Home & DIY
Is a heat pump tumble dryer worth the extra cost?
Compare purchase price and electricity per cycle — break-even cycles and annual cost for heat pump vs condenser dryers.
Quick answer
Total cost over N years = purchase price + (kWh per cycle × cycles per year × price per kWh × years). Worked example at €0.25/kWh and 250 cycles a year, which is about five loads a week:
Lower total cost at horizon
Heat pump
- Break-even years
- 2 years
- Heat pump — annual electricity
- 12.50
- Condenser — annual electricity
- $262.50
- Electricity saved per year
- 50.00
- Break-even extra cycles
- 500
- Heat pump — total over horizon
- ,875.00
- Condenser — total over horizon
- $3,075.00
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Total cost = purchase + electricity over the horizon. Heat pump dryers cost more upfront but often use half the kWh per load. Enter the figures from energy labels or your smart plug — defaults are typical EU A-rated heat pump vs condenser.
How it works
| Heat pump | Condenser | |
|---|---|---|
| Purchase | €750 | €450 |
| Per cycle | 1.8 kWh | 4.2 kWh |
| Electricity per year | ~€113 | ~€263 |
| Total over 10 years | ~€1,880 | ~€3,080 |
The €300 premium pays itself back in roughly two years at that usage, and everything after is margin. Below about two loads a week the arithmetic flips and the cheaper machine wins on purchase price alone — which is why the honest answer depends on how much laundry the house actually produces, not on which technology is better.
Break-even cycles = (HP price − condenser price) ÷ (kWh saved per cycle × tariff). If you dry rarely, the cheaper condenser may win on purchase price alone; heavy families with 300+ cycles/year feel electricity fastest. Pair with appliance electricity cost for the full bill picture and detergent dosing for wash-day running costs.
Two differences sit outside the electricity arithmetic. A heat pump dries at a much lower temperature, so each cycle takes noticeably longer — often a third to a half again — while being gentler on fabrics, which matters if you are running loads back to back rather than overnight. The other one costs real money in summer: a condenser dryer dumps all its heat into the room it stands in, so if that room is air conditioned you pay once to make the heat and again to remove it. In a utility room nobody cools, it is free warmth; in a kitchen in July it is not.
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Frequently asked questions
How many kWh does a heat pump dryer use per load?+
Many EU A-rated heat pump models use roughly 1.5–2.5 kWh per full load — about half a typical condenser at 4–5 kWh. Check the energy label for your exact machine; mixed and partial loads use less absolute kWh but may use more per kg of laundry dried.
After how many years does a heat pump dryer pay off?+
When cumulative electricity savings equal the upfront price gap. At €300 more expensive and ~€150/year saved in the example above, break-even is about 2 years. Lower tariff or fewer cycles lengthen it; a very cheap condenser on promotion can push break-even past 5 years.
Heat pump vs vented dryer?+
Vented dryers dump hot air outside and can be cheap to buy but need a hose and often use more kWh than heat pumps. This calculator compares heat pump vs condenser — the two types most common where venting is awkward (flats). If you can vent easily, add vented kWh from the label into the condenser field to compare.
Does dryer efficiency matter if I already air-dry?+
Only for the loads you still machine-dry — towels, bedding, winter jeans. Many households run 150–250 dryer cycles a year even with a line. If you dry fewer than ~80 cycles annually, focus on purchase price; above 200, electricity dominates lifetime cost.
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