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Electric vs Gas Lawn Equipment Savings Calculator

Compare the annual fuel/electricity cost and emissions of gas-powered versus battery-electric lawn equipment.

Result

Annual Cost Savings
$21
Annual Gas Equipment Cost
$26
Annual Electric Equipment Cost
$4.8
CO2 Emissions Avoided
66.7 kg

Small gas engines in lawn equipment lack the emissions controls found in cars, so the EPA has found handheld gas equipment like leaf blowers and trimmers can produce disproportionately high pollution per hour of operation relative to their fuel use.

About the Electric Lawn Equipment Savings

The Electric vs Gas Lawn Equipment Savings Calculator estimates the yearly fuel or electricity cost, and the CO2 emissions, of running gas powered versus battery electric mowers, trimmers, or blowers. It is built for homeowners weighing a switch to cordless yard tools who want a cost figure beyond just the upfront purchase price. Because it covers general lawn equipment rather than mowers specifically, the usage hours input can represent one tool or a combined total across several.

How It Works

You enter total annual usage hours along with gas consumption rate, gas price, electricity rate, and the electric equipment's power draw, with the last two available as adjustable advanced fields that carry common default values. The calculator multiplies hours by consumption rate for each power source to get gallons of gas or kWh of electricity used, then applies the relevant price to get annual cost. Gas gallons used are also converted into a CO2 emissions figure.

Gas fuel used (gal) = Usage hours x Gas consumption rate (gal/hr). Gas cost = Gas fuel used x Gas price. Electric energy used (kWh) = Usage hours x Electric draw (kWh/hr). Electric cost = Electric energy used x Electricity rate. CO2 avoided (kg) = Gas fuel used x 8.887 kg CO2/gal. Annual savings = Gas cost - Electric cost.

Examples

Default Single Tool Use

At 25 hours a year, 0.3 gal/hr gas use, $3.50 gas, and a 1.2 kWh/hr electric tool at $0.16 per kWh, gas equipment costs about $26.25 a year against $4.80 for electric, an annual savings of roughly $21.45 and about 66.7 kg of CO2 avoided.

Heavier Combined Equipment Use

At 50 hours a year across a trimmer and blower, 0.25 gal/hr, $4.00 gas, and a 1.0 kWh/hr electric setup at $0.14 per kWh, gas costs about $50 versus $7 for electric, saving roughly $43 a year and avoiding about 111.1 kg of CO2.

Advantages

  • Works for any handheld or push lawn equipment, not just mowers, since usage hours and consumption rates are fully adjustable.
  • Exposes both the cost and emissions side of a gas to electric switch in one result instead of requiring two separate lookups.
  • Advanced fields let you match the calculation to a specific electric tool's power draw and your actual local electricity rate.

Common Mistakes

  • Entering usage hours for a single tool while intending the gas price and fuel consumption fields to represent an entire fleet of gas equipment.
  • Leaving the advanced electric draw and electricity rate fields at their defaults when your specific electric tool or utility rate differs meaningfully.
  • Reading the CO2 figure as a complete environmental comparison rather than the tailpipe emissions avoided from gasoline alone.

Edge Cases to Watch For

  • The CO2 figure only counts avoided emissions from burning gasoline. It does not net out emissions from generating the electricity used to charge batteries, so it isn't a full life cycle comparison.
  • Because electricity rate and electric draw sit in separate advanced fields, leaving them at their defaults compares against a generic mid power electric tool rather than the specific model you own.
  • Zero usage hours drives every output to zero, so the result is only meaningful once realistic annual hours are entered for the equipment being compared.

Common Use Cases

  • Homeowners deciding whether to replace an aging gas trimmer, blower, or edger with a battery electric model.
  • Landscaping businesses estimating fuel savings potential before converting a crew's equipment to battery power.
  • Anyone building a rough case for electric yard tools based on annual operating cost rather than upfront price.
Written & fact-checked by the Calculateus TeamLast updated August 5, 2026How we verify our formulas

Frequently asked questions

Is battery-electric lawn equipment powerful enough to replace gas equipment?

Modern battery-electric mowers, trimmers, and blowers have closed much of the performance gap with gas equivalents for typical residential-size yards, though very large properties or heavy-duty commercial use may still favor gas for longer continuous runtime - for most homeowners, battery equipment now handles routine yard maintenance without difficulty.

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Conclusion

Because small gas engines in handheld yard equipment aren't held to the same emissions controls as cars, the cost savings shown here often come paired with a meaningful drop in local air pollution per hour of use, even before accounting for noise or maintenance differences.