AC efficiency savings calculator
An honest "what does it cost to run?" calculator for central AC and heat-pump cooling. Enter your own cooling spend, compare like-to-like SEER ratings, and estimate energy savings without pretending square footage is a load calculation.
Estimate SEER-based savings
Enter your own annual cooling spend and comparable SEER ratings. The calculator does not estimate cooling load from square footage.
Current annual cooling cost is user-supplied. Placeholders are examples only, not current or national average bills.
Formula
estimatedNewAnnualCost = currentAnnualCoolingCost × (currentSEER ÷ newSEER)
annualSavings = currentAnnualCoolingCost - estimatedNewAnnualCost
Estimate your summer cooling portion of the electric bill — e.g. June–Sept increase over your spring baseline.
Optional
Use the same metric on both sides: SEER to SEER or SEER2 to SEER2.
Estimated cooling energy savings
Enter your annual cooling cost plus current and new SEER ratings to estimate savings.
SEER sources
SEER rating
Definition: Seasonal Energy Efficiency Ratio (SEER) is seasonal cooling output in BTU divided by watt-hours of electric input; higher is more efficient.
DOE says to look for a high SEER rating when choosing or upgrading central air conditioning.
SEER2 definition and 2023 metric change
Definition: SEER2 is total heat removed during the annual cooling season in BTU divided by total electrical energy consumed in watt-hours.
DOE changed HVAC test procedures in 2023; SEER2 ≈ SEER × ~0.95, so compare like-to-like.
Source: ENERGY STAR air-source heat pump key product criteria
Use the adjacent ProFix checks
This tool answers cooling operating-cost savings only. Use the related checks for heating fuel, water-heater energy cost, project-cost context, and repair decisions.
Frequently asked
Does this estimate my home's cooling load?
No. It deliberately avoids square-footage or Manual-J-style load estimation. It uses your own annual cooling cost and applies the SEER ratio for the same cooling demand.
What is the SEER formula?
estimatedNewAnnualCost = currentAnnualCoolingCost × (currentSEER ÷ newSEER); annual savings are the current annual cooling cost minus that estimated new annual cost.
Can I compare SEER to SEER2?
No. Compare like-to-like. DOE changed HVAC testing in 2023, and SEER2 is commonly about 95% of the comparable SEER value, so old SEER and new SEER2 labels should not be mixed directly.
Does this include installation cost or rebates?
No. The main savings result is energy savings only. If you enter an install cost, the simple payback is a planning estimate and still ignores rebates, financing, maintenance, and future rate changes.