The math on LED bulbs stopped being debatable a few years ago, but most people still have not actually run the numbers on their own home. Here is what switching really costs, and saves, once you account for both the electricity and the bulb itself.
The Per-Bulb Math
A standard 60-watt incandescent bulb produces the same light output as a 9 to 10-watt LED. Run either one for 3 hours a day at the current US average residential rate of roughly 18.5 cents per kWh, and the incandescent costs about $10 a year in electricity alone, while the LED costs closer to $1.50 to $2. That is before counting bulb replacements: an incandescent lasts around 1,000 hours, so it needs replacing roughly once a year at that usage rate, while a decent LED is rated for 15,000 to 25,000 hours, which works out to 15 to 20+ years at the same daily use.
Use our LED Bulb Savings Calculator to plug in your own bulb count and usage instead of relying on the average.
Whole-Home Numbers
The savings look modest per bulb, but they compound fast across a real house. A home with 20 to 30 bulbs switched from incandescent to LED typically saves somewhere in the $150 to $300 range per year on electricity alone, before factoring in the avoided cost of buying replacement incandescent bulbs multiple times over that same period.
Payback Period
LED bulbs now typically cost $2 to $8 each, only a few dollars more than incandescent. Given the per-bulb annual savings, most LED bulbs pay back their extra upfront cost in well under a year, often within a few months for bulbs used several hours a day. For rooms or fixtures that are barely used, like a rarely-opened closet, the payback period stretches out significantly since there is little electricity being saved to offset the higher purchase price. It is a reasonable place to keep using an existing incandescent until it burns out rather than replacing it early.
What to Actually Buy
Look for ENERGY STAR certification, which verifies the efficiency and lifespan claims on the box rather than taking a manufacturer’s word for it. For living spaces, a warm white color temperature in the 2,700K to 3,000K range with a CRI of 90 or higher will most closely match the light quality people associate with incandescent bulbs, so you are not trading a lower bill for light that feels colder or harsher.
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Last Updated: August 2026
