Clothes Washers ranked by annual energy cost

Which clothes washer is cheapest to run?

Among the 80 clothes washers compared here, the PWMF280HB (Premium Levella) is lowest at $6.63/yr and the MLTW54M5CHG (Midea) is highest at $36.38/yr - a difference of $29.75 per year, meaning the highest costs 449% more than the lowest.

What is a typical yearly running cost for clothes washers?

The median across 80 sampled clothes washers is $18.70/yr, with the middle half between $12.75/yr and $23.80/yr. These figures apply the site-wide rate assumption of $0.17/kWh to the certified annual kWh reported by each manufacturer.

Do ENERGY STAR Most Efficient clothes washers cost less to run?

In this sample, yes. Median running cost by certification status is ENERGY STAR Most Efficient: $16.83 across 6 models, ENERGY STAR Certified: $18.70 across 74 models. Certification is relative to product class, so size still matters more than the label when comparing two specific models.

Are newly certified clothes washers more efficient?

Median running cost by certification year is 2026: $19.89 (46 models), 2025: $17.00 (34 models). The most recent 2026 cohort is 17% higher than the 2025 cohort. Sample composition differs by year, so this is an observation about the models listed here rather than proof of a trend.

How are the running costs for these clothes washers calculated?

Each of the 80 clothes washers listed here uses the annual kWh reported for that exact model in the EPA ENERGY STAR certified dataset, multiplied by a flat $0.17/kWh. For this category that produces a range of $6.63/yr to $36.38/yr around a $18.70/yr median. Nothing here is measured or estimated by this site and no external benchmark is mixed in, so if your local rate differs you can scale every figure by the same factor - the ranking between models does not change.