How Much Electricity do Games Consoles Use?

As the cost of electricity bills continue to skyrocket worldwide, there has never been a better time to understand how much electricity your favourite consoles are using on average.

So how much are your games consoles costing you in electricity each year? Most modern consoles have multiple power functions such as fully on or rest mode, both of which will consume different amounts of energy (watts), but your console will also use more energy when it is running different applications. For instance, running a video game will use more energy than running a video streaming app such as Disney+ or Netflix.

It’s also important to remember that the electrical cost of playing a game like Dead Cells will be far less than playing something like Destiny due to the difference in technical and processing requirements of each game.

Another point to consider is that the only way to stop your console from using any energy is to have it completely unplugged. This is due to the fact that, even when you have ‘turned off’ your console, most modern consoles can be switched on again by simply activating their controller, meaning the console is still consuming power when turned off so it will know when the user has activated it through the controller. In the case of the Playstation 5, for instance, pressing the PS button on your controller will instantly turn on your PS5, even if it is switched off.

We are using the UK electricity price cap (July 2023) to calculate these costs.

How Much Electricity Does a PS5 Use?

Sony has stated that the official power rating for a disc edition Playstation 5 is 350 watts, with the digital edition being rated at 340 watts. We can then determine that the electrical cost of running a disc based game is 10 watts more than that of running the same game digitally.

Below, we have included a table of general electrical usage for a Playstation 5 in a variety of modes.

Power Mode	Electrical Consumption
Power Off	0.2-1.2 watts
Rest Mode	1.5 watts
Turned On (Home Screen)	50 watts
Video Streaming	70 watts
Gaming	200 watts (average)
Max Consumption	340/350 watts

Using this table, you can then calculate your hourly power costs for various modes over a 1 hour period.

How Much Electricity Does a PS5 Use in an Hour?

To calculate the hourly costs of your PlayStation 5, you should find out your electricity provider’s cost per kWh (Kilowatt-hour). In this example we will say that your kWh cost is £0.14 to figure out your monthly average.

Power Mode	Energy Consumption	Hourly Cost	Daily Cost (8 hours use a day)	Monthly Cost (Average 30 days)
Rest Mode	1.5	<£0.01 per 1 hours	£0.00360	£0.11
On Menu	50	£0.02	£0.12	£3.60
Gaming	200	£0.06	£0.48	£14.40

As stated above, some games and apps will use more or less energy than others, but these numbers give a good idea of your average power consumption for the majority of games.

How Much Electricity Does an Xbox Use?

Microsoft has stated that power usage for the Xbox Series X is up to 315 watts when running it’s most powerful games, such as Gears of War 5 or Halo: Infinite. The Xbox One X will use up to 180 watts, and the Xbox One will use up to 120. We have included a table of the electrical usage of an Xbox Series X below:

Power Mode	Electrical Consumption
Power Off	2 watts
Standby	29 watts
On Home Menu	42 watts
Video Streaming	75 watts
Gaming	211-315 watts

How Much Electricity Does an Xbox Use in an Hour?

To calculate your hourly costs for an Xbox Series X, you should find out your electricity provider’s cost per kWh (Kilowatt-hour). In this example we will say that your kWh cost is £0.14 to figure out your monthly average.

Power Mode	Energy Consumption	Hourly Cost	Daily Cost (8 hours use a day)	Monthly Cost (Average 30 days)
Rest Mode	2	<£0.01 per 1 hours	£0.07	£2.09
On Menu	42	£0.0126	£0.10	£3.02
Gaming	211	£0.06	£0.51	£15.19