Brits with video games consoles to face £15.48 annual cost from subsequent month
From April 1, the energy price cap will come down, reducing console gaming costs from £17.40 to around £15.48 per year – and it’s worth knowing exactly how much you’re spending
The energy price cap is changing on April 1, lowering the cost of running a games console.(Image: Getty)
From the start of next month, games consoles could be costing UK households around £15 a year, according to our estimates. From April 1, individuals in England, Wales, and Scotland on a standard variable tariff, who pay for their electricity via Direct Debit, will be charged an average of 24.67p per kilowatt hour (kWh).
That’s a 7% decrease from the current price cap of 27.69p per kWh, with Ofgem attributing the drop primarily to government budget interventions. This means your electricity bills will soon be lower, but your appliances will continue to accumulate surprisingly large amounts over the year.
Since games consoles entered the mass market in the 1970s, video gaming has evolved into a multi-billion-pound industry.
Tens of millions of households own a console, and gaming has become a popular form of entertainment across all age groups. They’re not cheap, with most models ranging from roughly £240 for the original Nintendo Switch console to £730 for the PlayStation 5 Pro.
However, considering how frequently they’re used nowadays, it’s also worth considering their impact on your energy bill, reports the Express. Consumer research for Q4 2024, released early last year by digital intelligence platform MIDiA, discovered that console gamers spend an average of 10 hours gaming per week. That equates to about 1 hour and 26 minutes per day.
The figure is based on respondents from various countries, including the UK, the US, Australia, Canada, Germany, France, Sweden, South Korea, and Brazil.
Whilst gaming habits will vary across countries, it provides a rough estimate of how much people are playing and the impact of consoles on electricity bills annually.
Citizens Advice’s cost calculator indicates that, based on this level of usage, your games console could be adding £17.40 to your energy bill over 12 months under the current cap (27.69p per kWh).
This means it’s currently costing you approximately 5p per day, 33p per week, and £1.45 if you’re using it for an hour and 26 minutes daily.
From 1st April, when the cap decreases, costs over 12 months will fall to around £15.48 per year for that playtime, according to the calculator. This equates to 4p per day, 30p per week, or £1.29 per month.
This assumes that the console is actively in use, but costs will be higher if they’re on standby or charging your controller.
The estimate applies to England, Scotland, and Wales, and Citizens Advice points out that it’s calculated using “the rate you pay for electricity or the national average rate and the amount of electricity each appliance uses”.
Actual usage will depend on how frequently you use your console and will differ between devices.
Moreover, whilst the estimates provide an illustrative understanding of the costs the cap represents over an extended period, the maximum limit on unit rates and standard charges is reviewed by the regulator every 3 months and doesn’t remain fixed for a full year.
Meanwhile, the standing charge will see a minor increase from its current 54.75p level to 57.21p per day. The price cap set for April 1 will remain in effect until June 30, with the next cap level due to be announced on May 27.
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