Garden Standby power calculator
Anything with a remote, a clock, a standby light or a permanent network connection is drawing power around the clock. Individually it is a watt or two and easy to dismiss. Across a whole house it typically runs to 5-10% of residential electricity, and unlike most loads it never stops.
How this is calculated
Constant load = number of devices × average standby watts. kWh per year = watts × 8,760 hours ÷ 1,000. Cost = kWh × your rate.
Worth knowing: Standby draw varies enormously by device. A phone charger left plugged in with nothing attached is now a fraction of a watt; an older set-top box or games console in "quick start" mode can pull 15-20 W continuously, which is more than some appliances use in normal operation. The handful of high-draw devices usually account for most of the total, so a plug-in meter finds the culprits faster than switching everything off.
Common questions
Is standby power really worth bothering with?
It is worth finding the two or three worst offenders, and generally not worth unplugging everything. Modern chargers and small electronics draw almost nothing, but a set-top box or console left in quick-start mode can run to 15-20 W continuously — that single device costs more over a year than most people expect.
Do smart plugs help?
They can, but they draw around 1 W themselves, so putting one on a device that idles at 0.5 W costs more than it saves. They make sense on clusters — a whole entertainment centre on one switched strip — rather than on individual low-draw items.
Which devices draw the most on standby?
Historically set-top boxes and DVRs, games consoles in instant-on mode, older AV receivers, and anything with an always-warm transformer. Devices with a display or clock, and anything that stays connected to the network to respond instantly, are the usual suspects.
Affiliate Disclosure
Some links on this page are affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualifying purchases — at no extra cost to you. We do not buy, test, or physically handle the products we cover; our rankings come from aggregated owner reviews, ratings and expert consensus. Commissions never change our verdicts. How we rank · full disclosure.