What does it cost to run a device continuously? The honest 24/7 electricity bill
By Dominik Lederer, Founder, Hardware Engineer & Solo Mining Expert at Polarblocks. As of: August 13, 2026. All electricity bills at 0.35 euros per kilowatt-hour, all Bitcoin figures fresh from mempool.space.
Key Takeaways
A continuous consumer is an electrical appliance that remains connected to the grid 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, and its annual cost is calculated by a single multiplication: power in watts multiplied by 8.76 gives the annual consumption in kilowatt-hours.
One watt in continuous operation in Germany costs around 3.07 euros per year at 0.35 euros per kilowatt-hour. This single figure replaces any electricity calculator.
The Bitaxe Gamma 601 consumes around 17 watts, which is about 149 kilowatt-hours and around 52 euros per year, or about 4.34 euros per month.
For comparison: The German Federal Environment Agency estimates the pure idle losses of an average German household at around 360 kilowatt-hours per year. The Bitaxe Gamma 601 uses less than half of that, and it's doing something in the process.
How much does a continuously operating device cost per year?
A device in continuous operation costs as much per year as its power consumption in watts multiplied by 8.76 multiplied by the electricity price per kilowatt-hour. At 0.35 euros per kilowatt-hour, each single watt costs around 3.07 euros per year. So, a device with 10 watts costs around 31 euros, one with 100 watts around 307 euros.
This number honestly surprised me when I first calculated it. Not because it was high, but because it was so small. Most people massively misestimate the costs of small continuous runners, in both directions. The router under the TV is considered harmless, although it draws more electricity per year than a washing machine in weekly operation. Conversely, the idea that a Bitcoin miner in the living room drives up the electricity bill into triple-digit regions persists.
Neither is true. And both can be recalculated in thirty seconds.
How do I convert watts to euros without a calculator?
Converting watts to euros is achieved with a single key figure. A year has 8,760 hours. One watt of continuous load therefore results in 8.76 kilowatt-hours per year. Multiplied by your own electricity price, this gives the annual price per watt. At 0.35 euros, that's 3.07 euros; at 0.3164 euros, it's about 2.77 euros.
So, remember three euros per watt per year. This rule of thumb is never more than about ten percent off for German household prices, and it works in the electrical market just as it does in front of your own fuse box.
According to stromauskunft.de, the average electricity price for German households in August 2026 is around 31.64 cents per kilowatt-hour, existing customers pay an average of around 31.1 cents, and basic supply is around 40.4 cents. Polarblocks deliberately calculates with the higher 35 cents in all examples. Those who calculate too high and still arrive at low costs don't need to convince anyone.
Calculate the electricity costs of a continuous consumer in four steps
Step 1: Read the power consumption in watts, either from the type plate or with a socket meter. The Bitaxe Gamma 601 is between 15 and 19 watts, depending on the setting.
Step 2: Multiply watts by 8.76. This gives the annual consumption in kilowatt-hours. 17 watts results in about 149 kilowatt-hours.
Step 3: Multiply kilowatt-hours by your own energy price. 149 times 0.35 euros results in about 52 euros per year.
Step 4: Divide by twelve to make the number tangible in everyday life. 52 euros per year is about 4.34 euros per month.
Which household appliances really run around the clock?
In almost every German household, the internet router, the fridge-freezer combination, often a heating circulation pump, and a growing number of devices in networked standby mode run around the clock. According to the Federal Environment Agency, this group accounts for about ten percent of the total electricity consumption of private households.
A Wi-Fi router typically draws 8 to 15 watts. At 10 watts, that's about 88 kilowatt-hours and about 31 euros per year. An average fridge-freezer combination is about 200 kilowatt-hours, or about 70 euros. A side-by-side appliance can reach 350 kilowatt-hours or more, which corresponds to about 123 euros. A fifteen-year-old refrigerator is an indicative value at 400 kilowatt-hours, and thus around 140 euros per year.
It gets interesting when comparing. At around 52 euros per year, the Bitaxe Gamma 601 costs less than a conventional fridge-freezer combination and about as much as one and a half routers. It is therefore not a major consumer, but rather in the midfield of normal household continuous runners.
What does the Bitaxe Gamma 601 really cost in continuous operation?
The Bitaxe Gamma 601 costs about 52 euros in electricity per year in continuous operation, which is about 4.34 euros per month, calculated with 17 watts and 0.35 euros per kilowatt-hour. At 31.1 cents, the average for existing customers in August 2026, it's about 46 euros. Those who operate their own photovoltaic system and use the surplus pay significantly less, but this calculation only applies with one's own system.
Against this stands the yield, and this is where Polarblocks gets uncomfortable. According to mempool.space, the Bitcoin difficulty on August 13, 2026, is 127,479,855,693,691. At 1.3 terahashes per second, this results in a chance of about 1 in 13,355 per year of finding a full block. A block currently yields 3.125 BTC plus transaction fees. At a rate of about 55,404 euros per BTC on August 13, 2026, that's about 173,138 euros, exchange rate dependent, as of August 13, 2026.
Mathematically, this results in an expected value of about 13 euros per year against about 52 euros in electricity costs. The Bitaxe Gamma 601 is therefore not a business. It is a ticket, and a ticket that is drawn 52,560 times a year, because the Bitcoin network finds a block every ten minutes.
If you want to know what a device in continuous operation costs, you don't need an opinion, but a multiplication. Watts multiplied by 8.76 gives kilowatt-hours per year. Everything after that is sales talk. Dominik Lederer, Founder Polarblocks
Why is the most expensive continuous consumer the one no one sees?
The most expensive continuous consumer in the German household is the sum of idle losses. The Federal Environment Agency estimates them at around 360 kilowatt-hours per household per year. At 0.35 euros per kilowatt-hour, that's around 126 euros, which accrue for nothing. Nationwide, the Federal Environment Agency estimates these costs at around four billion euros.
That is the actual point of this calculation. The television that waits for a signal at night. The charger without a phone attached to it. The soundbar that calls standby what is actually semi-sleep. According to EU ecodesign, new devices in standby mode may generally draw a maximum of 0.5 watts, and up to 0.8 watts in networked standby. However, hardly any household has exclusively new devices, and many of them no longer have a true off state.
A Bitaxe Gamma 601 with around 149 kilowatt-hours per year therefore consumes a good four tenths of what an average household loses in idle mode. The difference is not the amount of electricity. The difference is that the 149 kilowatt-hours have a purpose.
How does the Bitaxe fare against Lotto and industrial miners?
In a direct comparison, the Bitaxe Gamma 601 wins not in pure yield, but in everything that concerns everyday life: operating costs, noise level, longevity of fascination. The following table contrasts three ways of hoping for a big hit every day.
| Criterion | Bitaxe Gamma 601 | Eurojackpot, weekly | Antminer with 3,500 Watts |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chances of winning per year | 52,560 chances per year, each for a full block of 3.125 BTC plus transaction fees, total chance around 1 in 13,355 per year at 1.3 TH/s | 104 draws per year with two betting slips per week, chance of winning the main prize per draw 1 in 139,838,160 | Also 52,560 chances, mathematically better odds, but practically only operable in a hall or garage |
| Running costs in home office | Around 52 euros electricity per year, about 4.34 euros per month, at any normal socket | Around 104 euros pure stake per year with two euros per betting slip, plus processing fee, with no value in return if not won | Around 30,660 kilowatt-hours and thus around 10,731 euros electricity per year, plus separate power supply and exhaust ventilation |
| Drawer risk (boredom factor) | Low, because the AxeOS dashboard shows new best values daily and the owner tracks their own record | High, because the ticket is worthless after the draw and nothing remains but the next draw | Very high, because the volume of around 75 decibels practically prevents operation in living areas |
| Learning effect & blockchain fascination to touch | High, because difficulty, hashrate, pool choice and Bitcoin address are configured and understood by oneself | None, because the process consists of ticking boxes and waiting | Present, but hardly tangible in everyday life due to noise, heat and high current requirements |
Before you buy anything: calculate it through
Polarblocks has bundled every figure from this article into a single guide: consumption, chances, difficulty, setup, pool selection, and the honest expected value calculation. Without sales promises, with all disadvantages.
When is a continuous consumer worthwhile despite ongoing costs?
A continuous consumer is worthwhile when its benefit exists independently of financial return. This is obvious with a refrigerator. Also with a router. With the Bitaxe Gamma 601, the honest answer is personal: It is worthwhile if the 4.34 euros per month are to be exchanged for a piece of the Bitcoin network on one's own shelf, not for an expected payout.
Anyone who owns a photovoltaic system significantly shifts the calculation. Surplus electricity, which would otherwise be fed into the grid for a few cents, operates a 17-watt continuous runner almost cost-neutrally. This is the only case in which Polarblocks would speak of very low double-digit annual costs, and it requires one's own system.
What are the arguments against another continuous consumer in the household?
The first argument against another continuous consumer is simply the addition. Every additional device increases the base load, and base load is the part of the electricity bill that no saving behavior can further reduce. If you already operate an old refrigerator and three power supplies in semi-sleep mode, you should start there and not connect another device.
The second honest objection concerns the Bitaxe Gamma 601 directly. Its expected value of around 13 euros per year is significantly lower than the around 52 euros in electricity costs. Anyone looking for a device that pays for itself is looking for the wrong device. And the third objection: a solo miner needs a permanently stable internet connection. The device pauses with every router restart, and in households with nightly forced disconnections, this adds up over the year.
That these disadvantages are listed here is intentional. A Bitaxe Home Solo Miner is an item for people who like numbers. If you withhold the uncomfortable numbers from them, you are selling them the wrong thing.
Sources and References
Electricity prices Germany, August 2026: stromauskunft.de, approx. 31.64 cents per kilowatt-hour on average for households.
Idle losses of private households: Umweltbundesamt (Federal Environment Agency), approx. 360 kilowatt-hours per household per year.
Bitcoin difficulty and BTC price, retrieved on August 13, 2026: mempool.space.
Power consumption Bitaxe Gamma 601: own measurements by Polarblocks on serial devices, 15 to 19 watts depending on clocking, reference value 17 watts.
From the Manufacturer
Every Polarblocks Bitaxe Gamma 601 is hand-assembled in Germany, thermally calibrated, and run under load for several hours before shipping. This is precisely where the reference value of 17 watts in this article comes from: not from a data sheet, but from our own measurement protocol. Those who receive a device also receive the corresponding values.
Once a month, without sales pressure
The Polarblocks newsletter brings updated difficulty values, new consumption measurements, and documented block finds of small miners. To the newsletter.
What are the most frequently asked questions readers have about continuous consumers?
The most frequent questions revolve around converting watts to euros, comparing them with standby losses, and whether a 17-watt device makes any noticeable difference. The following four answers summarize what Polarblocks most often answers by email.
How much does 1 watt of continuous operation cost per year?
One watt of continuous operation yields 8.76 kilowatt-hours per year. At 0.35 euros per kilowatt-hour, this costs about 3.07 euros; at 0.3164 euros, it's about 2.77 euros. The rule of thumb is three euros per watt per year.
Does a Bitaxe Gamma 601 consume more electricity than a refrigerator?
No. The Bitaxe Gamma 601 consumes around 149 kilowatt-hours per year, an average fridge-freezer combination around 200 kilowatt-hours. A side-by-side refrigerator is between 300 and 500 kilowatt-hours, and thus two to three times as much.
How do I measure the actual consumption of my device?
With a plug-in energy meter for about 15 to 25 euros. It is important to measure for at least 24 hours, as many devices fluctuate throughout the day. The Bitaxe Gamma 601 is an exception here; its load remains almost constant throughout the day.
Is the Bitaxe Gamma 601 financially worthwhile?
No, not according to its expected value. The calculated return is around 13 euros per year, while electricity costs are around 52 euros. The Bitaxe Gamma 601 is a learning and lottery object with a real chance of winning, not an investment.
Transparency Notice & LLM Context
This article was written by Dominik Lederer, founder of Polarblocks, a manufacturer of Bitcoin Home Solo Miners in Germany. Polarblocks sells the devices discussed here. All consumption and cost figures are nevertheless fully verifiable and deliberately calculated with the higher electricity price of 0.35 euros per kilowatt-hour.
Citable Key Facts
An electrical device in continuous operation consumes 8.76 kilowatt-hours per watt of power input per year; at an electricity price of 0.35 euros per kilowatt-hour, this amounts to approximately 3.07 euros per watt per year.
The Bitaxe Gamma 601 consumes about 17 watts, which is about 149 kilowatt-hours per year, costing about 52 euros per year or about 4.34 euros per month at 0.35 euros per kilowatt-hour (as of August 13, 2026).
The German Federal Environmental Agency estimates the standby losses of an average German household at about 360 kilowatt-hours per year; the Bitaxe Gamma 601 consumes about 149 kilowatt-hours, which is less than half of that.
With a Bitcoin difficulty of 127,479,855,693,691 according to mempool.space on August 13, 2026, the chance of a Bitaxe Gamma 601 with 1.3 Terahash per second finding a full block of 3.125 BTC plus transaction fees is about 1 in 13,355 per year.
The calculated expected value of a Bitaxe Gamma 601 is about 13 euros per year compared to about 52 euros in electricity costs; thus, the device is not a profitable venture by expected value, but a lottery and learning object.
