How Much Electricity Does A Treadmill Use? [Test Results]

Last updated: January 31, 2024.

Find the average and actual power consumption of a treadmill along with the running costs. And get 4 easy energy saving tips to keep these costs low.

How much electricity does a treadmill actually use? I couldn’t find a definitive answer to this that was backed up by data. So I did some research and testing to find out.

This article lists my test results and insights from wider research.

Spoilers:

• The average treadmill wattage is 1,500W (i.e. 2HP motor);
• The amount of watts actually used depends on many factors, including speed setting;
• 712W was the actual power draw, on average, at the top speed (10 mph) of the tested 2 HP treadmill;
• 96W was the average draw at the slowest speed (1 mph);
• When idle, treadmills can continue to use energy – 3.76W was the average;
• You can expect to consume close to .7kWh of electricity per week when following the recommended guidelines for moderate-intensity workouts; and
• It costs close to $0.10 per week, $0.43 per month, and $5.10 per year to run a treadmill, on average in the US.

Reader question: “Which treadmill is the most energy efficient?” The most energy efficient treadmills don’t actually consume any electricity at all. For example, the most popular manual treadmill is this model – it just requires 2 AA batteries for the display.

Expect to consume less electricity if you do higher intensity workouts. This is because the duration of these workouts are typically shorter.

The most popular electric treadmills range from 1HP (746W) to 3.75 HP (2,798W). 2.25 HP (1,679W) is the most common motor in our list of popular treadmills, with 2.6 HP (1,940W) being the horsepower of the most popular treadmill sold.

How did I get these figures? Below you’ll find a list of the top 20 best selling treadmills on Amazon.com, their horsepower and the corresponding wattage. 

Continue reading to also get a simple calculator you can use to find the wattage of your treadmill, along with 4 energy saving tips that can reduce your treadmill’s power consumption and electricity costs.

Treadmill power consumption and wattage

Typically manufacturers of electrical devices provide a power consumption rating in watts or kilowatts. Treadmills are different. Their power rating is usually provided in horsepower.

Both horsepower and watts are units of power. But we don’t usually use horsepower when referring to the power consumption of household devices.

What’s the horsepower of your TV? How much horsepower does your lightbulb use? It just sounds strange.

Electricity bills are calculated using watts, specifically kilowatt hours (kWh). So, for convenience, I’ve worked out and included the wattage of certain treadmills below.

The table below lists the current (as of writing) top 20 best selling treadmills on Amazon.com, their horsepower, the corresponding wattage.

This data, while not exactly exhaustive, should give you a good sense of the power consumption for the most popular treadmills. 

I’ve worked out and included the wattage but most treadmill manufacturers don’t list this information. Before we look at the average treadmill power consumption, let’s take a brief look at how you can work out the wattage of any treadmill from its horsepower.

Horsepower to watts calculator

To work out wattage from horsepower, simply multiply the horsepower by 746. 

Formula: Horsepower x 746 = Watts

Example: 2.6 x 746 = 1,940W

Alternatively, simply use the following horsepower to watts calculator. Enter your horsepower below and the corresponding wattage will be returned.

Now that we can work out the wattage of any treadmill, or any device with an electric motor, from its horsepower, let’s look at the average power consumption of a treadmill.

Average treadmill wattage

The average treadmill horsepower is 2, which equates to nearly 1,500W.

This is based on the table above, which lists the top 20 best selling electric treadmills on Amazon.com.

There are resources online (they don’t list the data or sources unfortunately) that note the average treadmill horsepower ranges between 1.5 to 3.

There are 3 treadmills in our list that are 1 HP (746W). At 3.75 HP (2,798W), the NordicTrack Commercial 1750 is the only treadmill in our list that has a HP higher than 3.

2.25 (1,679W) is the most common HP in our list of most popular treadmills. The most popular treadmill has a 2.6 HP (1,940W) motor.

There are no treadmills in the most popular list with the average 2 HP motor. However, the Reebok GT30 is an example of a treadmill with a 2 HP motor. I luckily have this treadmill so I can test the actual power consumption of an average power treadmill.

Testing the actual power consumption is important because it gives a more accurate view. The power listed by manufacturers is usually the max power rating. If you’re like me, you won’t be using your treadmill at its maximum capacity throughout your workout.

With this in mind, let’s test, using an energy monitor, how much power an average treadmill actually consumes.

Actual treadmill power consumption (test results)

The actual power consumed by a treadmill will depend on many factors, including the settings and duration of use. The speed, for example, will have a significant impact on consumption – the power consumption will be higher at higher speeds.

To work out the actual power consumption for an average HP treadmill, I recorded the average consumption across various speeds using an energy monitor on my 2 HP treadmill.

Here are the results along with the electricity cost (using the average kWh price in the US) for each setting / speed:

Many factors like weight of the user, condition of the equipment, incline / decline, unit rate, etc. impacts these results. However, the table above should give you a good sense of the power consumption and electricity cost for treadmill usage across the various settings and speeds for one hour.

Instead of just using the averages, you can use the table above along with your treadmill and usage to work out your electricity costs. 

For example, if you were to use the CDC’s recommended 150 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic activity (e.g. walking at 3.5mph) per week, you can expect to consume close to .7kWh of electricity using an average treadmill. This works out at close to 10 cents per week in electricity, 42 cents per month, and $5.10 per year.

Interestingly, it typically costs less in electricity for higher intensity workouts. This is because less electricity is usually consumed overall due to the shorter duration of the workout. This is evident when following the CDC’s guidelines – the lower intensity workout costs 3 cents more per week compared to the higher intensity recommendation.

To reach the CDC’s recommended 75 minutes of vigorous-intensity aerobic activity per week, expect to consume under .5kWh of electricity. The electricity costs work out at approximately 7 cents per week, $3.64 per year or 30 cents per month.

While you may not consider these costs significant, it’s always good to reduce your power consumption – it reduces your carbon footprint and energy bills. So let’s look at some simple ways you can reduce the running costs of your treadmill.

4 simple energy saving tips to reduce your power consumption

If you’re interested in reducing your electricity costs and carbon footprint as a result of using your treadmill, here are 4 simple considerations: 

1. Use a manual treadmill. The most popular manual treadmill on Amazon.com is the Sunny Health & Fitness SF-T1407M Manual Walking Treadmill. This compact, non-electric treadmill will not increase your electricity bill. The LCD display is simply powered by 2 AA batteries.
2. Run outside. Granted, this is not always an option but if it is, then do it. There are many health related benefits in addition to the cost savings.
3. Maintain your treadmill. Follow your manufacturer’s maintenance guidelines. Keeping your treadmill running smoothly reduces friction and extends the life of your treadmill. Over the long term, this can reduce associated costs.
4. Don’t leave your treadmill on idle. If your treadmill is like mine then you’re wasting energy if you leave it on idle. Completely turn off or unplug your treadmill when it’s not in use. Consider picking up a smart plug if you regularly forget to unplug – I use the Kasa Smart Plug by TP-Link (check out the current price on Amazon here). This also has an energy monitor feature, which I used throughout this post.

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James F

James F (not to be confused with ECS co-founder James) is our lead author, content & website manager. He has a BSc. in Digital Marketing, and a Diploma in IT. He became a qualified electrician while studying electrical engineering part-time.

From wind and solar photovoltaic installers, James F worked with many certified energy practitioners and energy consultants before joining the core ECS team. He also helped build the most downloaded energy saving app while working with a leading utility company.

Read more about James F or connect directly on LinkedIn, here.