LG APHWC501L: running cost
The LG APHWC501L is certified by ENERGY STAR at 1,262 kWh a year, more expensive than most models in its category to run among electric water heaters currently certified.
That $237 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 electric water heater
The category average is 1,105 kWh/yr; this model runs 14.2% above it, ranking 419 of 596 electric water heaters tracked here for running cost. That average is drawn from all 596 electric water heaters ENERGY STAR currently certifies, not an outside number, a $30/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 LG APHWC501L: LG APHWC501D ($237/yr, 1,262 kWh/yr), then LG APHWC501M ($237/yr, 1,262 kWh/yr).
Same brand, different models
Ranked 10 of LG's 14 certified electric water heaters, this sits between the R5TT20F-SA0 (208V) ($163/yr, the brand's cheapest) and the APHWC801M ($239/yr, its priciest).
LG APHWC501L over 11 years
NAHB's Study of Life Expectancy of Home Components puts a typical electric water heater's service life at 11 years; run the LG APHWC501L that long and it costs about $2,610 in electricity, on top of whatever it cost to buy.
Weighing a replacement
Running above the category average, $237/year is exactly the kind of number that makes a newer, more efficient model pay for itself faster.
Compare current ENERGY STAR certified electric water heaters before buying.
If you're keeping it
Whether or not the LG APHWC501L ever needs replacing, a repair is the more common failure for a electric water heater, one a protection plan budgets for ahead of time.
Where this number comes from
The full Electric Water Heater category page shows all 596 electric water heaters ranked by cost; the state-rate guide covers the half of this number that isn't the appliance. The 1,262 kWh/yr figure is ENERGY STAR's own certification, not a wattage estimate; exact dataset IDs are on the data sources page.