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Estimate the cost by multiplying average power in kilowatts by the hours you stream and your electricity rate per kilowatt-hour: cost = (average watts ÷ 1,000) × hours × price per kWh. Use average watts for the workload you actually run—not the GPU’s TGP alone—and decide whether you want the GPU’s share or the entire computer’s electricity cost.
How much does it cost to run a GPU 24/7?
There is no single cost for an NVIDIA GPU streaming continuously. The result depends on the card, its average draw during your stream, how many hours it runs, and your electricity tariff. For an always-on estimate, a 30-day month has 720 hours; a 365-day year has 8,760 hours. Use actual hours for a different billing period or a leap year.
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Use this calculator-style formula
Cost = (average watts ÷ 1,000) × run hours × electricity price per kWh
What’s actually slowing this PC down?
Pick the symptom - the matching free tool is one click away.
- Choose the average wattage for the load you want to estimate.
- Divide watts by 1,000 to convert to kilowatts.
- Multiply by the number of hours to get kilowatt-hours (kWh).
- Multiply kWh by your electricity price per kWh.
For example, a hypothetical 100 W load running for 720 hours uses (100 ÷ 1,000) × 720 = 72 kWh. At $0.173/kWh, that is about $12.46 for 30 days. This is arithmetic using an example input, not a measured NVIDIA GPU streaming result. It represents GPU-only energy only if the 100 W is GPU draw; it represents the whole PC only if it is the wall-side draw of the complete system.
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As a quick conversion, a continuous average 1 W uses 0.72 kWh in 30 days and 8.76 kWh in 365 days. Multiply either figure by your own rate for the corresponding cost.
How to choose a realistic wattage
Do not treat TGP as average streaming power
Total Graphics Power (TGP) is a power cap for GPU Boost, not a promise that a card continuously draws that amount. NVIDIA’s RTX 4080 example lists 320 W TGP, 13 W at idle, 21 W during video playback, and 251 W average gaming. Those figures illustrate how workload affects consumption; they are not measurements of a YouTube live-encoding workload, and the 21 W playback figure should not be used as a streaming estimate. NVIDIA explains that high-power applications may reach the TGP limit while lighter workloads can use substantially less: NVIDIA’s TGP and GPU power discussion.
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Look up the exact card, then measure the workload if possible
Check the specification for your exact GPU. NVIDIA’s GeForce comparison page lists reference-design TGP and required system power information, while noting that partner add-in-card specifications may vary and minimum system-power requirements depend on configuration. A recommended PSU rating is a suitability recommendation, not the PC’s constant electricity use.
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Repair common Windows errors and clear accumulated junk for a smoother, more stable PC - no reinstall needed.Free scan · no reinstallFor a likely bill estimate, use workload-average watts under representative stream settings. GPU utilization and power can change with resolution, encoder, scene, concurrent graphics work, and machine state. If TGP is the only number available, you can use it as a conservative proxy or upper-cap reference, but label the result accordingly; it is not an observed streaming average.
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GPU electricity cost or whole-PC electricity cost?
GPU telemetry answers a GPU-only question. It does not include the CPU, motherboard, memory, storage, fans, power-supply losses, monitor, or other devices. If you want to estimate the electricity added to your bill by keeping the streaming setup running, use the whole system’s average wall-side draw instead.
An optional plug-in electricity usage monitor can measure the combined load at the outlet over a representative stream. It measures whatever is plugged into it, so it will not isolate the GPU. For a fair comparison between two setups, use average watts measured or estimated under the same stream workload and settings, the same run time, and the same electricity rate.
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What electricity rate should you use?
Use the all-in per-kWh rate applicable to your account if available, including delivery and other per-kWh charges you want reflected in the estimate. Electricity prices differ by location and customer class, so a national average is only a comparison point—not a substitute for your bill or tariff.
For context, the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) reported these 2025 average retail prices from preliminary Electric Power Monthly data published in February 2026:
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| U.S. customer category | 2025 average price |
|---|---|
| Residential | 17.30¢/kWh |
| Commercial | 13.41¢/kWh |
| Industrial | 8.62¢/kWh |
| All customer types combined | 13.63¢/kWh |
For all customer types, EIA’s 2025 state averages ranged from 8.20¢/kWh in North Dakota to 35.72¢/kWh in Hawaii. These figures are from EIA’s tables cited in its electricity prices explainer; your current local rate is more useful for a personal estimate. EIA’s Electric Power Monthly listed July 2026 data, released September 24, 2026, with the next release scheduled for October 23, 2026, as of October 3, 2026.
Illustrative 100 W examples using the 2025 U.S. averages
| Example rate | 30 days (72 kWh) | 365 days (876 kWh) |
|---|---|---|
| Residential average, 17.30¢/kWh | About $12.46 | About $151.55 |
| Commercial average, 13.41¢/kWh | About $9.66 | About $117.47 |
These are arithmetic examples for a hypothetical continuous 100 W load at the stated U.S. averages, not predicted bills for a particular GPU, PC, or region.
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