How Much Less Energy Does Nintendo Switch Use Than Xbox And PS5?

It’s a good idea to check your game consoles and other devices. A major British energy company recently called them “energy vampires” because they continue to use power even when turned off. If you live in an area with high energy costs, or want to save money and help the environment, consider switching them off completely when not in use.

With the rising cost of living, many people are looking for ways to save money. One place to start is with your game consoles and other devices that stay connected to the internet. Are they using more energy than necessary with features like instant-on or sleep modes? Do you know how much these devices are adding to your monthly electricity bill? We can help! Check out our article for tips on reducing your energy consumption and saving money without interrupting your gaming experience.

How Much Electricity Does A Nintendo Switch, Microsoft Xbox, Or Sony Playstation Use?

Here’s a breakdown of estimated energy usage for different gaming consoles, including the Nintendo Switch, PlayStation, and Xbox. We’ve included both hourly and weekly estimates to help you compare.

A few preliminary remarks:

NVIDIA’s Shield TV (Base Model)

The cost of docked applications’ energy use is estimated to be $1 per hour and $36 per week.

Have fun 7-11 W
£0.01 £0.08 (2 hours per day)
Use 15-17 W of power as you entertain yourself.
£0.01 £0.06 (1 hour per day)
Transmission of six watts for two pounds (1 hour per day)
Listed first on the main menu
3 W <£0.01 <£0.01 (1 hour per week)
Energy consumption in sleep mode: £0.01-0.04 (20 hours per day)
Reduced power consumption (charging) during sleeping 9.8-12.1W £0.01-0.04 (1 hour per day)
Power consumption at turnoff: 0.3–0.5W ($0.01–$0.04) (20 hours per day)

Undocked

Projected weekly spend on energy for the application based on the hourly draw
Charge and play for 8-9 watts/ £0.03-£0.06 (2 hours per day)
8-9 W (charging) sleep mode $0.03-0.06 (2 hours per day)

The weekly average is $0.10 ($0.10 an hour) to $0.30 ($0.30 an hour) (5 hours game per day)

The Light Version of the Nintendo Switch

Because the Switch Lite can’t be connected to a TV dock, it’s important to consider how long the battery will last while it’s plugged in and being played. Here’s an estimate of how much electricity it will use each week, based on how much power it draws per hour.

5-7.5W £0.03 £0.05 (2 hours per day)
The Charger Game
7.5-13.5W £0.05 £0.05 (1 hour per day)
During sleep mode (charging), 13 W is consumed (at £5 and £0.09, respectively) (2 hours per day)

Typically, playing costs about 10 cents per week. If you play less than an hour daily, it’s around 30 cents a week, assuming you play for about 5 hours each day.

Nintendo OLED Switch

Nintendo doesn’t currently know the exact charging speed for the OLED screen, but it’s probably similar to the original Nintendo Switch. Because this information comes directly from Nintendo, you’re welcome to use it however you need. We also have details about charging while the console is docked.

Reduced per-hour application energy cost

AVERAGE WEEKLY COST
Use your free time to have fun
6 W £0.02 £0.04 (2 hours per day)
Online video streaming
5 W £0.02 £0.02 (1 hour per day)
Listed first on the main menu
3 W £0.01 <£0.01 (1 hour per week)
Insomniac setting
0.3-0.5W (Wi-Fi)
In terms of power consumption, the breakdown is as follows: 2.2W (wired) £0.01 (Wi-Fi) £0.01 (wired)
£0.04 (20 hours per day)
£0.16 (20 hours per day)
Power consumption at turnoff: 0.3–0.5W ($0.01–$0.04) (20 hours per day)

The Typical Weekly Expenditure

Costs vary from 8p (for a one-hour daily game) to 25 cents (for five hours of gameplay each day). These are the prices for the Xbox One S and Xbox One X, as listed on the Microsoft and Sony websites.

Energy Consumption For Xbox Series X Applications, Measured In Hours Per Week

Use your free time to have fun
153 W £0.08 £1.09 (2 hours per day)
Streaming
47 W £0.02 £0.34 (2 hours per day)
Quick-Start Activation
13 W £0.01 £0.93 (20 hours per day)
Located near to 0.5W £0.01 £0.04 (20 hours per week)

It typically costs between $1.62 and $3.61 per week to use the service, depending on how much you play. $1.62 is for about one hour of daily use, while $3.61 is for around five hours each day.

Energy Cost Per Hour Approximate Weekly Cost For Xbox Series S Applications

Enjoy the thrill of gaming 74 Pence Sterling and Half a Pence Sterling (2 hours per day)
Video streaming 31 W $0.04 $0.22 (2 hours per day)
Quick-Start Activation
10 W £0.01 £0.71 (20 hours per day)
Next to the 0.4 W £0.01 £0.03 (20 hours per day)

On average, you can expect to spend between $1.08 and $2.00 per week, depending on how much you play. This estimate assumes ‘instant on’ is enabled, with costs based on playing for one to five hours daily.

Prefix 5 Approximate Weekly Cost Of 5 Application Draw Energy

Gamble 200 P £0.10 £1.43 (2 hours per day)
54 Mbps streaming £0.03 £0.39 (2 hours per day)
In close proximity to 2 W £0.01 £0.14 (20 hours a day)

The cost depends on how much you play. It could be as low as $0.87 if you play for just one hour a day, or up to $3.71 if you play for five hours a day.

Video Game Console Comparison: Switch, Xbox, And Playstation

In this section, we’ll briefly review the information to point out the main differences between the three top-of-the-line gaming consoles.

Console Application Average Weekly Bill For Drawing Energy

Turn on/off OLED for gaming, 6 W, £0.02/£0.04 (2 hours per day)
Play games at 200 watts for only $0.10 and $1.43 on your PS5! (2 hours a day)
Games for the Xbox One X 153 watts
£0.08 £1.09 (2 hours per day)
Turning the OLED standby/sleep switch will cost you between 0.3 and 0.5 watts (wireless) and 2.2 watts (wired), or £0.01 (wireless), £0.01 (wired), £0.04
(20 hours), and £0.16 respectively (20 hours per day)
PS5 Sleep/Standby Power Consumption: 2 W, £0.001 / $0.14 (20 hours a day)
Microsoft Xbox 360 Series Sleep Mode: 0.5W (£0.01 £0.04) (20 hours per week)

How To Improve Switch Efficiency And Decrease Energy Use

The Switch uses much less power than other current gaming consoles. This lower energy consumption, along with a trend towards more efficient home devices, could lead to a decrease in overall energy use.

Here are a few tips to help you get the most energy efficiency out of your Nintendo Switch:

Switches charge considerably quicker when docked when turned off than when in use, therefore that’s when you should try to do it.
Instead of putting your computer into hibernation, just turn off the power (but you won’t have access to hibernate features like rapid resume or downloads).
Make sure the “low power” option is turned on for your OLED screen while connecting to the internet through a wired connection.
Dim the lights, please.
Disable wireless connections such as Wi-Fi and Bluetooth.
Never Disconnect the Joy-Con
Before taking the Switch with you, make sure it has a full charge.
Replace your old Switch with a newer, more powerful one.
Changing the settings and playing less won’t help you save a significant amount of money. Even with a reasonably demanding OLED display and wired
internet connectivity, you may only expect to save a few dollars here and there. Whether or whether you decide it’s important to learn is up to you.

As a big gamer, I’ve been looking into power usage, and it’s pretty interesting! I found out that if you leave your Xbox One S or X in Instant On mode, it actually uses almost as much power as when you’re charging a Nintendo Switch. Definitely worth checking out the battery-saving settings on your Xbox to cut down on energy use. And, by the way, I love Zelda too! If you want all the details, my friends over at Pure Xbox have a great article about it.

To save money on electricity, don’t leave your game consoles running when you’re not using them. Limit your playtime and enable the power-saving features, similar to what you’d do with a PlayStation 5.

2026-03-22 01:02