Why the Same Appliance Costs More to Run in Some States
A 277% spread between the cheapest and priciest state
Hawaii charges residential customers about 45.95¢/kWh, roughly 3.8x what North Dakota charges at 12.19¢/kWh. The identical appliance costs proportionally more or less to run purely on that basis, before the model's own efficiency even enters into it.
What that does to a real appliance
The ABL AREF18, at its certified 360 kWh/yr, costs about $44/year to run in North Dakota and about $165/year in Hawaii, the same unit, same usage, only the rate changed.
Why it varies
State electricity rates reflect generation mix, transmission distance, regulatory structure, and, for import-dependent grids like Hawaii's, the cost of getting fuel there at all. This site doesn't model why a state's rate is what it is, only reports EIA's own published state-average figure, which is why every model page has a state selector rather than one blended national number.
State averages, not per-utility rates
These are state averages, not per-utility rates; a true per-utility figure needs an EIA API key this site doesn't hold. Your own utility bill is the only fully precise source for your exact rate, but a state average is a real, sourced starting point a nameplate-wattage guess is not, computed the way the methodology guide lays out.
It isn't just refrigerators
The same swing applies to every category this site tracks. The 1HVAC ACIQ-50G-HP-WH water heater and the AEG W14120 washing machine both move by the identical state-rate ratio above, on top of whatever their own certified kWh/yr figure already sets them apart on. Each model's own page has the state selector to see the exact number; the guide to when replacing one actually pays off covers what to do with that number once you have it.