Mid-range PC8.7p
High-end PC17p
Monitor1.1p
Your region
Cost per hour of gaming at 26.32p per kWh (UK average), the live standard variable rate since 1 October 2026.
The short answer
A gaming PC's power use depends mostly on its graphics card. As a rough guide:
| PC type | Watts at the wall while gaming | Per hour | Per month (3 hrs/day) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mid-range (RTX 4060–5070 class) | 300–350 W (our estimate) | 8.7p | £7.93 |
| High-end (RTX 4090–5090 class) | 550–750 W | 17p | £15.61 |
| Add a monitor | about 40 W | 1.1p | 96p |
Testing by Evetech found a top-end RTX 5090 system typically draws 550 to 750 watts from the wall while gaming. That's around three times a PS5.
Why the number varies so much
- The graphics card. This is the biggest power user by far. A top-end card alone can be rated at over 500 watts.
- Frame rate. Running a game at 200+ frames per second makes the card work flat out. Capping your frame rate to your monitor's refresh rate can cut power use noticeably.
- What you're doing. A PC sitting on the desktop uses far less, often 80 to 150 watts on a high-end system.
Want your exact figure?
A plug-in energy monitor, which sits between the wall socket and your PC, shows exactly how many watts it uses. Type that into the calculator for a precise cost. For ways to bring it down, see how to cut your gaming electricity costs.
Sources: Evetech, Octopus Energy tariff data.