July 23, 2018

Air conditioning accounts for about 12% of U.S. home energy expenditures

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Air-conditioning equipment is used in 87% of homes in the United States and, according to the latest EIA Residential Energy Consumption Survey (RECS), home air-conditioning costs averaged $265 in 2015, or 12% of total home energy expenditures. Air-conditioning costs ranged from an average of $525 in the hot-humid region in the Southeast to about $60 in the temperate marine region along the West Coast. The more moderate mixed-humid region, where home air-conditioning costs averaged $262, was closest to the national average.

The average U.S. household spent $1,856 on home energy bills in 2015. Although air conditioning accounted for 12% of total household energy costs (and 17% of electricity expenditures) at the national level, some regions use much more air conditioning. In the hot-humid region, where air conditioning was used by 94% of households, air conditioning made up 27% of home energy expenditures. By comparison, in the marine region, where nearly half of households did not use air conditioning at all, air conditioning made up just 2% of home energy expenditures.

About 60% of U.S. households only used central air-conditioning systems in 2015, while 23% only used individual air-conditioning units and just slightly less than 5% of households used both equipment types. Central systems are very common in new single-family homes, but many older homes have also been retrofitted in recent years. For example, the 1980 and 1993 RECS found that about 50% of homes built in the 1970s had central air-conditioning equipment, but by 2015 that share had increased to 67%.

Households with individual units typically only air condition a few rooms or spaces within a home. On average, a home that uses individual air-conditioning units has two window, wall, or portable units. Individual units are relatively more common in smaller housing units such as apartments and mobile homes.

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Households that used central systems spent about twice as much for air conditioning in 2015 as households with individual units, with average costs of $299 compared with $156. However, because the homes using central systems were often larger, the cost per square foot of using an individual air-conditioning unit was about twice as much as using a central system, at $0.31 per square foot compared with $0.15 per square foot.

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The 2015 RECS data includes estimates for a larger number of end uses than in previous RECS surveys, allowing for a broader understanding of household energy use. Some households stay comfortable in the summer by using evaporative coolers, dehumidifiers, or ceiling fans instead of or in addition to air-conditioning equipment, and in 2015, households using these devices spent $161, $128, and $36 on average to operate them, respectively. In addition, households using central air conditioning spent an estimated $16 annually to circulate their cooled air through air handlers.

Detailed information about household energy usage and costs can be found in the RECS Consumption & Expenditures data tables.

Principal contributor: Danni Mayclin