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How Much Does It Cost to Run a NAS (Home Server)? $4/Month

Running a home NAS at 35.5 watts for 24 hours a day costs about $0.14 a day and $4.40 a month at 17¢/kWh, the EIA 2025 annual US average (July 2026 monthly: 18.31¢) — roughly $53 a year.

35.5 W (4.4–35.5 W)Typical power draw
24 h/day, 30.4 days/monthAssumed use
0.85 kWhEnergy per day

· Source: EIA Electric Power Monthly Table 5.6.A (July 2026 data) · next EIA update ~Oct 23

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a home NAS: energy cost only (35.5 W ÷ 1,000 × hours × rate); fixed fees and taxes extra.
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Slider nudges the rate for a home NAS; the URL keeps it.

## How much does it cost to run a home NAS?

The same a home NAS at 24 hours a day costs $3.11 a month at 12¢ and $11.66 at 45¢ — usage held constant, only the rate moving:

Table 1: How Much Does It Cost to Run a NAS (Home Server)? $4/Month
Electricity rate Per hour Per day Per month Per year
12¢/kWh $0.004 $0.10 $3.11 $37
15¢/kWh $0.005 $0.13 $3.89 $47
17¢/kWh (US avg) $0.006 $0.14 $4.40 $53
20¢/kWh $0.007 $0.17 $5.18 $62
25¢/kWh $0.009 $0.21 $6.48 $78
30¢/kWh $0.011 $0.26 $7.77 $93
35¢/kWh $0.012 $0.30 $9.07 $109
45¢/kWh $0.016 $0.38 $11.66 $140
Typical power draw
35.5 W (4.4–35.5 W)
Assumed use
24 h/day, 30.4 days/month
Energy per day
0.85 kWh
Cost per day
$0.14
Cost per month
$4.40
Cost per year
$53

Why this number

Running a home NAS at 35.5 watts for 24 hours a day costs about $0.14 a day and $4.40 a month at 17¢/kWh, the EIA 2025 annual US average (July 2026 monthly: 18.31¢) — roughly $53 a year. The formula for a home NAS: 35.5 W ÷ 1,000 × hours × your rate per kWh. For a home NAS your own rate changes the answer: at 12¢/kWh that month costs $3.11, at 45¢/kWh it costs $11.66.

A home NAS rated at 35.5 watts, run 24 hours a day, costs about $0.14 a day — about $4.40 a month, or $53 a year — at the US average electricity rate of 17¢/kWh. That places it 24th of the 40 appliances tracked here, near the bottom. It is not where a high bill comes from, and switching it off will not rescue one.

What actually drives this number

Always-on is the whole point of a NAS, so the duty cycle is 24/7 by definition — the only question is the wattage. Synology’s own spec sheets put a 4-bay DS923+ at 35.51 W with drives active and 11.52 W in HDD hibernation, and a 2-bay DS224+ at 14.69 W / 4.41 W. The figure above is the conservative case — a 4-bay that never sleeps. Enable drive hibernation and a lightly-used box drops by roughly two-thirds during idle hours; a 2-bay runs closer to 129 kWh a year. Compare the Wi-Fi router , the other appliance that never turns off.

For a home NAS the unit that matters is the kilowatt-hour, not the kilowatt : 35.5 W is only the rate of use, and 24 hours a day is what turns it into the 311 kWh a year you are actually billed for. On that yearly measure its nearest always-on neighbor is the humidifier at about 300 kWh.

Where this number comes from

Putting NAS (home server) in proportion

At 17¢/kWh, a home NAS next to the rest of the bill:

For a home NAS: consumer electronics look power-hungry on the label and rarely are on the bill, because they run for hours rather than around the clock and spend much of that time well below their rated draw. On this site’s own numbers, a home NAS lands at #24 of 40 on the monthly-cost ranking, at about $4.40 for a typical month.

The formula, in full

The 35.5 W arithmetic for a home NAS, step by step:

  1. Watts to kilowatts. 35.5 W ÷ 1,000 = 0.04 kW.
  2. Energy per day. 0.04 kW × 24 hours = 0.85 kWh.
  3. Cost per day. 0.85 kWh × $0.17 = $0.14.
  4. Cost per month. $0.14 × 30.4 days = $4.40.

For a home NAS the two levers are run-hours (24 h/day here) and your rate; at 24 hours a day, 35.5 W adds up — which is why consumer electronics dominate the rankings.

Other electronics: Treadmill ($62/yr), 65-inch LED TV ($31/yr), CPAP machine ($11/yr). Closest on annual cost: Humidifier ($51/yr), Chest freezer ($51/yr). Across all other electronics here, the priciest is Gaming PC at $16.32/mo.

The a home NAS table above runs a fixed rate ladder (12–45¢); the state quick-fill uses July 2026 averages from EIA Electric Power Monthly, Table 5.6.A .

Put a home NAS ($4.40 a month) against everything else in the electricity cost calculator , check your state’s rate , or browse all 40 appliances ; year-round high bills: solar savings calculator .

Frequently asked questions

How much does it cost to run a home NAS per hour?

About $0.006 an hour for a home NAS at 17¢/kWh, the EIA 2025 annual US average (July 2026 monthly: 18.31¢), for a 35.5 W unit. The calculation is 35.5 ÷ 1,000 × 1 hour × $0.17 per kWh. At 30¢/kWh the same hour costs $0.011.

How much does a home NAS add to my monthly bill?

Roughly $4.40 a month for a home NAS at 24 hours a day, 30.4 days a month, 17¢/kWh. That is about $53 a year if you use it that much year-round. For a home NAS, change the 24-hour default to your own use — run-time moves the total as much as the 35.5 W does.

How many watts does a home NAS use?

Typically around 35.5 W, with real units ranging from about 4.4 to 35.5 W depending on size, model and setting. The nameplate on your own unit is the figure to trust — these are typical values for planning, not a measurement of your appliance.

Why is my actual bill higher than the a home NAS figure?

$4.40 a month is the energy cost of a home NAS alone; your bill adds fixed connection charges, delivery fees, taxes and every other load. Add the other appliances in the index to a home NAS for the controllable part of the bill.

How we calculated this

Worked for a home NAS: 35.5 W ÷ 1,000 × 24 h × $0.17 = $0.14 a day; × 30.4 days = $4.40 a month; × 12 months in use = $53 a year. 35.5 W and 24 h are the typical figures cited for a home NAS; 17¢ is EIA’s 2025 annual US average.

Sources: U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) electricity rates · DSIRE incentive records · public IRS/OBBBA guidance. Figures are modeled estimates, not quotes or tax advice. See our methodology.

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