Electric Blanket vs Space Heater: Which Is Cheaper to Run?

An electric blanket costs about $0.28 a night against $2.13 for a space heater — 200 W versus 1,500 W for 8 hours at last winter’s US average rate of 17.77¢/kWh.

$0.28blanket, per night

$2.13space heater, per night

7.5×cheaper with the blanket

Updated September 2026 · Source: EIA STEO September 2026, Natural Gas Monthly, SHOPP · EPM Table 5.6.A (July 2026 data) · next: EIA Winter Fuels Outlook Oct 6, weekly SHOPP prices from October

By SolarCostData Data Desk · Reviewed September 2026 · Corrections log

On this page: Calculator Table How we calculated Sources

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Electric blanket watts — typical 80–260 W; nameplate Space heater watts — most plug-in heaters are 1,500 W on high Hours per night Nights Quick-fill your state's EIA average rate Electricity rate (¢ per kWh) — last winter's US average 17.77¢; check your bill

Blanket per night: — vs heater —

Over the nights entered: — blanket · — heater

Saving with the blanket: —

Watts ÷ 1,000 × hours × rate, both devices. Estimate, not a quote.

Electric blanket, per night: $0.28 (200 W × 8 h)
Space heater, per night: $2.13 (1,500 W × 8 h)
Ratio: 7.5× cheaper
30-night gap, US average: $55
Rate basis: 17.77¢/kWh, Oct 2025–Mar 2026 US average
Cheapest cold state: North Dakota

Why this number

An electric blanket is about 7.5 times cheaper to run than a space heater: roughly $0.28 a night against $2.13 for 8 hours at last winter’s US average residential rate of 17.77¢/kWh (a 200 W blanket versus a 1,500 W heater). Over 30 nights the gap is about $55, and it scales with your state’s rate — the table below runs the same night in all 20 cold states. The blanket heats a person; the heater heats a room; the calculator prices both from your wattages, hours and rate.

A space heater and an electric blanket answer different questions — heat the room or heat the person — and the bill difference is the whole story. Both are resistance loads, so the arithmetic is watts × hours × rate with nothing else in it.

Per night in 20 cold states, last winter’s rates

Electric blanket versus space heater cost per 8-hour night and the 30-night difference at each cold state's winter electricity rate
State	Winter rate	Blanket (200 W × 8 h)	Space heater (1,500 W × 8 h)	30-night gap
Alaska	26.11¢	$0.42	$3.13	$81
North Dakota	11.71¢	$0.19	$1.41	$37
Minnesota	15.41¢	$0.25	$1.85	$48
Maine	29.81¢	$0.48	$3.58	$93
Wisconsin	18.39¢	$0.29	$2.21	$57
Montana	13.26¢	$0.21	$1.59	$41
Vermont	23.81¢	$0.38	$2.86	$74
New Hampshire	26.78¢	$0.43	$3.21	$84
South Dakota	13.59¢	$0.22	$1.63	$42
Wyoming	13.55¢	$0.22	$1.63	$42
Michigan	20.11¢	$0.32	$2.41	$63
Idaho	12.38¢	$0.20	$1.49	$39
New York	27.96¢	$0.45	$3.36	$87
Iowa	13.1¢	$0.21	$1.57	$41
Colorado	16.45¢	$0.26	$1.97	$51
Nebraska	12.31¢	$0.20	$1.48	$38
Massachusetts	30.88¢	$0.49	$3.71	$96
Connecticut	28.26¢	$0.45	$3.39	$88
Utah	13.19¢	$0.21	$1.58	$41
Illinois	17.86¢	$0.29	$2.14	$56

The ratio is the same everywhere (7.5× on the default wattages); the dollars scale with the rate, from the cheapest cold state to the dearest. A heater with a thermostat cycles and costs less than the full-output figure; a blanket on a low setting does the same. The winter heating hub puts whole-house resistance heat against gas, propane, oil and a heat pump on the per-MMBtu basis where it loses badly — which is why a blanket for one person beats heating a whole room with strips.

Frequently asked questions

Is an electric blanket cheaper than a space heater?

Yes, by about 7.5 times on the default wattages: a 200 W blanket costs roughly $0.28 for an 8-hour night at 17.77¢/kWh, a 1,500 W space heater about $2.13. The blanket only warms the bed, so the fair question is whether you need the room warm or just yourself — if it is just you, the blanket wins everywhere in the table.

How much does it cost to run a space heater all night?

About $2.13 at 17.77¢/kWh for 8 hours at full 1,500 W output; a thermostat-controlled heater that cycles at half duty costs about half that. State rates move it: $1.41 in the cheapest cold state, $3.71 in the most expensive.

Are electric blankets safe to leave on all night?

This page prices them; it does not certify them. Follow the maker’s instructions on overnight use and replace a blanket with worn wiring — the cost difference is not worth a fire risk.

How we calculated this

Cost per night = watts ÷ 1,000 × hours × rate ($/kWh) for each device; the 30-night gap is (heater watts − blanket watts) ÷ 1,000 × hours × 30 × rate. Default wattages are the typical figures used on this site’s cost-to-run pages (electric blanket 200 W, typical range 80–260 W; space heater 1,500 W); state rates are EIA Electric Power Monthly averages over October 2025–March 2026.

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.

Where to go next

Cost to run an electric blanket — The blanket on its own: wattage range, sourced benchmark, monthly figure.
Cost to run a space heater — The heater on its own, with the duty-cycle assumptions explained.
Winter heating cost hub — Whole-house heating per MMBtu — where a space heater sits against gas, propane, oil and a heat pump.
Electric vs gas heat cost — Why resistance heat loses to gas by a wide margin when it has to heat the whole house.
Christmas lights electricity cost — The other December question, answered the same way.