Costs to run halogen oven explained as energy bills soar from today

01 January 2024 , 14:44

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Halogen ovens can be cheaper to run than ovens (Image: Getty Images/iStockphoto)

With a £94 increase to the average household energy bill coming into effect today, on January 1, after Ofgem raised its price cap, people will no doubt be looking for ways to save their money.

The regulator's price cap is soaring by 5% from £1,835 for a typical duel fuel household to £1,928 due to rising costs in the international wholesale energy market. In response to rising prices, people have started looking for new ways to save money when cooking - with air fryers surging in popularity over the past years.

What makes air fryers, which circulate hot air around a food, so popular is that they are hugely versatile, and can create a 'fried' finish on food - and it's also cheaper to run than a conventional oven. But they aren't the only option when it comes to cheap ways to cook food.

Many Brits are also raving about the humble halogen oven, which is also fairly cheap to run compared to a traditional oven, and can sometimes be cheaper to buy than an air fryer, depending on which is on offer. The halogen over is also a countertop oven which uses a halogen lamp to cook the food - and as a bonus compared to air fryers, you can actually see what's happening inside due to the glass bowl.

So how much does a halogen oven cost to run compared to a traditional one? Which? compared the cheapest ways to cook food based on the average capped rate for direct debit customers from October 1, which was 27p per kWh, and found that halogen ovens were a good alternative.

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For example, when cooking chips, a halogen oven cost 5p less than an oven. If you're cooking a jacket potato, you can save 5p by cooking it in a halogen oven compared to a build-in oven, and it will only cost you 25p.

It's important to remember that the amount of money it costs to run a halogen oven will vary depending on the model. Some models claim to cost 75% less to run than a conventional oven. According to Beeco, "halogen ovens will consume 75% less electricity in comparison to conventional ovens. Since the lamps halogens oven use are more efficient they will also cook faster, reducing the working time thus energy consumption even more".

Halogen ovens can be relatively cheap when it comes to upfront cost, but it all depends on the model of each appliance. Another added benefit of the halogen oven is that they are generally bigger than air fryers, which means you can fit more food inside to cook for your family - which could make it a cheaper alternative overall. On Amazon you can currently pick up a 12L 'energy efficient halogen oven for just £26.90.

Ariane Sohrabi-Shiraz