Cost per use calculator

Four numbers go in and one comes out. It runs entirely in your browser, so nothing you type is sent anywhere or stored.

Cost per use

Prefilled with our measured figures. Change anything, and the working underneath updates as you type.

What are you working out

Purchase price (£) Zero if you already own it and only want the running cost.

Expected life (years)

Uses per year

Energy per use (kWh)

Unit price Prefilled from the current price cap. Put your own rate in.

Consumable per use (£) Pod, tablet, dose, cartridge.

Upkeep per year (£) Servicing, insurance, filters.

Cost per use 0p

Running only 0p

Per year £0

Over its life £0

What it is doing

The same sum as every page on this site:

The formula

purchase price divided by lifetime usescapital

energy or fuel per use times the unit priceenergy

consumable per use, and water where it appliesconsumable

upkeep per year divided by uses per yearupkeep

added togethercost per use

Set the purchase price to zero and you get the running cost of something you already own, which is the right question when you are deciding whether to use a thing rather than whether to buy it. Leave it in and you get the honest number, which is usually higher than people expect for anything used rarely and lower than people expect for anything used every day.

The full method, including what we leave out and why, is on the method page. Nothing you type here leaves your browser, which is covered in the privacy note.