How Much Does it Cost to Wash a Load of Clothes in the UK? (2026)

The Short Answer

Energy use (freestanding washing machines)

The average freestanding washing machine in the UK uses 0.417 kWh of electricity on an Eco 40-60 cycle. 

The average electricity cost in the UK is 26.32 pence per kWh for the Energy Price Cap (EPC) period from 1 October to 31 December 2026.

This means that the average washing machine costs 26.32p x 0.417 = 11p per cycle in electricity.

If you use your washing machine 220 times a year, it would cost you £24.15 in electricity costs.

Energy use (integrated washing machines)

Integrated washing machines tend to be a bit less energy efficient than freestanding machines. The average integrated washing machine in the UK uses 0.486 kWh of electricity on an Eco 40-60 cycle. At current energy prices, this would cost 12.8p per cycle. If you use your washing machine 220 times a year, it would cost you £28.14 in electricity costs.

Water costs

Average water usage is very similar for both freestanding and integrated washing machines. The average freestanding machine uses 47.5 litres of water on an Eco 40-60 programme, while the average integrated machine uses 46.2 litres. Tap water costs about 0.3p per litre in the UK, so the average water costs would be as follows:

• Freestanding: 14.3p per cycle; £31.46 per year (220 cycles)
• Integrated: 13.9p per cycle; £30.58 per year (220 cycles)

Total costs

The table below gives an estimated total cost of running a washing machine per cycle and per year, with yearly figures based on running the machine 220 times.

The Long Answer

While the figures above give a rough indication of running costs, unfortunately estimating how much your washing machine costs you isn’t as simple as multiplying the energy use stated on the product information by the energy costs and the number of times you use it.

This is because the energy use stated on product labels is based on a very precise standardised way of testing washing machines that is unlikely to correspond exactly to how you use the machine yourself.

The energy consumption shown on official energy labels and product information sheets is measured using the “Eco 40-60” programme under standardised test conditions. Washing machines in the UK market are required to have an “Eco 40-60 programme”. This requirement comes from EU legislation, and has carried over after Brexit.

When testing machines to get data for product information sheets, Eco 40-60 cycles with full, half and quarter loads are run, and a weighted average is calculated. This means that the official energy use data doesn’t even tell you exactly how much a full load on an Eco 40-60 programme will use, since it’s calculated taking half and quarter loads into account as well.

While it’s not perfect, the official energy use figure given by manufacturers is very useful for comparing machines, since the test methodology is standardised and manufacturers can get in trouble if they don’t follow it correctly.

Many user manuals give indicative figures of how much energy different cycles use. You can look at the cycles you use most often to get a more accurate idea of your actual running costs. Here’s a quick overview of how different cycles tend to compare to the Eco 40-60 figure based on 50 user manuals we looked at:

The Effect of Washing Temperature

As you would expect, washing at lower temperatures uses less energy.

There isn’t a lot of good data available about exactly how much energy washing machines use at different temperatures.

An often-quoted statistic from the Energy Saving Trust is that “Washing clothes at 30 degrees rather than higher temperatures will save around 40% of the energy used each year.”

However, the Energy Saving Trust don’t say exactly what they mean by “higher temperatures”. People tend to assume this means 40 degrees Celsius, which is the most common temperature to wash clothes at.

Some more detailed data comes from a 2006 study by Öko-Institut, a German research institute.

According to this data, the average energy usage for washing a 5 kg load of clothes as follows:

• 90°C/95°C: 1.9 kWh
• 60°C: 1.15 kWh
• 40°C: 0.65 kWh
• 30°C: 0.40 kWh
• 20°C: 0.25 kWh

This data is from 2006, so it’s quite out of date since modern machines are much more energy efficient. Also, it looks at a 5 kg load of clothes, which is less than most washing machines can handle.

However, it does offer a useful comparison of energy costs at different temperatures.

If we assume that the Öko-Institut data is still correct, then the following is true:

• Washing at 60°C uses 77% more energy than washing at 40°C.
• Washing at 30°C uses 38% less energy than washing at 40°C
• Washing at 20°C uses 62% less energy than washing at 40°C.

The Effect of Eco and Quick Wash Cycles

Many users may be surprised by the eco wash cycle on most washing machines as they can take considerably longer than other cycles.

Eco modes use a lower water temperature as most of a washing machine’s energy usage comes from heating the water, it just means that the cycle needs to be longer to get the same level of cleaning.

Eco modes might take longer, but they can use between 35 and 59% less energy than a standard hot cycle, and it can offer considerable savings in water usage too according to Currys.

Quick wash cycles can use about half the electricity of a regular cycle since they are so short. However, they aren’t suitable for using all the time.

Is It More Efficient to Have a Big Machine and Do Fewer Loads a Week?

Yes, it’s cheaper to have a 10 kg machine and fewer loads per week rather than having a 7 kg machine and needing to do more loads per week.

The capacity of a washing machine doesn’t have much effect on its overall running costs, so owning a bigger machine will help you save money as you’ll be able to do fewer loads in total.