A typical TV used as a digital signage screen costs about $60 to $150 a year in electricity, depending on how many hours it runs. At the 2026 U.S. average commercial rate of about 14 cents per kilowatt-hour, a 120-watt screen running 16 hours a day uses roughly 700 kWh and costs about $98 a year. That is under $9 a month per screen, which is why power is rarely the real cost of signage.

This guide is for business owners who run screens in their own venue and want to know what the power bill looks like before they buy or add screens.

The simple formula

Electricity cost is wattage times hours, divided by 1,000, times your rate per kWh. Virginia Tech Cooperative Extension publishes the same formula and lists flat-screen TVs at around 120 watts. The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) projects the average commercial rate at 13.99 cents per kWh for 2026.

Based on a 120-watt screen

A screen that runs all day costs less per month than a single lunch special.

What changes the number

Screen size and brightness

Larger panels draw more power. Screens in bright windows run at higher brightness, which raises wattage. Commercial-grade displays built for 16 to 24 hours of use often draw more than a consumer TV, so check the spec sheet for your model.

Your local rate

Commercial rates vary widely by state and utility. Check your latest bill and replace 13.99 cents with your own number.

Hours of operation

Most venues only need screens on while customers are present. Scheduling power-on and power-off to match opening hours cuts the bill with no loss of audience.

Standby draw

Modern TVs draw only about 1 to 3 watts in standby, so overnight standby adds a few dollars a year at most.

Power is a small cost next to the other line items

Hardware, mounting, and content time usually outweigh a year of electricity. The more useful question is what each screen earns or sells. A screen that costs $98 a year to power only needs to lift add-on sales by a small amount to cover itself. Your own point-of-sale data is the right place to check this, because signage attribution is directional, not exact.

How to keep running costs low

• Schedule screens to turn on and off with your opening hours

• Lower brightness in dim interior spaces

• Choose Energy Star-rated displays when buying

• Retire old screens that draw far more than newer models

• Track the bill for one month before and after adding screens

How Beam helps

How Beam helps. Beam turns the TVs you already have into managed digital signage. You can schedule content and screen hours remotely, so screens run only when customers are there. Beam also lets you open idle screen time to approved third-party advertisers through the Beam Network, so a screen can earn revenue that offsets its power cost and more. Ad income varies by venue, audience, and local demand, so treat any figure as an estimate until you see your own numbers.

Next step

Add up your screens, your hours, and your rate, then compare the total to what those screens could earn. Start at usebeam.io to see how the Beam Network can put idle screen time to work.

Sources

• U.S. Energy Information Administration, Short-Term Energy Outlook, Table 7c (commercial retail electricity price, Sept 2026): https://www.eia.gov/outlooks/steo/tables/pdf/7ctab.pdf

• Virginia Tech Cooperative Extension, Estimating Appliance and Home Electronic Energy Use: https://www.pubs.ext.vt.edu/2901/2901-9014/2901-9014.html

• Gadget Review, TV Power Consumption (standby estimate): https://www.gadgetreview.com/how-much-electricity-does-a-tv-use