What Standby Power Actually Costs
Launch library · evergreen read
Many household devices continue drawing a small amount of electricity even when switched off but still plugged in, a phenomenon commonly called standby power, used to keep clocks running, remote sensors active or the device ready for a quick restart the moment it is needed again, rather than a full cold start.
Individually, standby draw from a single device is usually tiny, but a typical household contains many such devices simultaneously, from televisions and game consoles to chargers and kitchen appliances, and this collective draw can add up to a noticeable, if often overlooked, share of a household's total electricity bill each quarter.
Switching devices off at the power point, or using a power board with a physical switch for groups of rarely used devices, is a simple way to eliminate this ongoing draw entirely, at the minor cost of devices taking slightly longer to power up again when they are actually needed.