10 Ways To Save Electricity at Home (And Lower Your Power Bill)

Saving electricity at home starts with the choices you make every day. Small habit changes, more innovative appliance use, and in electricity deregulated areas a better rate plan can work together to reduce your monthly bill without sacrificing comfort.

This guide walks through ten practical, homeowner-friendly ways to cut electricity use by focusing on your largest loads: heating and cooling, water heating, lighting, major appliances, and everyday habits. If you live in a deregulated area, you will also see how Power Wizard can help you pair these savings with an electricity plan that actually rewards your efforts.

Before you buy anything, you can begin cutting electricity use simply by changing a few daily habits:

• Turn off unnecessary lights when you leave a room.
• Unplug or power down electronics that are not in use, especially in bedrooms and home offices.
• Run only full loads in your dishwasher and washing machine.
• Use cold water to wash your clothes.
• Hang-dry clothes when possible to reduce dryer use.
• Adjust your thermostat a few degrees when you are asleep or away from home.
• Close blinds or curtains during peak summer heat, and open them in winter to let the sun in for comfort.

• None = $0
• Low = $
• Medium = $$

Heating and cooling are often the largest line item on a home’s energy profile. Programmable and smart thermostats help you automatically adjust temperatures based on time of day and occupancy, rather than relying on manual changes.

How a Programmable or Smart Thermostat Saves Electricity

A standard thermostat only changes temperature when you remember to adjust it. A programmable or smart thermostat can:

• Follow pre-set schedules (for example, higher temperature when you are at work in summer, lower temperature before you arrive home).
• Automatically learn your patterns and optimize settings over time.
• Allow remote control via smartphone when you are away.
• Provide real-time usage data so you can see when your system runs the most.

According to the Environmental Protection Agency, ENRGY-STAR® smart thermostats save homeowners an average of 8% (or $50) per year on their electricity bill.

Practical Tips

• In summer, set the AC a few degrees higher when you are away, and program it to return to your preferred temperature shortly before you get home.
• In winter, let your home cool overnight and warm back up before you wake.
• Use “eco” or “away” modes when you travel instead of leaving the system at standard settings.

Water heating is one of the largest energy uses in a typical home, generally accounting for roughly 13 to 18 percent of energy consumption and ranking among the top three residential energy loads. Most water heaters are set at a factory default of around 140°F. For many households, this is higher than necessary.

How Adjusting Your Water Heater Saves Electricity

Lowering the thermostat on your water heater reduces the energy needed to maintain a hot water temperature throughout the day. To save money, you can:

• Reduce the setpoint from about 140°F to around 120°F for most homes, unless higher temperatures are required for specific health or appliance needs.
• Insulate your tank and hot water pipes where accessible to limit heat loss.
• Consider high-efficiency fixtures, such as low-flow showerheads, faucet aerators, and hot-water recirculation kits.

You can also evaluate whether a tankless or ENERGY STAR® certified water heater would make sense at replacement time, as these technologies offer improved efficiency compared to older standard tank models.

Your refrigerator runs 24 hours a day, so small inefficiencies add up quickly. Even if a new high-efficiency refrigerator is not in the budget right now, better habits and simple maintenance can reduce its electricity use.

How Refrigerator Efficiency Saves Electricity

Focus on the following best practices:

• Keep the doors closed as much as possible. Keeping the door open allows cold air to escape and warm air to enter, so the compressor must work harder to bring the temperature back down.
• Let leftovers cool before refrigerating so the unit does not need to remove as much heat.
• Set appropriate temperatures:
  • Refrigerator: approximately 35°F to 38°F
  • Freezer: approximately 0°F
• Clean condenser coils at least once a year to remove dust and debris that reduces efficiency.
• Inspect and maintain door seals. Worn or cracked gaskets let warm air in and cool air out, forcing the compressor to cycle more frequently.

When you eventually upgrade, look for an ENERGY STAR® certified refrigerator and recycle the old one.

Turning off lights when leaving a room seems simple, yet it is one of the most overlooked ways to save electricity, especially in homes that still use some incandescent or halogen bulbs.

Why Turning Off Lights Matters

Traditional incandescent bulbs are highly inefficient. About 90 percent of the energy they use is emitted as heat rather than light, meaning only about 10 percent is converted into functional illumination.

When you turn off lights that are not needed:

• You avoid paying for wasted heat and light.
• You reduce unwanted heat gain in the room, which is particularly important when your air conditioner is running.
• You extend bulb life by reducing operating hours.

Practical Tips

• Make it a habit to switch off lights when leaving any room, even for a short time.
• In shared spaces, add small reminders to shut off lights near switches if family members or roommates frequently forget.
• Consider occupancy sensors in spaces like closets, hallways, or garages where lights are often left on by accident.

LED (light-emitting diode) bulbs have become the standard for efficient lighting in homes and businesses. Upgrading to LEDs is one of the simplest ways to reduce electricity use without changing your daily routine.

How LED Bulbs Save Electricity

Modern LED bulbs:

• Use up to roughly 75 to 90 percent less energy than traditional incandescent bulbs that deliver similar light output.
• Last significantly longer, often several times longer than incandescent and compact fluorescent (CFL) bulbs.
• Reach full brightness instantly, with minimal warm-up period.
• Generate far less heat, which helps reduce cooling loads in warm climates.

Practical Tips

• Replace the most frequently used bulbs first, such as in kitchens, family rooms, and exterior fixtures.
• Choose LEDs with an appropriate color temperature:
  • Around 2700K–3000K for warm, soft light.
  • Around 4000K–5000K for cooler, task-oriented spaces.
• Check the packaging to confirm dimmable compatibility when using dimmer switches.

Dimmer switches give you control over both the mood and energy use of your lighting. When used with compatible bulbs, dimmers can reduce wattage and extend bulb life.

How Dimmers Reduce Electricity Use

By lowering light output when full brightness is unnecessary, dimmers:

• Reduce the power draw of each fixture during dimmed operation.
• Let you customize brightness based on the time of day and activity.
• It can extend the useful life of bulbs by operating them at lower output for many hours.

Practical Tips

• Pair dimmers with dimmable LEDs for the best combination of comfort and savings.
• Use dimmers in rooms where lighting needs vary, such as living rooms, dining rooms, and bedrooms.
• If you plan to keep a room dim most of the time, consider using a lower-wattage bulb plus a dimmer, rather than a higher-wattage bulb that is always heavily dimmed.

Many devices continue to draw power even when turned “off” or in standby mode. These “vampire” or “phantom” loads include televisions, game consoles, chargers, printers, and many other electronics. Smart plugs and smart power strips help you control this always-on consumption.

How Smart Plugs and Smart Power Strips Save Electricity

Smart plugs connect to your Wi-Fi network and let you switch appliances on or off from your phone or via schedules and automations. Smart power strips can cut off selected outlets using a timer, disable outlets when no activity is detected, and use a master-controlled outlet to power down peripheral devices (such as sound systems or gaming consoles) when the primary device (such as a TV) is off.

By cutting power to devices that are not actively in use, these tools prevent wasted standby consumption and give you clearer visibility into your actual usage.

Practical Tips

• Use smart plugs for items such as space heaters, window units, lamps, or coffee makers to avoid accidentally leaving them on.
• Use advanced power strips for entertainment centers and home office setups with multiple electronics.
• Group devices logically so that a single action turns off several non-essential loads at once.

Long, hot showers feel relaxing, but they also require your water heater to work harder. Reducing shower length can significantly cut hot water use, thereby reducing the energy needed to heat it.

How Shorter Showers Reduce Electricity Use

Because water heating typically represents a meaningful share of home energy consumption, every gallon of hot water you avoid heating helps lower your bill. To save money:

• Aim to shorten shower time by a few minutes.
• Consider installing a low-flow showerhead that maintains comfort while reducing water volume.
• Avoid running the shower for extended periods before you step in.

Laundry is another area where both water heating and electric motors can consume substantial energy. Clothes washers and dryers together account for roughly 10 percent of residential energy use, and 75 percent or more of the energy for a warm-water wash can go just to heating the water.

Laundry Habits that Save Electricity

Adopt the following habits to reduce the cost of clean clothes:

• Wash with cold water whenever possible to avoid the energy required to heat water. Many detergents are formulated to perform well in cold water, and most everyday loads do not require hot water for effective cleaning.
• Your washer uses about the same amount of electricity per cycle regardless of load size. Running full loads reduces the number of cycles per week, lowering overall energy use.
• Dryers are energy-intensive. Using indoor racks or outdoor clotheslines to air-dry clothes, even occasionally, can reduce dryer runtime.
• Avoid over-drying. Use moisture sensors or timed cycles that stop as soon as clothes are dry enough to fold, rather than running “extra” for peace of mind.

Taking advantage of natural daylight reduces the need for artificial lighting and can also help control indoor temperatures when used thoughtfully.

How Natural Light Saves Electricity

Daylighting strategies, especially when combined with simple controls, can reduce energy use for electric lighting by 20 percent or more in many buildings.

Consider these tips:

• Open blinds and curtains during the day on north- and south-facing windows to bring in balanced light without excessive heat.
• In hot summers, limit direct afternoon sun on west-facing windows by using shades, curtains, or reflective films to reduce the cooling load.
• If you are remodeling or building, consider skylights or solar tubes (highly reflective tubes that carry natural light from a roof-mount) in dark interior spaces, and work with professionals to balance daylight with thermal performance.
• Pair natural light with dimmer switches or daylight sensors to automatically reduce electric lighting when daylight levels are sufficient.

Used correctly, natural light can improve comfort and mood while lowering both lighting and HVAC energy use.

In deregulated states, you are responsible for both how much electricity you use and which retail provider you choose. That means:

• Your usage habits drive how many kilowatt-hours you consume.
• Your plan structure and rate determine how much you pay for those kilowatt-hours.
• Fees, minimum usage thresholds, and contract terms can erase some of the savings you create by using less energy.

Managing your electricity use is essential everywhere, and it is a direct way to control a bill that can spike during long, hot summers and cold snaps. Combining everyday efficiency with the right electricity plan gives you control on both sides of the bill: usage and price.

Implementing the ten strategies above reduces the total amount of electricity your home consumes. However, if you live in a deregulated area, the maximum possible dollar savings you see also depend on the structure of your electricity plan. Common plan issues that can limit or hide your savings include:

• Minimum usage fees that penalize you for using “too little” power under certain thresholds.
• Tiered rates where prices change significantly when you cross specific kilowatt-hour bands.
• Time-of-use or demand-based plans, where your bill depends heavily on when and how intensely you use energy.
• Bill credit plans that lose their main benefit if you don’t use a specific amount of electricity.

If you have invested in efficiency and your bill has not dropped as much as expected, you may be on a plan that is poorly matched to your home and usage patterns.

Power Wizard can help your energy-saving efforts translate into actual bill reductions. Just enter your ZIP code into our smart comparison tool to instantly view dozens of electricity providers, plans, and rates in your area.