Enter your washer's wattage, cycle time, wash temperature, and loads per week for real running cost.
Water heating, not the motor, is the dominant cost for warm and hot washes — switching to cold wash is one of the cheapest energy-saving habit changes available.
A washing machine's motor alone uses relatively little power — most of a warm or hot wash's cost actually comes from your water heater raising the incoming water temperature, which this estimate accounts for separately from the appliance's own electrical draw.
Cutting warm or hot washes to cold can save $50-150 a year for an average household, since water heating is typically the majority of a warm/hot wash's total energy cost.
This estimate assumes electric water heating; if your water heater runs on gas, the hot-water portion of the cost shifts to your gas bill instead of electricity.