Why this exists

"How much does it cost to run a fridge" mostly turns up a generic blog estimate or a national-average figure that assumes a wattage nobody checked. ApplianceCostFinder instead starts from ENERGY STAR's own certified annual energy-use figure for a specific model and multiplies it by a real state electricity rate, the same arithmetic a utility bill actually runs on.

What goes into the number

Appliance energy use is US EPA ENERGY STAR certified-product data, data.energystar.gov (src/data/appliances.csv). Electricity rates are EIA Electric Power Monthly, Table 5.6.B, residential, by state (src/data/rates-by-state.csv). Category averages, used to say whether a model is efficient or not for its type, are Mean/median annual kWh/yr across every currently-certified model in the category (src/data/category-stats.json), not an external benchmark. Typical lifespan, where sourced, is NAHB/Bank of America Home Equity Study of Life Expectancy of Home Components — see LIFESPAN_YEARS for which categories have a sourced figure. Full detail, including where the model is honest about its limits, is in the methodology guide.

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ApplianceCostFinder's pages are generated by AI software from the ENERGY STAR and EIA data cited on every page. No journalist or editor writes or reviews a page before it publishes; the underlying figures come from ENERGY STAR and EIA, not from AI. The site's operator reviews corrections and questions submitted through the contact page and updates a page if one turns out to be wrong.

Who runs this

ApplianceCostFinder is an independently run site. It is not affiliated with ENERGY STAR, the EPA, EIA, or any appliance manufacturer or retailer. Where a page includes a sponsored link, that is disclosed on the page itself and in the privacy policy.