If you’re like me, there’s nothing better than a cup of coffee.
Scrap that.
There’s nothing better than a good cup of coffee.
It is why so many of us own home coffee makers like a Keurig. We’re not alone either with a reported 79% of Americans preparing coffee at home!
In fact, I even made my boss buy a Keurig coffee machine to keep the team happy at work.
The one problem with coffee machines is that they can require a lot of power thanks to the heating element. You might be keen to find out the exact wattage a Keurig uses in order to know if it can run on with a particular power system, inverter, or simply to work out the cost of using it.
How Many Watts Does a Keurig Use?
There are many different models of Keurig ranging from a mini machine to a multi-cup maker. That being said, they all require a similar power capacity to heat your drink.
The coffee maker will use the most energy when heating the first time from cold. While heating a Keurig it uses 1500 watts at peak power.
After this, if you leave the machine on it will keep the water hot for up to 2 hours of idle time. During this period it draws between 200 – 400 watts.
Cost of Electricity For a Keurig Coffee Maker
Now we know how many watts a Keurig coffee maker uses we can easily work out the cost of using it.
For the initial heating up and use of the machine, you’ll need a maximum of 1500 watts for 4 minutes. If you calculate that cost at an average energy price of 13 cents per kW it means it will cost you roughly $0.01 (1 cent) to run the machine for a cup of coffee.
If you leave the coffee maker on to keep the water hot from this point onwards you’ll be paying between 3-5 cents per hour.
So realistically, you leave your Kuerig coffee maker on all day (8 hours) it’s going to cost you less than 40 cents! Not too shabby for coffee on demand!
Power Usage Details for Keurig Coffee Makers
| Model | Peak Wattage | Idle Wattage |
| K-Select | 1500 | 200-400 |
| K-Elite | 1470 | 200-400 |
| K-Slim | 1520 | 200-400 |
| K-Cafe | 1470 | 200-400 |
| K-Supreme | 1520 | 200-400 |
| K-Supreme Plus | 1520 | 200-400 |
| K-Express | 1520 | 200-400 |
| K-Duo | 1470 | 200-400 |
| K-Duo Essentials | 1470 | 200-400 |
| K-Latte | 1470 | 200-400 |
| K-Mini | 1470 | 200-400 |
Ways To Save Energy With A Keurig
If you’re worried about how much electricity your Keurig coffee maker is using then there are a number of helpful ways you can reduce the amount of power it draws and the cost.
- Use the power-saving modes. Power saving modes are included with most of the machines. It enables the machine to automatically turn off when not in use. All of the devices can be set to turn off after 2 hours of being idle. Some also have eco-modes you can set to turn off 15 minutes after making your last cup.
- Limit your coffees to a certain time. If you make more than one cup of coffee during a day then try to limit this to a certain time period. For example, this is particularly good with multiple people if you make everyone’s coffee at the same time rather than over a longer period of time. This way you can turn the machine off once you’re finished.
- Unplug when not in use. This is a tip for all electronic appliances! You can save money and power by unplugging a machine when not in use. It stops the device from drawing any power you aren’t aware of. Many modern electronics use power even when switched off to maintain systems like wireless connectivity, clocks, and more.
FAQ About Keurig Coffee Makers
How many watts is a Keurig Mini?
A Keurig Mini still uses a similar amount of power as the bigger coffee makers. A Keurig Mini uses 1470 watts at peak power when heating up.
What size inverter do I need to run a Keurig?
You will need a 2000 watt inverter to run a Keurig coffee maker. This is because Keurig uses 1500 watts peak power to heat up meaning you need a larger power inverter.
Remember to always use a power inverter with 20% more capacity than the load you want to draw as they are not always completely efficient and use power for their own system. That’s why we recommended at least a 2000 watt inverter for coffee machines.
How many amp hours does a Keurig use?
At peak power of around 1500 watts and 120 Volts, a Keurig uses 12.5 amps per hour. This means during the heating stage of 3 minutes you’ll use a maximum of 0.62 amps.
When in idle mode it will draw a maximum of 400 watts and 120 Volts a Keurig uses 3.33 amps per hour.
To find the amps per hour simply divide the wattage by voltage = amps hours
