Before we jump into the straight answer for the question Does A Toaster Oven Save Electricity? let us introduce you to the magnificent ‘toaster oven’. Seeing the word ‘toaster’, you might think that it’s a larger version of regular toasters. But actually, it’s much more.
A. What Is A Toaster Oven?
You can toast bread inside a toaster oven, but you can also use it regularly for heating food or cooking food from scratch. Essentially, a toaster oven is a smaller version of a conventional electric oven that consumes less electricity. From baking loaves of bread to cooking frozen food, toaster ovens make kitchen work easy.
Though the interior size of a toaster oven might be small, making it only one of the few downsides of a toaster oven, the price of a toaster oven is unbeatable compared to other home appliances.
For example, a regular, mid-range toaster oven can be purchased for around 200 dollars. On the other hand, flagship toaster oven models cost 300 to 400 dollars in the current market.
Now, let’s go back to the bigger question. Does a toaster oven save electricity? In short, it does. Compared to traditional microwaves, toasters, and ovens, a toaster oven can save you from paying more on electricity bills and gas bills as well.
B. Toaster Ovens Vs Conventional Ovens
We have shown you a glimpse of how a toaster oven might differ from a conventional oven. Now we will broaden our explanation.
Firstly, toaster ovens take up less space in your kitchen and, handily, you don’t need anyone to come and install the appliance either. Simply find a spot for the toaster oven in your kitchen, plug it in, and it is ready to go.
This ease of use also gives you the advantage of putting away the toaster oven when you don’t want to use it, creating more space in your kitchen, unlike the traditional oven.
Moreover, a toaster oven is a much more energy-efficient option than a conventional oven using only half of the energy to run whether you own an electric or gas oven.
Furthermore, a conventional oven can cost you somewhere around 1500 to 3500 dollars. This cost makes the conventional oven about ten times more expensive than the toaster oven, which, if you don’t need a huge oven to feed a giant family, is a cost you don’t need. Keep in mind that you have to spend much more on the extra installation costs as well.
C. How Much Energy Does A Toaster Oven Use?
You will be very surprised to hear how much energy a toaster oven uses to operate.
The information we are about to give you is gathered from a report by ENERGYSTAR on toaster ovens. ENERGYSTAR rates electrical appliances based on their energy efficiency and the costs of running an appliance.
In the report, ENERGYSTAR concludes that a regular toaster oven uses only about 1200 to 1400 watts of energy. At first glance, it seems a lot. But here’s the surprise- the energy consumption of a toaster oven is about 1/3 to ½ of a traditional oven. This figure means that the energy consumption of a traditional electric oven can be almost 3000 watts!
Also, cooking a meal in a toaster oven can save about 50% of the energy used to cook inside a conventional oven. Therefore, if you are looking to cook a meal for two, a smaller toaster oven is an energy-efficient way to do so. Meals for larger groups of 4-5 can be prepared in a higher capacity toaster oven.
These days you will find the very best toaster ovens use ‘convection technology’. Convection technology helps to cook your food much faster and at a lower temperature. Best of all, this modern innovation means that convection toaster ovens use 40% of the energy of traditional toaster ovens. At the end of the day, this lower energy consumption means you get to save even more on the electric bills!
D. Does A Toaster Oven Use More Electricity Than A Microwave?
When it comes to cooking, baking, or simply heating up food, ENERGYSTAR highly recommends using microwaves and toaster ovens rather than traditional, older, and much larger ovens.
Both the microwave and toaster oven use less energy than a conventional oven. Along with that, they take up less kitchen space than an oven. Going further, modern toaster ovens take up even much less space than a microwave.
But when it comes to the battle of efficiency, the microwave is a bit ahead of the toaster oven in some cases. But this shouldn’t be disappointing news to you. The difference in energy efficiency between the best microwaves and the best toaster ovens is really a very small difference that isn’t going to cost you much.
Depending on brand and model, a toaster oven uses about 1200 to 1800 watts of energy to run, while a microwave uses about 700 to 1300 watts to operate. This makes the microwave about 20% more efficient than the toaster oven in some cases.
This difference in efficiency certainly won’t outweigh the advantages that a toaster oven can provide to a household.
Toaster ovens are smaller in size and can handle more tasks than a microwave. Other than heating frozen foods and leftovers, you can also use a toaster oven for baking and toasting loaves of bread, cakes, and cookies.
Additionally, food rewarmed in a toaster oven shouldn’t go bad as quickly as food rewarmed in a microwave.
Finally, it is worth mentioning that toaster ovens are cheaper than microwaves and can save you at least 30 dollars more than a microwave.
E. What Is The Range Of Wattage Of A Toaster Oven?
A toaster oven uses up somewhere around 1100 watts to 1875 watts in total. The average range of wattage is around 1400 watts to 1500 watts.
But does wattage matter? Well, it does. Higher wattage means that the toaster oven can cook or heat the food in lesser time.
So, while buying a toaster oven, look at the wattage and purchase the one that suits your needs.
Conclusion
In a world where everything seems to be getting more expensive – electricity bills, gas bills, and rent all going through the roof, it’s good to know that there is technology out there that can save you a bit of money.
The humble toaster oven is a great option for those who own a house and want to keep their bills down or those renting a property who don’t want to install a traditional oven because they’ll be on the move again pretty sharpish.
Whatever your reason for looking for a toaster oven, we hope this article has given you some insight into the energy-saving benefits of having one.
