How much does it cost to light a Christmas tree?
Christmas just isn’t the same without a beautiful tree dressed in baubles and bright lights. If you’re wondering how much it’ll cost to keep the lights on this festive season, we did the math so you don’t have to – and the good news is that these lovely illuminations don’t need to have a huge impact on your energy bill!
We researched lighting costs for various-sized Christmas trees, from two feet tall to 10, and looked at both incandescent and LED bulbs to see which ones are most cost-efficient to ensure you get to make the most out of your holiday decorations this December.
Family Christmas Trees
The most popular tree size is usually around 7ft tall and to light one, you need around 467 bulbs.
Draping LED lights on a tree of this size for the whole of December will cost you just £6 if you turn them on from 5pm to 11pm for 30 days. The same number of incandescent lights will cost you £33.62 per month! Incandescent bulbs use a lot of energy compared to LEDs, making them far more expensive.
| Height of tree | Number of bulbs needed | LED KWH usage | Cost of running LED hour | Cost of running LED total | Incandescent KWH usage | Cost of running incandescent hour | Cost of running incandescent total |
| 2 ft | 133 | 0.02793 | £0.01 | £1.71 | 0.3192 | £0.11 | £9.58 |
| 3 ft | 200 | 0.042 | £0.01 | £2.57 | 0.48 | £0.16 | £14.40 |
| 4 ft | 267 | 0.05607 | £0.02 | £3.43 | 0.6408 | £0.22 | £19.22 |
| 5 ft | 333 | 0.06993 | £0.02 | £4.28 | 0.7992 | £0.27 | £23.98 |
| 6 ft | 400 | 0.084 | £0.03 | £5.14 | 0.96 | £0.33 | £28.80 |
| 7 ft | 467 | 0.09807 | £0.03 | £6.00 | 1.1208 | £0.38 | £33.62 |
| 8 ft | 533 | 0.11193 | £0.04 | £6.85 | 1.2792 | £0.43 | £38.38 |
| 9 ft | 600 | 0.126 | £0.04 | £7.71 | 1.44 | £0.49 | £43.20 |
| 10 ft | 667 | 0.14007 | £0.05 | £8.57 | 1.6008 | £0.54 | £48.02 |
Notable Christmas Trees
London is undoubtedly one of the best cities to visit during the festive season. The markets, bustling streets and decorations create an incredible buzz. So, we had to take a look at some of London’s iconic Christmas trees and how much it costs to light them.
Lighting the Covent Garden Christmas tree – at a whopping 55 feet tall – requires almost 4,000 bulbs. Having LED lights on for the whole of December would cost £47.13, while incandescent lights would cost £264.02!
The tallest and most expensive Christmas tree to light in London is the gigantic 82 feet tall tree in Wembley Park, which requires more than 5,000 bulbs! If decorated with incandescent bulbs, this iconic festive sight would cost a staggering £393.62 for December!
We also looked at some of the most iconic Christmas trees worldwide. A 115 feet tall tree in Puerta del Sol Square in Madrid needs 7,667 bulbs, racking up an energy bill of £98.54 for LED and £552.02 for incandescent lights.
Lighting up the 98 feet tall Christmas tree in Moscow’s Red Square with its required 6,533 bulbs will cost £83.96 using LED bulbs and £470.38 with incandescent.
| Tree | Number of bulbs needed | LED KWH usage | Cost of running LED hour | Cost of running LED total | Incandescent KWH usage | Cost of running incandescent hour | Cost of running incandescent total |
| Coal Drops Yard (London) 35ft | 2,333 | 0.48993 | £0.17 | £29.98 | 5.5992 | £1.90 | £167.98 |
| Manger Square (Bethlehem) 39ft | 3,600 | 0.756 | £0.26 | £46.27 | 8.64 | £2.94 | £259.20 |
| Covent Garden (London) 55ft | 3,667 | 0.77007 | £0.26 | £47.13 | 8.8008 | £2.99 | £264.02 |
| Trafalgar Square (London) 66ft | 4,400 | 0.924 | £0.31 | £56.55 | 10.56 | £3.59 | £316.80 |
| Martin Place (Sydney) 66ft | 4,400 | 0.924 | £0.31 | £56.55 | 10.56 | £3.59 | £316.80 |
| Galeries Lafayette (Paris) 69ft | 4,600 | 0.966 | £0.33 | £59.12 | 11.04 | £3.75 | £331.20 |
| Brandenburg Gate (Berlin) 69ft | 4,600 | 0.966 | £0.33 | £59.12 | 11.04 | £3.75 | £331.20 |
| Capitol Hill (Washington D.C.) 78ft | 5,200 | 1.092 | £0.37 | £66.83 | 12.48 | £4.24 | £374.40 |
| Wembley Park (London) 82ft | 5,467 | 1.14807 | £0.39 | £70.26 | 13.1208 | £4.46 | £393.62 |
| Rockefeller Christmas Tree (NYC) 82 ft | 5,467 | 1.14807 | £0.39 | £70.26 | 13.1208 | £4.46 | £393.62 |
| Old Town Square (Prague) 82ft | 5,467 | 1.14807 | £0.39 | £70.26 | 13.1208 | £4.46 | £393.62 |
| Christkindelsmärik (Strasbourg) 98ft | 6,533 | 1.37193 | £0.47 | £83.96 | 15.6792 | £5.33 | £470.38 |
| Red Square (Moscow) 98ft | 6,533 | 1.37193 | £0.47 | £83.96 | 15.6792 | £5.33 | £470.38 |
| Piazza del Duomo (Milan) 98ft | 6,533 | 1.37193 | £0.47 | £83.96 | 15.6792 | £5.33 | £470.38 |
| Puerta del Sol Square (Madrid) 115ft | 7,667 | 1.61007 | £0.55 | £98.54 | 18.4008 | £6.26 | £552.02 |
| Zócalo Square (Mexico City) 362ft | 24,133 | 5.06793 | £1.72 | £310.16 | 57.9192 | £19.69 | £1,737.58 |
| Petronas Twin Towers (Kuala Lumpur) 1,483ft | 98,867 | 20.7621 | £7.06 | £1,270.64 | 237.281 | £80.68 | £7,118.42 |
| Monte Cucco (Gubbio) 2,461ft | 164,067 | 34.4541 | £11.71 | £2,108.59 | 393.761 | £133.88 | £11,812.82 |
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