How much electricity does a countertop indoor garden use?

The quick answer

Click & Grow currently lists the Smart Garden 3 at 8 watts and 3.8 kWh per month, and the Smart Garden 9 at 13 watts and 6.2 kWh per month. Those monthly figures align closely with the brand's automatic 16-hours-on, 8-hours-off lamp cycle.

LetPot lists a 24-watt full-spectrum light for the 12-pod LPH-SE and allows a custom lighting schedule. The system also has a water pump. Because LetPot does not publish one comparable whole-system monthly-kWh number on the product page, its real monthly use should not be presented as if it were only the lamp calculation.

• Smart Garden 3: manufacturer figure of 3.8 kWh per month.
• Smart Garden 9: manufacturer figure of 6.2 kWh per month.
• LetPot LPH-SE: 24W light, adjustable schedule, and a pump; calculate the light separately unless total system use has been measured.

Use this formula for any grow light

Monthly electricity use in kWh equals watts multiplied by operating hours per day and days per month, then divided by 1,000. For a light rated at 24 watts and run for 16 hours a day over 30 days, the light-only estimate is 24 × 16 × 30 ÷ 1,000 = 11.52 kWh per month.

That result is an estimate for the rated light, not a promise about the whole appliance. A dimming mode may draw less than the nameplate maximum, while a pump, display, Wi-Fi radio, or power-adapter losses may add consumption outside the lamp figure.

Turn kWh into your own monthly cost

Find the electricity price per kWh on your utility bill, including any rate tier that applies to the next unit of use. Multiply the garden's estimated monthly kWh by that local rate. This is more accurate than copying a cost claim from another country, state, season, or time-of-use plan.

For example, the Smart Garden 9 calculation is simply 6.2 multiplied by your local price per kWh. Keep the result as a range if your utility charges different rates by time of day or if the garden's schedule changes across the year.

Why the smaller garden is not automatically cheaper per plant

The Smart Garden 3 uses less electricity in total than the Smart Garden 9, but it also has fewer planting positions. Dividing a published monthly figure by the number of slots can be a useful capacity check, yet it is not a harvest-efficiency score: an empty pod, failed seedling, shaded herb, or overgrown basil changes how much food you receive from the same lamp cycle.

Choose capacity by the number of plants you can maintain and use, not by wattage alone. A partly empty nine-pod garden may waste more lit area than a well-used three-pod garden, while a fully used larger unit may distribute its lamp energy across more crops.

Light schedules change the estimate

Click & Grow's standard timer uses a fixed 16-hour light period followed by 8 hours of darkness. Unplugging and reconnecting the garden restarts that cycle, so the time of day you plug it in determines when the lamp runs.

LetPot markets app-controlled custom light schedules. If you change the number of daily light hours, put the new runtime into the formula rather than assuming a fixed monthly number. Do not cut a plant's required light merely to lower the estimate; weak or stretched growth can erase the value of the energy you saved.

Pumps and controls need a separate check

A passive wick garden has no circulating pump, so the lamp dominates its published electricity use. A conventional hydroponic garden may cycle a pump and power app or touch controls in addition to the LED panel. Product pages often emphasize lamp wattage without publishing an all-in monthly total.

For a model with no whole-system figure, a plug-in energy meter is the cleanest way to check the complete appliance over several normal days. Use a properly rated meter, keep it away from spills, and follow the appliance and meter safety instructions. Average the measured kWh per day, then multiply by the number of days in the month.

What to compare before buying

Ask whether the listed watts cover only the light or the complete system, whether brightness changes by mode, how long the default schedule runs, and whether a pump operates continuously or in cycles. A clear monthly-kWh figure is easier to compare than a bare watt number.

Running cost belongs beside refill pods, nutrients, replacement sponges, and cleaning time—not in place of them. For a small indoor garden, the better purchase is the one whose capacity, light height, noise, consumables, and maintenance fit your kitchen well enough to stay in use.

The practical verdict

Use Click & Grow's published 3.8 and 6.2 kWh monthly figures when comparing the Smart Garden 3 and 9. For a 24-watt adjustable hydroponic light, calculate a light-only estimate from the actual schedule and label it clearly; do not quietly treat it as total appliance use.

Then multiply the monthly kWh by your own electricity rate. That keeps the comparison current, local, and honest—and avoids turning a small appliance estimate into an exaggerated savings or cost claim.