Household Cost Savings

LEDs enable us to reduce our home or building’s electricity bills, while also providing quality, mercury-free safe light. LED lighting is the economic choice because of its low electricity consumption and longer lifespan. 

Over the last few years, retrofit LED light bulbs have become significantly more affordable and accessible. In most countries, an LED bulb that replaces a compact fluorescent lamp (CFL) can often be found for the same price or sometimes slightly more expensive. In those situations, the small incremental cost of the LED lamp is quickly recovered through lower electricity bills – this is called the “payback period” where people and businesses are paid back through their energy bill savings.

Payback periods for LED bulbs are very short – usually only a matter of months. In Tanzania, for example, in a household that uses their lights for 4 hours per day, a 15-watt CFL can be replaced by an 8 watt LED costing 25% more. That additional cost is recovered in just 4 months. The LED bulb then goes on to last for years, generating more and more savings.  

National Economic Savings

At the macro level, particularly in countries and regions which are experiencing shortages in the supply of electricity, switching to mercury-free LED bulbs saves power and money at the same time. 

The Oko-Institut, an expert consultancy in Germany, calculated the net impact that a fluorescent phase-out would have in Europe. The study found net savings (including the cost of bulbs, electricity, some new fixtures and the labor to replace them) of 29.9 billion Euros.  They also calculated 309 TWh of electricity savings for Europe, which is equivalent to the electricity output of seven large (500 MW) coal-fired power plants over 15 years.