These appliances continue to be underrated pieces of equipment. They’re so much more versatile than you think, you can do much more than inflate things in a hurry. You can drive power tools, paint your home, or even create a snow blowing machine! The only thing you need to think about when using your compressor regularly is the power consumption.
Below we will discuss and test air compressor wattage, explain how to work it out for yourself, and calculate the total electricity required.
How Many Watts is a Compressor?
The average air compressor uses between 1000 and 2000 watts.
The exact number depends on the size and model of your air compressor. For example, a machine smaller than 1.5HP uses 1000W or less. While compressors with larger motors can draw 2000W and more!
You’ll find a huge range in power and size of air compressors on the market, from mini silent machines to monstrous professional options. As you can imagine, this means the wattage varies a large amount. The power consumption is directly related to the size of the internal motor. The larger the motor the higher the power draw.
How to Find Out Your Air Compressor Wattage
There’s 3 ways you can work out the wattage of an air compressor.
- Check Product Specification
The quickest way is to look at the air compressor’s specifications. The watts (W) is usually written on a sticker on the base of the appliance. If not, you can check the user manual or the manufacturer’s website for technical details.
- Use a Wattmeter
A wattmeter is brilliant for getting a live wattage reading and tracking total energy usage of any appliance. You can simply plug it into your air compressor to get instant information.
I used one to test an air compressor which gave a live reading of 1296W.
- Wattage Formula or Calculator
If you know the amperage and voltage of your air compressor you can use this to find the maximum watt rating. Simply use the formula Amps x Volts = Watts. Or you can head over to the ‘Watt Calculator’ to work this out.
Air Compressor Wattage Examples
Let’s take a look at specific examples of how many watts a air compressor draws. Below is a collection of modern air compressors with their listed power ratings.
| Compressor Model | Power Rating (Watts) |
| Einhell 1.6hp 24L Oil Free Compressor | 1200 |
| SGS 50 litre high flow air compressor | 1500 |
| SIP ProTech OL197/10RC | 1100 |
| SIP Airmate Hurricane V300/100 10cfm | 1800 |
| Airmaster Tiger 3HP Air Compressor | 2200 |
| Clarke Shhh Air 1.38HP Compressor | 1020 |
| Clarke Shhh Air 0.92HP Quiet Run Compressor | 680 |
As you can see, the power ratings vary between different air compressors. So you should take the time to check your own appliance.
How Much Electricity Does a Compressor Use?
You can use air compressor wattage to work out how much electricity it uses. Plus this can be useful in understanding how much it costs to run your air compressor.
A watt (W) is a measurement of power at a single point in time. A watt-hour (Wh) is the total amount of electricity used in an hour. For example, an air compressor drawing 1500W would use 1500Wh when running for an hour.
Happily, electricity bills are recorded in kilowatt-hours (kWh). A kilowatt is simply 1000 watts. So a 1500W air compressor running for 1 hour uses 1.5kWh.
Let’s say you run your compressor for 2 hours a month. This means an average air compressor uses about 3000Wh or 3kWh electricity a month. That’s 36kWh a year.
That’s an electricity cost of $5.40 a year to run a mid sized compressor for 2 hours every month.
Of course, this number varies depending on your usage habits. Casual DIYers might use it a lot less, while professionals will have heavier usage.
Using a Compressor Off-Grid
Thinking about using your air compressor in a remote location or away from the utility grid? The information above is critical in order to select the correct electrical equipment and work out runtime.
You can either use a power inverter, portable power station, or generator to produce AC electricity.
To make sure everything runs smoothly you should check two things on this equipment – wattage capacity and total energy capacity.
Your power source, like an inverter, should have a wattage capacity of at least 20% more than your air compressor. This ensures it will be able to deliver enough power as they are never 100% efficient. To inflate, paint, and more, you will need at least 2000W of power capacity. This should run a small to mid sized machine, you might need 3000W for professional jobs.
Secondly, you need to ensure your energy source, like a battery, has enough energy to run the compressor for the required amount of time. As we already know, it will use about 1500Wh electricity for 1 hours usage. This is the equivalent to 125Ah on a 12V battery!
If you’re running off battery power you might consider the smallest machine possible or consider a generator for larger requirements.
How Many Watts Does a Compressor Use Summary
I hope you now understand how many watts an air compressor uses.
It is clear that these are very high powered machines. It requires a decent amount of juice to drive a motor and compress air. If you’re trying to run off-grid from an inverter then you’ll need to be prepared with plenty of running capacity. Adding to this, if you use your equipment regularly around the home then you’ll notice an increase in electricity usage to complete your tasks.
