Where It’s Most Expensive to Take a Shower in America

How much does your daily rinse really cost?

From the moment you twist the faucet to that final rinse, your shower isn’t just washing off stress, it’s washing away dollars, too. As water and energy prices vary across the U.S., so does the cost of enjoying a hot shower. Badeloft USA crunched the numbers to uncover where in America it’s the most expensive to take a shower, based on the combined cost of water, electricity, and gas.

We looked at both the cost per individual shower and the estimated cost of showering daily for an entire year. Whether you’re a fan of long soaks or lightning-fast spritzes, here’s how your state stacks up.

Key Findings

• West Virginia ranks as the most expensive state for showering, with each shower costing $0.35 and the yearly total reaching $108.40.
• States with higher energy prices (like Hawaii) or water costs (like Alaska) see the biggest hit to your wallet.
• Even in the more affordable states on this list, such as Nevada and Arizona, a year of showers can still cost nearly $60.

States Where Showers Cost the Most – Yearly Ranking

We calculated the cost of a year’s worth of daily showers in each state based on average utility rates. Here are the top 10 most expensive states to shower in:

West Virginia tops the list at $108.40 per year, driven by high utility rates across the board. Oregon, Alaska, and Hawaii follow closely, each exceeding $85 annually. In contrast, Nevada is the cheapest state to shower in, at just $58.39 per year, thanks to low water and gas costs. Western states like Washington and California land in the middle, where moderate utility prices still add up over time.

States with the Most Expensive Showers – Cost Per Shower

For those who count every penny or track energy use per shower, here’s how much each rinse is costing you:

West Virginia is the most expensive state to take a shower, with each one costing about $0.35. Other high-cost states include Oregon, Alaska, and Hawaii, all exceeding $0.28 per shower. The study highlights how varying utility rates across the U.S. make a simple daily shower significantly more costly in some states than others.

Why Is Showering So Expensive in Some States?

In states like Hawaii and Alaska, high utility rates are to blame—especially electricity and gas. In West Virginia, the combined cost of water and energy drives up the expense of what many consider a basic daily habit.

Meanwhile, states with relatively cheaper water or energy, like Nevada, still land in the top 10 due to higher-than-average usage rates or local surcharges.

Methodology and Notes

To determine where in the U.S. it’s most expensive to take a shower, we analyzed average residential utility costs across all 50 states. Our goal was to estimate the cost of a single eight-minute shower based on local prices for water, electricity, and natural gas—the three primary utilities used during a typical shower. We then used these single-shower estimates to calculate the cost of showering once a day over the course of a year.

We began by collecting publicly available data on average monthly water, electricity, and gas bills in each state. These monthly utility figures were then normalized using national household consumption benchmarks, such as 6,000 gallons of water, 900 kWh of electricity, and 50 therms of gas per month, to derive per-unit costs for each utility. This allowed for consistent comparisons across states, regardless of usage variations.

To model a standard shower, we assumed an average duration of eight minutes, using 2.1 gallons of water per minute, totaling 16.8 gallons per shower. Energy used to heat this water was calculated using estimates from the Department of Energy: approximately 0.35 kWh for electric heating and 0.03 therms for gas heating. We applied a national average heating method split of 60% gas and 40% electric to reflect how U.S. households typically heat water. We also factored in a small energy cost for lighting, based on a 15-watt LED fixture operating for the duration of the shower.

With these inputs, we calculated the total cost of a single shower in each state by summing the water cost, a weighted average of gas and electric heating costs, and the lighting cost. We then multiplied the single-shower total by 365 to estimate annual showering expenses, assuming one shower per day.

This methodology offers a consistent, data-driven look at how much Americans are paying to take a shower depending on where they live, highlighting the significant impact of regional utility rates on even the most basic daily routines.

Jessie F