★ EVERYDAY · LAUNDRY · COMPARISONS
The clothesline saves $145.45 a year at the defaults: $149.45 for the dryer against $4.00 for the line. Enter your loads, dryer power, cycle length, and electricity price to see what hanging your laundry is really worth.
A dryer burns most of its cost as electricity, while a clothesline burns none at all. This calculator adds dryer energy and machine wear together, prices the line kit the same way, and then prices the extra time hanging takes — so you compare full yearly costs, not just the power bill.
Almost the whole gap is electricity. At the defaults, a 3000-watt dryer running 45 minutes uses 2.25 kWh per load, and 260 loads a year turn that into 585 kWh. At $0.17 per kWh that is $99.45 of energy alone, before the machine itself is counted. Spread a $600 dryer over 12 years and you add $50.00 a year, landing at $149.45. The clothesline has no energy bill at all: a $40 kit spread over 10 years costs just $4.00 a year, so the line saves $145.45 a year. The gap grows with every extra load and every cent on the electricity rate — at 8 loads a week it reaches $205.12, and at $0.30 per kWh it reaches $221.50. The honest counterweight is time, priced below.
Hanging laundry takes longer than tipping it into a dryer. At the defaults, dryer loads need about 5 minutes of hands-on time each — loading, unloading, folding — which is 21.7 hours over 260 loads. Line loads need about 10 minutes each — pegging out and taking in — which is 43.3 hours a year. The line therefore costs 21.7 extra hours a year, and $145.45 divided by 21.7 hours is $6.71 saved per extra hour. Whether that trade is worth it is personal: if your evenings are already full, $6.71 an hour may not tempt you; if you enjoy the routine, or you dry outdoors while doing something else anyway, the saving is close to free money. And the line has a side benefit no spreadsheet captures: sun and air are gentler on fabric than tumble heat, so clothes tend to last longer.
| Output | Formula | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| Loads per year | Loads per week × weeks per year | 5 × 52 = 260 loads at the defaults. |
| Dryer energy per load | 3000 W × 45 min ÷ 60 ÷ 1000 | 2.25 kWh per load at the defaults. |
| Dryer energy per year | 2.25 kWh × 260 loads × $0.17 | 585 kWh × $0.17 = $99.45 a year. |
| Dryer total | $99.45 + $600 ÷ 12 years | $99.45 + $50.00 = $149.45 a year. |
| Clothesline total | $0 energy + $40 ÷ 10 years | $4.00 a year at the defaults. |
| Yearly saving | Dryer total − clothesline total | $149.45 − $4.00 = $145.45 a year for the line. |
| Saved per extra hour | $145.45 ÷ 21.7 extra hours | $6.71 saved per extra hour hanging laundry. |
This is a comparison model, not a meter reading. It assumes the dryer draws its full rated power for the whole cycle, which overstates energy for machines that cycle their heater on and off — real dryer energy is often lower, so treat $149.45 as a high-side estimate. It also assumes every load can go on the line, which is not true where sun, wind, or space are missing: flats without a balcony, rainy climates, and homes with homeowners-association rules against outdoor lines all cut the achievable saving. Line drying is also slower, so a household that needs a shirt dry in an hour still needs the dryer sometimes. Treat the result as the yearly value of line drying every load, then scale it by the share of loads you can realistically hang.
Bright Side Kit. "Clothesline vs Dryer: Yearly Laundry Drying Cost Calculator." https://brightoolbox.com/clothesline-vs-dryer/ Accessed October 24, 2026.At the defaults — 5 loads a week, 3000 W, 45 minutes a cycle, $0.17 per kWh, a $600 dryer over 12 years — a dryer costs $149.45 a year: $99.45 for energy and $50.00 for the machine.
At the defaults, $4.00 a year: a $40 kit spread over 10 years, with no energy cost at all. Replacement rope and pegs are the only ongoing expense, and both are cheap.
$145.45 a year at the defaults: $149.45 for the dryer against $4.00 for the line. The saving grows with more loads and higher electricity prices, reaching $205.12 at 8 loads a week.
About 10 minutes of hands-on time per load against 5 minutes for the dryer, so 43.3 hours a year against 21.7 hours at 260 loads — 21.7 extra hours, worth $6.71 saved per extra hour.
Partly. Cold air still dries clothes, just more slowly, and indoor racks work year-round. Rain and damp days are the real limit: treat the calculator's saving as the value of line drying every load, then scale it by the share you can realistically hang.
Some can restrict outdoor lines, though many states limit such bans or protect solar drying rights. Check your association rules and local law before installing a permanent outdoor line; a portable rack sidesteps most restrictions.
Generally yes: sun and air are gentler than tumble heat, so elastic, prints, and delicate fabrics tend to last longer. The trade is stiffness in towels and a longer wait for thick items to dry.
Halve the saving: at the defaults, line drying half of 260 loads saves about $72.73 a year, plus half the extra time, about 10.8 hours. Enter your line-dried loads as the loads-per-week figure to model a part-time habit exactly.