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 PS5 uses about 210 watts while gaming. A Switch 2 docked to a TV uses about 18 watts, according to ChargerLab's measurements. That makes the PS5 more than ten times as expensive to run, before you count the TV.
| PS5 | Switch 2 (docked) | |
|---|---|---|
| Watts while gaming | about 210 W | about 18 W |
| Per hour | 5.5p | 0.5p |
| Per month (3 hrs/day) | £5.04 | 43p |
| Per year (3 hrs/day) | £60.52 | £5.19 |
| Per year with a 100 W TV | £89.34 | £34.01 |
The TV changes the picture
Once you add a typical 100-watt TV, the PS5 setup costs 8.2p an hour and the Switch 2 setup 3.1p. The PS5 still costs more than twice as much, but the difference shrinks a lot, because the TV is now the biggest cost for the Switch.
Play the Switch 2 in handheld mode and the TV disappears from the bill completely. You're just recharging a small battery, which costs pennies.
Does it matter?
At 3 hours a day, choosing a Switch 2 over a PS5 saves roughly £55.34 a year in electricity. That's real, but much less than the price of a game or two. Pick the console for the games you want to play. If running costs matter to you, the bigger savings come from your TV settings and from avoiding rest mode.
See the full PS5 costs, the Switch 2 costs and what your TV costs.
Sources: Digital Foundry via Notebookcheck, ChargerLab, Octopus Energy tariff data.