What Your Appliances Cost To Run
Ghanaian electricity is billed in units, and almost nobody knows which appliance is eating them. Put your home together below and find out — at the tariff in force since 1 July 2026.
Not sure? Most homes with a fridge, a television and a few fans land in the top band. Your ECG bill or prepaid receipt shows your units.
These appliances add about
GH₵300.43a month
Over a year
GH₵3,605.20
- Electricity used
- 90.5 units
- Energy charge
- GH₵243.51
- Street lighting and electrification levies
- GH₵12.18
- VAT, NHIL and GETFund
- GH₵44.75
Your ECG bill also carries a fixed monthly service charge for the meter itself. It is left out here on purpose — it is charged per household, not per appliance, so including it would make every appliance look dearer than it is.
Looking for a more efficient one?
What a month costs, appliance by appliance
At the top residential band, running one of each for a typical day:
| Appliance | Hours a day | Units a month | Cost a month |
|---|---|---|---|
| Refrigerator (double door) | 24 | 50.4 | GH₵167.41 |
| Air conditioner (1.5 HP) | 8 | 187.2 | GH₵621.79 |
| Smart TV (43") | 5 | 11.3 | GH₵37.37 |
| Electric kettle | 0.3 | 18.0 | GH₵59.79 |
The rates behind these numbers
Ghana charges households in bands, so the more units you use, the more each one costs. These are the residential rates in force since 1 July 2026, as set by the Public Utilities Regulatory Commission.
| Monthly use | Cost per unit |
|---|---|
| 0 – 30 kWh (lifeline) | GH₵0.90 |
| 31 – 300 kWh | GH₵2.04 |
| 301 kWh and above | GH₵2.69 |
On top of the energy charge sit a 3% street lighting levy and a 2% national electrification levy, and above the lifeline band, VAT, NHIL and GETFund together add 17.5%. The calculator shows each of these separately rather than burying them in one figure.
Why a fridge is not as costly as it looks
A fridge is plugged in for all 24 hours, but its compressor only runs for perhaps a third of them — it switches itself off once the inside is cold enough. Air conditioners do the same once the room reaches temperature. Most calculators multiply watts by hours and ignore this, which can overstate a fridge threefold. This one accounts for it, which is why the figures here are lower, and closer to your actual bill.
Common questions
How much does a fridge cost to run in Ghana?
A double-door fridge left on all month uses roughly 50 units, which at the top residential band works out around GH₵160 a month once levies are added. A single-door fridge is closer to half that. The figure moves with how often the door is opened and how hot the room is.
Why is my air conditioner so expensive to run?
A 1.5 HP air conditioner draws around 1,200 watts — roughly sixteen times a television. Run it eight hours a night and it will normally cost more than every other appliance in the house put together.
Does an inverter appliance really save money?
Yes, and the saving is largest on things that run constantly. An inverter fridge or air conditioner varies its compressor speed instead of switching fully on and off, which typically cuts the running cost by a quarter to a third.
Is this the same as my ECG bill?
It is the appliance part of it. Your bill also carries a fixed monthly service charge for the meter, which is charged per household rather than per appliance, so it is not included here.
Read next
- How to reduce your electricity bill in Ghana
- Inverter versus non-inverter appliances
- Appliances that keep bills low
Rates last checked 1 July 2026. PURC reviews tariffs quarterly — if a review has landed since, the figures here will be a little behind.