W): about $0.018/hour, $2.64/month at 5 h/day
65-inch LED/QLED (~130W): about $0.021/hour, $3.12/month at 5 h/day
75-inch LED (~180W): about $0.029/hour, $4.32/month at 5 h/day

Standby power and 'always plugged in' TVs

Modern TVs sold in the US and EU are subject to standby power limits, generally under 0.5W, so a switched-off but plugged-in TV now adds only a negligible amount to a bill, unlike older sets from the 2000s that could draw 3-5W constantly. The bigger hidden draw comes from features left active in standby, such as quick-start mode, which keeps some internal circuitry powered to reduce boot time and can raise standby draw to 3-10W on some models. Smart TV features like voice assistants and always-listening microphones, along with a connected soundbar or set-top box left on, are more likely to add meaningful standby cost than the TV panel itself.

Brightness settings and picture mode matter more than people expect

The single biggest controllable factor in a TV's real-world power draw is picture brightness, particularly on OLED and other self-emissive displays. Many TVs ship in a 'Vivid' or 'Dynamic' store-demo picture mode that maximizes backlight and brightness to stand out on a showroom floor, and this mode alone can increase power draw by 30-50% over a calibrated 'Movie' or 'Standard' mode with little practical benefit in a normally lit room. Enabling ambient light sensing, so the TV automatically dims in a darker room, typically saves a further 10-20% over the course of an evening's viewing without a noticeable difference in picture quality.

Practical ways to reduce TV running costs

Switch out of 'Vivid' or 'Dynamic' picture mode; it can use 30-50% more power than 'Standard' or 'Movie' mode
Enable the ambient light or eco sensor so brightness adjusts automatically to the room
Turn off 'quick start' or 'instant on' features if standby cost matters more to you than a few seconds of startup time
Use the TV's sleep timer to avoid it running unattended overnight
Turn off a soundbar or connected set-top box at the wall when not in use rather than leaving them on standby all day

TV power draw and running cost at $0.16/kWh, 5 hours viewing per day

TV type & size	Typical watts	Cost per hour	Cost per month	Cost/month (UK 26p)
32-inch LED	40W	$0.006	$1.00	£1.63
50-inch LED	75W	$0.012	$1.80	£2.93
55-inch OLED	110W	$0.018	$2.64	£4.29
65-inch LED/QLED	130W	$0.021	$3.12	£5.07
75-inch LED	180W	$0.029	$4.32	£7.02

Frequently asked questions

How much electricity does a TV use per hour?: A typical 50-inch LED TV uses about 75W, costing roughly $0.012 per hour at $0.16/kWh; a large 65-75 inch set can cost $0.02-$0.03 per hour.
Does OLED use more electricity than LED?: On bright content, yes, typically 10-30% more at the same screen size, because OLED pixels emit light individually rather than using a shared backlight. On dark scenes OLED can actually use less.
Is it expensive to leave a TV on standby?: Modern TVs draw under 0.5W in standard standby, adding only cents a year. 'Quick start' mode can raise this to 3-10W, adding roughly $1-$4 a year if left enabled continuously.
Does a bigger TV cost much more to run?: A 75-inch TV typically draws more than double a 32-inch model, but because televisions are low-wattage devices overall, the difference is usually only $3-$4 a month even with several hours of daily viewing.
Does picture mode really affect electricity use?: Yes. Switching from a 'Vivid' or 'Dynamic' demo mode to 'Standard' or 'Movie' mode can cut a TV's power draw by 30-50%, since store-demo modes maximize backlight brightness.

Key takeaways

A 50-inch LED TV costs about $1.80 a month for 5 hours of daily viewing
OLED panels draw somewhat more power than LED on bright content, less on dark scenes
Screen size roughly doubles power draw from 32 inches to 75 inches, but the monthly cost stays low
Standby power is negligible on modern TVs unless 'quick start' mode is left enabled
Switching out of 'Vivid' picture mode can cut running cost by 30-50%

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