Kenmore 592-8969*: running cost
At 607 kWh/yr, the Kenmore 592-8969*'s ENERGY STAR certification puts it about average for its category to run against every other certified clothes dryer.
That $114 is priced at 18.8¢/kWh, the average of all 51 state rates this site tracks. Your own state's rate is one click away.
Efficient, or not, for a clothes dryer
The category average is 572 kWh/yr; this model runs 6.1% above it, ranking 122 of 639 clothes dryers tracked here for running cost. That average is drawn from all 639 clothes dryers ENERGY STAR currently certifies, not an outside number, a $7/year gap from this model at the national rate. Full sourcing is in the sourcing notes.
Right next to it on the list
A rank or two either side of the Kenmore 592-8969*: Kenmore 592-8968* ($114/yr, 607 kWh/yr), then LG DLE3090* ($114/yr, 607 kWh/yr).
Comparing Kenmore's own models
Ranked 5 of Kenmore's 13 certified clothes dryers, this sits between the 8120# ($60/yr, the brand's cheapest) and the 7165*20* ($129/yr, its priciest).
Kenmore 592-8969* over 12 years
Over the 12-year service life NAHB reports for this category, running the Kenmore 592-8969* costs roughly $1,369 in electricity, separate from the purchase price.
Is it worth replacing?
Efficient as certified clothes dryers go, $114/year is a reasonable baseline if you're comparing what else is on the market.
Worth comparing a few current certified models before deciding.
If you're keeping it
$114/year to run is the predictable cost of the Kenmore 592-8969*; a protection plan covers the unpredictable one, a repair bill.
Where this number comes from
Two sourced numbers, nothing modeled: ENERGY STAR's certified kWh/yr for this exact model, and EIA's published state electricity rate. Ranked 122 of 639 certified dryers for running cost, the Kenmore 592-8969* is also worth reading with a caveat specific to this category: the methodology page explains why ENERGY STAR's own combined-energy figure for dryers can overstate the electric bill impact of a gas model.