Bill breakdown estimator
Answer three quick questions. See where your energy money actually goes — heating, cooling, hot water, or everything else — and which fix to start with.
1What are your monthly bills?
Yearly averages are fine. No gas bill? Enter 0.
2What heats your home?
We assume your water heater uses the same fuel — change that in fine-tune if not.
3What's your climate like?
Fine-tune the estimate (optional)
Seasonal bills (sharpen the split)
Home size
Cooling
People at home
Water heater fuel
Your answer
Everything else: about $1,300 a year
Out of roughly $2,880 a year in total energy spend.
Everything else
$1,300 / yr45%
Heating
$760 / yr26%
Cooling
$620 / yr22%
Hot water
$200 / yr7%
Always-on plug loads lead your bill. Start with the audit steps in why your bill is high.
Modeled from typical end-use shares for your climate and fuels — add your hottest/coldest-month bills in fine-tune to sharpen the heating and cooling split. It's an estimate for picking your first project, not a meter. Everything stays in your browser.
How the bill breakdown works
The estimator starts from typical end-use shares for your climate and fuel mix, then reshapes them with your own numbers: the swing between your mildest and most extreme monthly bills reveals how much of your spend is really heating and cooling, while household size anchors the always-on baseline. If the inputs feel unfamiliar, our guide to reading your utility bill shows where each one lives on your statement.
Everything runs in your browser and nothing is stored on our servers. Once you know your biggest category, the matching calculator puts numbers on the fix: the attic insulation calculator for heating, the thermostat savings calculator for schedules, and the tankless vs tank water heater calculator for hot water.
Energy bill questions, answered
What uses the most energy in a home?
In cold climates, heating dominates — often 40% or more of total energy spend — followed by always-on plug loads and appliances, then water heating at roughly 12–18%, with cooling a small slice. In hot climates the ranking flips: cooling takes the biggest share and heating shrinks. That's why this estimator asks for your climate before splitting your bills.
How do I figure out where my electric bill goes?
The trick is seasonal comparison: your mildest-month bill is your baseline (fridge, lights, electronics, hot water), and the extra you pay in January or July on top of it is heating or cooling. This estimator automates that math — enter your average bill, and add your hottest- and coldest-month bills to sharpen the split.
How accurate is a bill breakdown like this?
It's a modeled estimate, not a measurement. The shares start from typical end-use profiles for your climate and fuels, then adjust to your seasonal bills, household size, and equipment. That's plenty of accuracy for its job — deciding which project to tackle first. For measured numbers you'd need a smart meter with disaggregation or an energy audit.
How do I lower the biggest part of my bill?
Match the fix to the category. If heating leads: air sealing and attic insulation first, then look at a heat pump when equipment ages out. If cooling leads: thermostat schedules, shading, and duct sealing. If hot water leads: compare a heat pump water heater against your current tank. If it's 'everything else': hunt always-on loads — old fridges, dehumidifiers, and electronics that never sleep.