Hot Tubs at Home

How Much Does It Cost to Run a Hot Tub in the UK?

It’s one of the first questions we’re asked by people considering buying a hot tub:

“How much will it actually cost me to run?”

It’s a very sensible question.

Unfortunately, anyone who gives you one exact figure without knowing anything about the hot tub, where it’s going, how you’ll use it or what you’re paying for electricity is making a rather large assumption.

A hot tub doesn’t have one universal running cost.

The good news is that once you understand what affects its electricity consumption, it’s much easier to understand what you’re likely to be paying — and why choosing the right spa in the first place matters.

What Actually Uses Electricity in a Hot Tub?

Your hot tub uses electricity for several different jobs.

The main ones are:

The heater is an important part of the equation, but simply looking at the heater’s kW rating won’t tell you what a hot tub costs to run.

A heater doesn’t necessarily operate continuously.

Once the water reaches the required temperature, a well-insulated hot tub is designed to retain as much of that heat as possible and only call for additional heat when necessary.

That brings us to one of the biggest factors of all.

Insulation Matters

Two hot tubs that look similar from the outside can perform very differently when it comes to retaining heat.

Every time heat escapes from the spa, energy has to be used to replace it.

The construction and insulation of the hot tub therefore matter.

When comparing spas, don’t just compare the number of jets, lights, waterfalls and gadgets.

Ask how the spa is insulated.

Ask about the cabinet construction.

Look at the quality of the cover.

And ask the retailer to explain what has actually been done to reduce heat loss.

A cheaper hot tub isn’t necessarily cheaper to own if it requires considerably more energy to maintain its temperature.

Your Hot Tub Cover Is More Important Than You Might Think

The surface of the water is an obvious opportunity for heat to escape, which makes a properly fitting, well-insulated cover extremely important.

Keep the cover fitted whenever the spa isn’t being used and look after it.

An old cover that has become damaged or waterlogged won’t perform in the same way as a good-quality cover in good condition.

If your cover has become extremely heavy, is damaged, no longer fits correctly or has noticeably deteriorated, it may be time to consider replacing it.

A good cover isn’t just there to keep leaves out of the water.

It’s part of the hot tub’s insulation system.

How Hot You Keep It Makes a Difference

The greater the difference between the temperature of your spa water and the temperature outside, the harder the hot tub has to work to retain its heat.

That means maintaining a hot tub at a high temperature through a cold British winter will generally require more energy than maintaining the same spa during milder weather.

Your preferred water temperature therefore affects your running costs.

That doesn’t mean you need to spend your ownership constantly turning the temperature up and down.

For a hot tub that’s used regularly, maintaining a sensible, consistent temperature is often more practical than repeatedly allowing a large volume of water to cool substantially and then reheating it.

How Often You Use Your Hot Tub Matters Too

There’s a slightly obvious point here that sometimes gets missed:

Using your hot tub uses energy.

When you remove the cover, heat escapes.

When you run the massage pumps, they consume electricity.

A family using its hot tub for an hour every evening will therefore have a different usage pattern from somebody using the same model twice a week.

That’s why two neighbours could own identical hot tubs and still receive different electricity bills.

Spa Size Makes a Difference

A compact hot tub containing a relatively small volume of water isn’t directly comparable with a large family spa — and neither is directly comparable with a swim spa.

More water means more water to heat and maintain.

However, size is only part of the picture.

A larger, well-insulated spa can still be a far more sensible proposition than a poorly insulated product that continually loses heat.

When you’re comparing running costs, look at the complete design rather than one specification in isolation.

What About the British Weather?

Unfortunately, Northamptonshire has yet to develop a tropical climate.

Cold air, wind and freezing temperatures all increase the challenge of keeping a body of water warm outdoors.

The position of the spa can make some difference too.

A very exposed location may lose heat differently from a sheltered garden installation.

This doesn’t mean you need to build a bunker around your hot tub.

It simply means that climate and location are part of the running-cost equation.

How Much Does Electricity Cost?

Electricity is charged in kilowatt hours — usually written as kWh.

The simplest calculation is:

Electricity used in kWh × your electricity unit rate = cost

For example, if an appliance uses 5kWh of electricity and your tariff charges 26p per kWh:

5 × £0.26 = £1.30

That is simply an example to show how the calculation works — it is NOT a claim that a hot tub uses 5kWh per day.

Your actual electricity tariff can be found on your energy bill or supplier’s app.

Electricity prices change, tariffs differ and some households have different peak and off-peak rates, so using your own unit price will always give you a more meaningful calculation than relying on an old internet article quoting electricity prices from several years ago.

What Is the Current UK Electricity Price?

At the time this article was written in September 2026, Ofgem’s average electricity unit rate for a household on a standard variable tariff paying by Direct Debit was 26.11p per kWh.

From 1 October 2026, the published average rate is 26.32p per kWh.

These are national averages for the relevant Ofgem price-cap periods, not the rate every household pays.

Your actual rate depends on your tariff, region, meter and payment arrangements, so always check your own electricity bill when calculating your likely costs.

Could a Heat Pump Reduce Hot Tub Heating Costs?

For some installations, a correctly specified hot tub heat pump can reduce the amount of electricity required to provide heat to the water.

Instead of creating all of its heat directly through an electric heating element, a heat pump transfers heat from the surrounding air into the water.

That’s why you may hear figures such as COP — or Coefficient of Performance — when people talk about heat pumps.

But this is another area where headline numbers don’t tell the whole story.

Heat-pump performance can vary according to outside temperature, water temperature, installation, airflow, specification and the individual unit.

And simply buying something advertised online as a “7kW heat pump” doesn’t tell you how efficiently it will perform in your particular installation.

We’re preparing a separate guide explaining hot tub heat pumps properly, including what the specifications actually mean, how they should be installed and when fitting one makes sense.

Can I Reduce My Hot Tub Running Costs?

Absolutely — and most of the sensible measures aren’t particularly complicated.

Start with the fundamentals:

Be cautious about trying to save electricity by simply switching a hot tub off and allowing it to go cold between regular uses.

Hot tubs are designed to maintain their water temperature, and repeated large temperature changes aren’t necessarily the most practical way to operate a spa that’s being used frequently.

Don’t Buy a Hot Tub on Running Cost Alone

Running costs matter.

We think customers should ask about them.

But they shouldn’t be considered in isolation.

The right hot tub also needs to suit the people using it, the space available, the way you want to use it and your budget.

A beautifully efficient two-person spa isn’t much use to a family of five.

Equally, buying far more hot tub than you need means heating and maintaining a larger volume of water unnecessarily.

The aim is to find the right balance between size, specification, insulation, performance and purchase price.

Ask Us the Awkward Question

We’ve been selling hot tubs since 2006, so we’re quite accustomed to being asked:

“Yes, but what is this actually going to cost me to run?”

And we’d much rather you ask.

When you’re comparing hot tubs, talk to us about the particular models you’re considering, how you expect to use the spa and the options available for improving energy efficiency.

We won’t pretend that every customer, every hot tub and every electricity tariff produces the same number.

Because they don’t.

What we can do is help you understand what you’re buying, what affects its energy consumption and how to operate it sensibly.

After all, your hot tub is supposed to be something you enjoy — not something that makes you frightened to open the electricity bill.

Hot Tubs At Home Towcester, Northamptonshire Established 2006

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