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How much does a load of laundry cost?

Roughly $0.53–$1.44 a load washed and dried. The one line we price exactly is detergent: from $0.080 per load on the cheapest we track to $0.24 at the median. Water, machine energy and the dryer make up the rest — and the dryer is usually the biggest single line.

What we measure vs estimate. The detergent line is a live cost per load from the detergent we track. Water, machine energy and dryer cost are typical US ranges, not our data — they swing with your machine, local utility rates and water temperature.

Cost breakdown, per load

Detergent — measured from live prices
Detergent (per load)$0.080–$0.24
Utilities & dryer — typical US ranges (not our data)
Water (14–40 gal by machine) · HE front-loaders use far less$0.10–$0.30
Machine energy (mostly heating water) · cold wash ≈ the low end$0.050–$0.30
Dryer (electric, per load) · $0 if you air-dry$0.30–$0.60
Wash only (no dryer)$0.00–$1.14
Washed & dried$0.53–$1.44

Detergent = live cost per load, re-checked on a rolling cycle. Utility lines are typical US averages and vary with your machine and local rates. Air-drying removes the dryer line entirely.

Where the savings actually are

Three levers, biggest first: air-dry to remove the dryer (the largest line); wash cold to cut the water-heating energy; and buy detergent by cost per load at the correct dose — not the capful the bottle implies. Over-dosing is pure waste and can leave residue. Get all three right and a load costs less than half the high end above.

Cheapest laundry detergent right now

Live from the catalog, ranked by real cost per load — cheapest first.

Keep going

Cheapest laundry detergent by real cost per loadOpen How much laundry detergent to actually useRead What a dryer costs to run, per loadOpen

Frequently asked

How much does one load of laundry cost?▾

Roughly $0.53 to $1.44 to wash and dry one load. Detergent is the part we can price exactly: from $0.080 per load on the cheapest cost per load we track to $0.24 at the median. The rest is water, the machine's energy (mostly heating the water), and the dryer — which is often the single biggest line. Washing cold and air-drying can cut a load's cost by more than half.

What is the most expensive part of doing laundry?▾

The dryer, then hot water. An electric dryer typically costs more per load than the detergent, water and wash energy combined, which is why air-drying is the biggest single saving. After that, washing in hot water spends energy heating it — switching to cold or warm removes most of that. The detergent, done right, is a small and controllable part.

How can I make laundry cheaper?▾

Three levers, biggest first: air-dry instead of using the dryer (removes the largest line); wash in cold water (cuts the water-heating energy); and buy detergent by cost per load, using the right dose — not the capful the bottle implies. Over-dosing detergent is pure waste and can leave residue. A high-efficiency machine also uses far less water per load than an old top-loader.

How much does laundry detergent cost per load?▾

Across the detergent we track, cost per load runs from about $0.080 at the cheapest to $0.24 at the median — a 3× spread for washing the same load. Buying by cost per load (not bottle price) and using the correct dose is how you land at the low end. Pods are convenient but usually cost more per load than liquid.