EarthTalk Greetings: How does heating water for a cup of tea in the microwave compare to heating water on a gas or electric stove burner?
The simple answer is that it is dependent on a number of factors, including the cost of electricity versus gas, as well as the relative efficiency of the equipment in question. A microwave, on the other hand, is often slightly more efficient in heating water than a gas stove’s flame, and should use significantly less energy. The reason for this is that the microwave’s heat waves are focused on the liquid (or food) inside the microwave, not on heating the air or container around it, therefore the majority, if not all, of the energy generated is used to prepare your water.
Given this logic, it’s hard to conceive that an electric stovetop’s burner element would be any better, yet Home Energy Magazine found otherwise. The magazine’s researchers discovered that while boiling a cup of water, an electric burner uses around 25% less electricity than a microwave.
However, the difference in energy saved by one method vs another is insignificant: A heavy tea drinker could save a dollar or two each year by using the most efficient procedure. “You’d save more energy over the year by switching to a CFL or shutting off the air conditioner for an hournot an hour every day, but one hour at some point over the year,” says consumer advocate Michael Bluejay.
Although a microwave does not save much energy or money when boiling water compared to a stove burner, it can be far more energy-efficient when cooking food than a standard full-size oven. Microwaves cook and heat food more faster than traditional ovens because their heat waves are centered on the food. Cooking or reheating small pieces of food in the microwave can save up to 80% of the energy used to cook or warm them up in the oven, according to the federal government’s Energy Star program, which ranks appliances based on their energy efficiency.
Despite these suggestions for cooking more sustainably, Bluejay points out that most of us will rarely make a dent in our overall energy consumption simply by picking one equipment over another. According to his calculations, the cheapest cooking method saves only $2.06 a month compared to the most expensive one for someone who bakes three hours per week.
“Focusing on cooking procedures is not a good approach to save electricity,” Bluejay explains. “Instead, think about heating, cooling, lighting, and laundry.”
Is it cheaper to cook on the stove or in the microwave?
Microwave ovens utilize less energy than conventional ovens and stoves, as most consumers are aware. In a previous article titled “We touched on the energy-saving benefits of microwave cooking in “What are the Benefits of Microwave Cooking?” but today we want to show you how those savings are achieved.
Microwave ovens are more efficient at transferring heat because they heat the water in the food directly. This thermal energy transfer rate ranges between 30% and 80%. On a stovetop, the heat transfer period from the burner is substantially shorter only 12 to 14 percent of the heat energy is transferred to the food.
Furthermore, the rate of heat transfer is determined by the quality and type of cookware you use. Cooking time is also affected by what you’re cooking. While it’s true that boiling water on the stove saves 25% more energy than using the microwave, it’s not the same as a bowel of frozen vegetables, a plate of lasagna, or a couple strips of excellent bacon.
Cooking accounts for 2% of an average home’s energy use, according to data from the US Department of Energy from 2014. Cooking accounts for around $4 of a $200 monthly electric cost.
According to a basic comparison of equipment, using an oven for one hour each day for thirty days costs $4.80, whereas using a microwave costs only $9. That’s a significant savings, and the amount saved over the course of a year adds up. But there’s more to it, especially when you consider how the energy expenses connected with cooking affect how your home consumes energy in other ways.
The key premise is that microwave ovens do not generate a significant amount of heat for your air conditioning system throughout the summer. Stoves and ovens are examples. After all, they’re supposed to heat up to the point where food may be cooked.
Only the food, the container, and a little portion of the microwave oven get hot in a microwave. On a stove top, burners must heat up to 400 degrees Fahrenheit (204 degrees Celsius) before cooling down once cooking is completed.
To be honest, most of the time, this may have little effect. However, on extremely hot days, utilizing numerous burners may make cooking in your kitchen unbearable by increasing the amount of heat and humidity in your home. A 350 F (177 C) oven wastes heat that can remain for hours in your kitchen, increasing your home’s heat load and forcing your air conditioner to operate longer.
The reason is simple: microwave ovens emit fewer indoor pollution than traditional cooking methods. Because contemporary homes are better air-sealed and have fewer air-changes with the outside, indoor pollution from cooking are especially important. Toxins such as nitrogen dioxide (NO2), carbon monoxide (CO), formaldehyde (HCHO), ultra-fine particles, and other lung irritants can therefore remain for up to 24 hours in a home. Even more formaldehyde is released during the oven cleaning cycle.
While kitchen exhaust fans and air purifiers have been demonstrated to lower interior pollutants, they do not completely eliminate them. Microwave ovens, on the other hand, produce “When compared to using an electric or gas stove, cooking that aforementioned lasagna or bacon produces “much lower” amounts of pollutants.
You reduce exposure to contaminants and save energy by not using exhaust fans and air purifiers as frequently or for as long when you use a microwave oven instead.
What is it about microwave cooking that you enjoy the most at home? Let us know in the comments!
Is a microwave more energy efficient than an oven?
Microwave ovens do consume less energy than conventional ovens (up to 80% less). Microwave ovens cook food considerably faster and produce less heat in your kitchen, so you could save money on air conditioning during the summer.
How much does a one-minute microwave run cost?
Microwaves cost $0.13 to $0.44 per hour to run, with $0.21 being the most typical.
These values are based on the microwave wattage of 203 models and the average microwave efficiency (71.29 percent) – see Microwave Wattage Revealed for more information.
Note that calculating the cost of running a microwave using the output watts (i.e. the cooking power) is erroneous. This is because the output wattage accounts for 71.29 percent of the total power consumed. The input wattage method, which is employed in this essay, produces a more precise result.
Microwaves are frequently divided between small and medium sizes by retailers. The different size categories have no effect on the amount of energy consumed.
The cost of running a small microwave is between 13 cents and 44 cents per hour. Microwaves in the medium size range from 17 cents to 44 cents per hour.
For a tiny microwave, the most frequent electricity expenditure per hour is 15 cents. For medium-sized microwaves, the most common rate is 21 cents per hour.
Because running a microwave for an hour is unusual, let’s look at the costs for a shorter length of time.
Cost to run a microwave for 5 minutes
Microwaves cost $0.011 to $0.037 to run for 5 minutes, with $0.018 being the most prevalent price.
The operating costs of small microwaves are similar, however $0.012 is the most typical cost.
For every 5 minutes that a medium-sized microwave runs at maximum power, it costs $0.014 to $0.037 in electricity. In this size group, the most typical cost is similarly $0.018.
How much does it cost to run a microwave for 1 minute
Microwaves cost between $0.0021 and $0.0074 per minute to operate. A microwave’s most common cost per minute is $0.0035.
The “most usual” cost of a medium-sized microwave is the same, however the price range varies slightly.
Small microwaves have the same cost range per minute as large microwaves ($0.0021 to $0.0074 per minute).
Cost to run a microwave by wattage
The cost of operating a microwave is mostly determined by its wattage (more specifically, its input wattage).
The cost per minute, cost per 5 minutes, and cost per hour for 16 different microwaves are listed in the table below.
The estimated electricity usage, in kWh, is also mentioned, based on the average efficiency of turning input electricity into cooking power.
Check out the recent post Microwave Wattage Revealed for more information on microwave wattage, power consumption, and energy efficiency.
Microwave output wattage is significantly more varied than what is shown in the table above.
Use the Microwave Electricity Cost Calculator below if your microwave wattage isn’t shown in the table.
Microwave electricity cost calculator
To see an estimate of how much it costs to run your microwave, enter the wattage of your microwave and the cost per kWh into the Microwave Electricity Cost Calculator below.
This calculation estimates that your microwave converts input electricity into cooking power at a rate of 71.29 percent (average).
Let’s put the costs of running a microwave into context now that we know how much it costs to run one.
Which consumes more electricity, the stove or the oven?
Let’s put an end to the suspense by estimating some basic costs. The average electric stove wattage is roughly 3,000 watts, with most electric ovens drawing between 2,000 and 5,000 watts. So, how much electricity does an electric burner consume in one hour? At a 12 cents per kilowatt-hour (kWh) electricity tariff, a 3000-watt oven will cost you around 36 cents per hour at high heat.
When it comes to electric cooktop burners, larger burners use more electricity. Many cooktops include burners that range in power from around 1,200 watts for the smallest to 3,000 watts for the largest, costing about 14 cents and 36 cents per hour, respectively.
This breakdown is a simplification, even if you know the actual wattages of your oven and each of your burners. Because the real wattages you’re pulling are determined by the quantity of heat you generate, this is the case. Making beef jerky at 170 degrees and self-cleaning your oven at 800 degrees use vastly different amounts of energy.
Consider how you use your burners: you swiftly turn the dial to low, medium, or high heat, yet the precise location where the dial stops varies somewhat from time to time. This makes tracking the energy consumption of a kitchen range extremely difficult.
Fortunately, based on the above-mentioned preliminary cost estimates, these variances won’t cost the ordinary home cook more than a few of dollars per month. It won’t break the money unless you keep your range operating 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
What is the most cost-effective method of cooking?
Microwaves, slow cookers, electric pressure cookers, and air fryers all use less energy than ovens, so switching to one of these will save you money. “Microwaves are extremely energy efficient,” explains Dr. Reynolds.
Is it true that cooking in the microwave saves energy?
Yes, microwaves not only consume less energy (usually less than 1,500 watts), but they’re also more efficient because they only heat the food and don’t waste energy heating the air surrounding it. There’s no waiting for the microwave to warm up it reaches temperature almost instantly, and food cooks in a fraction of the time. Microwaves consistently outperform ovens when it comes to reheating food.
What is the greatest energy-saving method of cooking?
There is a definite association between the size of the household and the amount of energy utilized in studies of household energy use. Single-person households, unsurprisingly, utilize less energy than a family of four. However, a single person will not consume half as much energy as a pair – cooking for more than one person at a time is more energy efficient, not to mention sociable, as shown in the table below from the 2011 Powering the Nation study.
And it’s not just cooking: regardless of how many people are at home, our refrigerators and freezers consume the same amount of electricity to cool food.
However, if we live alone, we may not always be able to invite people around for supper. So, how do we make sure we’re using less energy in the kitchen?
Choose energy efficient products
One of the most important steps is to guarantee that we use energy-efficient equipment. The 2011 report Powering the Nation investigated energy use in houses across the United Kingdom. The homes surveyed had an average of 41 different electrical equipment at the time of the study, with some possessing as many as 85. Energy labels are not commonly found on entertainment gadgets like iPads, TVs, or computers, but white goods like dishwashers, refrigerators, and ovens are required by law to display their energy efficiency rating.
The highest possible grade is A+++, whereas the lowest possible rating for certain appliances is F or G, with a significant difference in energy savings. Cooking appliances, for example, are frequently rated A+ or higher. Older appliances, on the other hand, are likely to be far less energy efficient. For additional details, see our video:
Use the right size of appliance for your needs
Over the years, kitchen appliances such as washing machines, dishwashers, refrigerators, kettles, and cookers have gotten more energy efficient, with the finest models requiring less energy than ten years ago. However, the average fridge, fridge-freezer, and washing machine drum have grown in size, canceling out some of the potential energy savings.
Do you really need a full-size fridge-freezer if all you keep in your fridge is a bottle of champagne and a lemon (yeah, I’m looking at you)?
Don’t leave appliances on standby
While refrigerators, refrigerator-freezers, upright and chest freezers are the largest single consumers of electricity in the home due to their constant use, you can save energy by turning off other electronic equipment.
When left on standby, your dishwasher, microwave, washing machine, tumble dryer, and electric oven all consume electricity. To save electricity, get into the habit of shutting them off at the plug.
Save energy when you cook
Obviously, you must ensure that your food preparation methods do not compromise the quality of your dinner, but there are a few easy ways to save energy when cooking.
Consider how you heat your meals: when heating tiny amounts of food, a microwave is significantly more energy efficient than cooking on a typical gas or electric range.
- Instead of heating water on the stove, use a kettle. Once it’s boiling, you can move it to a pan.
- Always cover your pots and pans when heating your food – the water will boil faster and consume less energy.
- Turn off the heat a few minutes before your food is done, especially if you have an electric stove, which takes a while to cool down and will continue to cook your food.
- Don’t keep opening the oven door since you’re letting out hot air and wasting energy. Instead, gaze through the glass door if you can.
Save energy when you freeze food
You may conserve energy by ensuring that your refrigerator or freezer is properly sized and functioning.
- Allowing hot food to cool on the side before putting it in the fridge or freezer is always a good idea.
- Don’t leave the door open for long periods of time because it will have to work harder to cool down the temperature.
- Maintain a temperature of 5 degrees Celsius or less in your refrigerator. We maintain our refrigerators at an average temperature of 7 degrees Celsius, which implies our food spoils faster.
- Make sure there’s at least a 10cm gap between your fridge and the wall to allow heat to escape more easily.
Lighting is the last thing to think about. This often accounts for an additional 15% of total electricity demand in the residence. As a result, it’s worth switching to LED light bulbs and remembering to turn off lights in rooms when not in use. More information regarding energy efficient lighting can be found on our page.
Is it cheaper to roast a potato in the microwave or in a regular oven?
Answer. Explanation: A microwave uses 40% less energy than a gas stove, but the cost of electricity is higher than the cost of gas. When compared to a normal oven, a microwave oven uses 75 percent less energy to cook a potato.
Is a microwave more energy efficient than an electric oven?
The microwave is the energy-saving cooking champion! According to ENERGY STAR, cooking with a microwave rather than an oven can save anywhere from 30% to 80% of energy.
Is it affordable to run a microwave oven?
According to the Energy Saving Trust, a microwave uses less energy than a standard gas or electric oven. Because microwaves only heat your food and not the air space inside, they require less energy to prepare your meal.