What is a kWh?

A kilowatt-hour (kWh) is a unit of energy. It’s used to measure how much electricity you use over time.

Here’s a simple way to think about it: 1 kWh is the amount of energy you would use if you kept a 1,000-watt appliance running for one hour. For example, if you have a 1,000-watt microwave and you run it for one hour, you would use 1 kWh of energy.

To give you a better idea, here are examples of what 1 kWh can power:

• Broadband router (7-10 watts): 4 to 5 days
• Laptop (20-50 watts): all day
• Alarm clock (50 watts): 20 hours
• 50-inch LED TV (80 watts): 12.5 hours
• Lightbulb (100 watts): 10 hours
• PlayStation 4 (150 watts): 6.67 hours
• Refrigerator (300 watts): 3.33 hours
• Dishwasher (1,000 watts): 1 hour
• Oven (2,000 watts): 30 minutes
• Water heater (10,000 watts): 6 minutes