You may have heard many people say that “Oh, ACs don’t consume that much electricity.” And some of you may think that it is nothing else than a hoax. Right? Well, we all know that a typical ceiling fan consumes far less electricity than an average air conditioner. But the real question is, how “less” are we talking about here? Well, that’s what today’s insightful post is all about. So if you were looking forward to buying a brand-new AC or a ceiling fan, you may want to stick to this post till the end. We have also sprinkled fun but factual information along the way, so yeah, it’ll be a fun read. Let’s get going now.
Understanding Power Consumption
Before we dive into the power consumption of ACs and fans, let’s first understand what power consumption actually is. Power consumption refers to the amount of energy an appliance uses over a period of time. It is usually measured in watts or kilowatt-hours (kWh). Remember, 1 kWh is equal to 1 Unit of electricity. And the equation is pretty simple, the more energy an appliance uses, the higher its power consumption will be.
However, there are several factors that can affect an appliance’s power consumption, including its size, efficiency, and usage patterns. For example, if you use an AC for 24 hours a day, then it’ll surely consume more electricity and you’ll have to bear more electricity costs.
AC Vs Fan Power Consumption
Air conditioners work by drawing in warm air from the room, cooling it using a refrigerant, and then blowing the cool air back into the room. ACs come in different types, including window, portable, and central ACs. Each type has its own power consumption rate. As you may already know that there are different types of ACs present in the market that you can buy, for example, Split AC, Window AC, Central AC, etc. Of course, the power consumption also depends upon the type of air conditioner you have, but on average, traditional ACs consume anywhere between 3500 Watts to 5000 Watts per hour. A typical Ceiling fan on the other hand only consumes around 55 to 75 Watts per hour. However, when it comes to fans, there are several other factors that affect fan power consumption including the size of the fan, the speed settings, and the angle of the blades.
AC Vs Fan Power Consumption Comparison
Now it is time we talk about the actual power consumption comparison between AC and a fan. Below we have provided a list of how many Watts both appliances consume, how much electricity units are consumed every hour, etc.
| Appliance | Type | Watts | kWh/Unit Per Hour | Per Day Usage |
| Air Conditioner (AC) | Split AC | 3500 | 35 | 10 Hours |
| Fan | Ceiling Fan | 70 | 1.68 | 24 Hours |
So as you can see if you keep a ceiling fan running the whole day, it’ll only consume 1.68 units. On the other hand, a 3500-watt split AC can consume more than 35 units within 10 hours of runtime. However, it is important for you to keep in mind that ACs can vary between 3500 to 5000 Watts in power consumption. On top of that, the actual electricity unit consumption will also depend upon the energy efficiency ratings of both appliances.
Verdict
All in all, there is no doubt that when it comes to power consumption, a typical ceiling fan beats ACs by a huge margin. However, when it comes to effectiveness in terms of cooling capacity, an air conditioner is a far better option than a fan. This should be obvious to you since an air conditioner is a more complex and advanced appliance than a ceiling fan. In our opinion, you should consider other factors like effectiveness, area coverage, maintenance, and more when choosing between a fan and an AC.
