Is it cheaper to boil water in a kettle, microwave or on the hob?

The cost of living crisis is continuing to cause a strain on many households up and down the country as Brits look for creative ways to cut their costs.

Whether it's learning how to save money on fuel or your next supermarket shop, we have been rounding up our best saving tips to help your money go further this winter. 

We've looked at everything from the exact time you should be using your washing machine to save money to how much it costs to run an air fryer and if it's value for money.

By making small changes in how we use our appliances at home everyday, we can end up saving a small fortune in the long run. 

These small changes boil down (sorry) to things as simple as how we boil water for our morning cuppa. 

For many Brits, turning on the kettle is the go-to. It's quick, efficient and can basically be done with our eyes closed (which is handy in the morning - although, we don't recommend it!)

But have you ever wondered how much it is actually costing you to boil your brew this way? Could you save money by trying another method?

We put this important question to Kevin Mountford, co-founder and consumer expert at savings platform Raisin UK.

How much does it cost to boil a kettle?

Mr Mountford explained: “The average energy consumption of a kettle is around 3,000 watts. Until the end of the year, the price cap set by regulator Ofgem is 27.35 pence per kWh, however, from 1st January this will increase to 28.62 pence per kWh.

"It costs 82p to use your kettle, but this will soon increase to 85.8p! Kettles can be quite expensive to run due to their fast boiling time, however, to help cut down on the energy consumption of your kettle, only fill the kettle with the water you actually need.

"The less water in the kettle, the less hard it has to work to boil the water".

How much does it cost to boil water on an electric hob?

The consumer expert noted that although electric hobs can also be used to boil water, they may take longer to heat.

He added: "The majority of electric hobs have an energy consumption of around 1,500 watts, meaning it costs 41p to use your hob to boil water, soon to be 42.9p".

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How much does it cost to boil water in the microwave?

“The average microwave uses just 1,000 watts, making it the most energy-efficient device and therefore the cheapest at just 27.3p to use (or 28.6p from 1st January)," according to the Raisin UK co-founder.

He added: "Using this theory, over a year, using your microwave over your kettle could save you around £208.78”