Do you sometimes wonder which appliances contribute the most to your energy bills? I use a standing desk in my home office, and a few weeks ago, I was curious about their impact on my electricity bill.
So, I did some quick research and a few tests—the results are interesting. In this blog, I’ll show you what factors affect a standing desk's electricity usage and how much they contribute to your energy costs.
Understanding Standing Desks
There are two main types of standing desks: manual and electric.
- Manual standing desks require you to adjust the height manually to transition between sitting and standing positions. They often use a crank to adjust the height and do not use electricity.
- Electric standing desks feature motors that need electricity to change the desk height with a button, providing an effortless way to switch between sitting and standing throughout the workday.
However, electric sit-stand desks are not created equal, and their electric usage depends on the state of the desk. Let's dive deep.
Electricity Consumption of Standing Desks
Electric standing desks consume an average of 200 Watts when the motor is in use, i.e., during height adjustments, and 0.2 Watts when the desk is idle. However, this depends on the desk model and whether you use a single or dual motor.
For example, the Desky Dual Sit Stand Desk has a transformer power of 200 Watts but only 0.1 Watts when on standby. Likewise, the UpDown Pro Desk consumes 1440 Watts when adjusted and zero when idle due to its power-saving mode, which turns off the desk after 15 seconds of non-use.
But while Watts is a measure of power, it doesn't directly translate to your actual electricity consumption. To determine the cost of using your standing desk, you'll need to calculate the energy usage in terms of kilowatt-hours and multiply this by your local electricity rate.
Cost of Running a Sit-Stand Desk
To calculate the energy cost of using your standing desk, use these steps:
- Find the power rating of your standing desk from the product specifications or the user manual. It is measured in watts (W). I’ll use Desky’s for this example.
- Energy usage is measured in kilowatt-hours (kWh). So, we’ll convert the power rating from watts to kilowatts, i.e., divide it by 1000. Then, multiply it by the hours of use each day. Desky has a power rating of 200W, and I use it for 8 hours daily; the energy usage would be (200/1000) x 8 = 1.6 kWh.
- From here, you need to determine your electricity rate. This is the amount you pay for each unit of electricity used, usually listed on your electricity bill. In Melbourne, I pay approximately 25 cents/kWh.
- Finally, we’ll multiply the energy usage by our electricity rate to get the daily cost of using your standing desk. In my case, the daily cost is 1.6 x 0.25 = A$ 0.4.
Note that this calculation assumes that your desk is constantly adjusted, which is rarely true. It also doesn’t consider power surges, standby power, and more. But it should give you a rough estimate of the cost of using your standing desk.
Darren Sherwood
Summary
While electric standing desks consume electricity, their impact on your energy bill is minimal. The electricity consumption primarily occurs during height adjustments, with negligible power usage when the desk is idle.
So, you should reconsider if you’re choosing a manual desk because of electric costs. Electric standing desks offer more convenience and are often insignificant contributors to energy costs.
