At an assumed constant 100 watts, running OBS continuously uses 2.4 kWh per day, 72 kWh in a 30-day month, and 876 kWh over 365 days. The electricity cost is those units multiplied by the applicable energy charge on your bill.
For example, if the relevant energy charge is ₹4.50 per kWh, the added energy charge for a 30-day month is ₹324. That is an illustration of one Chhattisgarh slab, not a nationwide Indian rate, and it does not include fixed charges, duties, adjustments, or subsidies.
The short answer: 100 watts running all day
The calculation starts with the assumed load, not with OBS as a piece of software. A computer running OBS may draw more or less than 100 watts depending on its processor, graphics hardware, display, cooling, storage, network equipment and workload. The 100 W figure is therefore a scenario for calculation, not a universal measurement of an OBS computer.
At 100 W for 24 hours, the energy use is:
| Period | Energy used at a constant 100 W |
|---|---|
| One hour | 0.1 kWh |
| One day | 2.4 kWh |
| 30-day month | 72 kWh |
| 365-day year | 876 kWh |
In everyday electricity billing, a kWh is often called a unit. So this setup adds 2.4 units per day, 72 units over a 30-day month, and 876 units over a year, assuming it operates without interruption and the average draw really is 100 W.
These totals describe energy consumption only. They do not say what your bill will increase by until you apply the tariff that covers your connection. They also do not include the rest of the household’s consumption.
If you are still deciding whether a local computer is appropriate for an always-on channel, the practical alternative is covered in how to stream temple bhajans on YouTube without a computer. The electricity arithmetic below remains useful whichever arrangement you choose, provided you know the actual power draw.
Convert watts to kilowatts first
Electricity tariffs are normally expressed in rupees per kilowatt-hour, so watts must be converted to kilowatts before calculating energy use.
There are 1,000 watts in one kilowatt:
100 W ÷ 1,000 = 0.1 kW
That means the assumed computer load is 0.1 kW. To find energy use for any period, multiply that power by the number of hours:
Energy in kWh = power in kW × operating time in hours
For one day of uninterrupted operation:
0.1 kW × 24 hours = 2.4 kWh
This is the key conversion. It prevents a common mistake: multiplying 100 watts directly by 24 and treating the result as units. The result must first be expressed in kilowatts and then multiplied by time.
The same method works for another measured load. If the wall draw averages 65 W, use 0.065 kW. If it averages 140 W, use 0.14 kW. The tariff part of the calculation does not change; only the energy total changes.
Daily, monthly and annual energy use
Once the daily figure is known, the longer periods are straightforward. For the 100 W example:
Daily: 2.4 kWh × 1 day = 2.4 kWh
30-day month: 2.4 kWh × 30 days = 72 kWh
365-day year: 2.4 kWh × 365 days = 876 kWh
The 30-day figure is a deliberate billing-period example. Your electricity bill may cover a different number of days, so for a more precise estimate use the number of days in that bill period:
Billing-period kWh = 0.1 kW × 24 × billing-period days
For instance, a 28-day period would be 67.2 kWh, while a 31-day period would be 74.4 kWh. These are arithmetic results from the same assumed constant load, not separate tariff estimates.
A year can also contain downtime. If you switch the computer off for maintenance, lose power, or stop the broadcast overnight, actual consumption will be lower than 876 kWh. Conversely, accessories left powered after OBS stops can continue using electricity and should be counted if they are part of the measured setup.
For a channel that uses a monitor only during setup, do not automatically add the monitor’s maximum rated wattage to the 24-hour load. Measure or estimate what is actually drawn while the monitor is off, asleep or disconnected. The same applies to speakers, external hard drives, capture cards, routers, lighting and an uninterruptible power supply.
Apply your bill’s energy charge
Let R mean the applicable energy charge in rupees per kWh. The basic cost formulas are:
Daily energy charge = 2.4 × R
30-day energy charge = 72 × R
Annual energy charge = 876 × R
These formulas estimate the energy-charge portion attributable to the 100 W load. They are not automatically the full increase in your electricity bill.
Here is how the arithmetic looks when different energy charges are used. These are calculation examples, not a claim that each rate applies to every Indian household.
| Applicable energy charge | Daily energy charge | 30-day energy charge | Annual energy charge |
|---|---|---|---|
| ₹3.55/kWh | ₹8.52 | ₹255.60 | ₹3,109.80 |
| ₹4.50/kWh | ₹10.80 | ₹324.00 | ₹3,942.00 |
| ₹6.00/kWh | ₹14.40 | ₹432.00 | ₹5,256.00 |
| ₹7.00/kWh | ₹16.80 | ₹504.00 | ₹6,132.00 |
| ₹8.80/kWh | ₹21.12 | ₹633.60 | ₹7,708.80 |
The ₹4.50 example is based on the Chhattisgarh State Electricity Regulatory Commission’s FY 2026–27 domestic schedule, which lists ₹4.50 per kWh for the 101–200 unit range. If that rate were the applicable marginal energy charge for the added consumption, 72 kWh would produce ₹324 in energy charges for a 30-day month. It is a Chhattisgarh slab illustration, not an India-wide rate.
The CSERC FY 2026–27 tariff schedule also lists higher energy charges for later domestic ranges. The schedule describes telescopic billing, so you should not assume that every added unit is charged at the highest rate shown for your household. The applicable result depends on the tariff rules and the household’s existing consumption.
For another illustration of regional variation, the Department of Electricity, Lakshadweep lists different FY 2026–27 domestic energy charges, including ₹3.55 per kWh for 0–100 units and ₹5.30 for 101–200 units. Its schedule has separate fixed charges as well. These named examples show why there is no single domestic electricity price that can be applied to all of India.
Why the total bill can differ
The formula above isolates the energy used by the streaming setup. Your bill can differ because electricity bills commonly contain more than an energy charge.
Your existing household usage affects the slab
The 72 kWh added by the computer is combined with the home’s other consumption for billing purposes. A household using very little electricity may remain within lower ranges after adding the streaming load. A household already near a threshold may have some or all of the additional units billed under a different part of its tariff.
This is why multiplying 72 by a convenient rate can be useful for a quick estimate but may not reproduce the exact bill. With telescopic schedules, units can be priced in stages rather than all being charged at the rate attached to the final range.
Fixed charges are separate
A tariff can include a fixed monthly charge that is payable whether or not energy is consumed. Running OBS may not change that charge, but it remains part of the total bill. The CSERC schedule separately lists fixed monthly charges and notes that fixed charges apply whether or not energy is consumed.
Do not add the full fixed charge to the streaming cost unless you are comparing two complete connection scenarios and know that the charge changes between them. For most readers, the relevant question is the marginal cost of adding the 100 W load to an existing connection.
Other bill components can apply
Depending on the jurisdiction and connection, the bill may include duties, electricity taxes, adjustments, wheeling or other listed components. State subsidies may also affect what a consumer pays. The research here does not establish how those items apply to your connection, so they should not be folded into the ₹324 illustration.
The Ministry of Power states that electricity tariffs in India are determined by the appropriate electricity regulatory commissions, and that state governments may provide subsidies. You can read the Ministry of Power statement before checking the tariff order for your own area.
Check the computer and the complete setup
A 100 W assumption is useful only if it resembles the power drawn at the wall. OBS may be encoding, reading media, rendering scenes and sending a stream continuously, but its power use depends on the computer and settings rather than on the name OBS alone.
Include equipment that remains powered as part of the streaming arrangement. That may include:
- the computer running OBS
- a monitor that stays on
- an audio interface or capture device
- external storage
- the router or network equipment used for the channel
- speakers, lights or other accessories left running
- a UPS, if you are measuring power drawn from the wall rather than only the computer output
Avoid adding equipment twice. If your 100 W measurement was taken at the wall with the monitor, router and accessories connected, that measurement already includes them. If 100 W is only the computer’s internal estimate, add the other devices separately or measure the complete arrangement.
Streaming settings can affect load. A higher output resolution, frame rate or bitrate may require more processing, although the relationship is not identical for every computer. For the broadcast side, see the practical YouTube live stream bitrate settings for 24/7 bhajans. That guidance concerns stream configuration, while this article concerns electricity measured at the wall.
If the computer’s draw changes between menus, playback and encoding, use an average rather than a brief peak. The U.S. Department of Energy’s guidance on measuring fluctuating and standby power recommends measuring over a period and using that period to determine average power. A plug-in electricity usage meter can record watts and accumulated kWh, but no particular model is evaluated here.
One practical method is to measure the complete setup for a representative period, record the accumulated kWh, and divide by the number of hours measured. Then use that average in the same formula:
Average kW = measured kWh ÷ measured hours
Estimated monthly kWh = average kW × 24 × 30
This is more useful than relying on a computer’s power-supply rating. A power supply marked 500 W describes its capacity, not necessarily the power the computer draws while streaming.
Compare the cost with the operating arrangement
Electricity is only one part of running OBS continuously. A local computer also needs a stable connection, cooling, maintenance and a way to recover after a crash, power cut or lost internet connection. If the channel must continue while you are away, consider what happens after a restart, an update or a brief network failure.
You can reduce energy use by measuring the real load, using hardware acceleration where it suits the setup, turning off an unnecessary monitor, and avoiding accessories that do not need to remain powered. Do not lower settings blindly if that causes dropped frames or an unreliable broadcast. The aim is a stable average load, not the lowest possible wattage at the expense of the channel.
A hosted arrangement can remove the need to keep your own computer switched on. StreamNeo is intended for this specific pain: upload the video once, provide the YouTube stream key, and let the channel run without your computer remaining on, with automatic monitoring and restart if the broadcast drops. It is YouTube-only, so check that this matches your publishing plan.
That does not make every hosted arrangement cheaper in every situation. A computer may already be available, may be needed for other work, or may draw less than the assumed 100 W. A hosted option may be more useful when avoiding overnight heat, local power interruptions and hands-on recovery matters more than the energy charge alone. Compare the whole operating requirement rather than treating ₹324 as a universal monthly answer.
If your channel loops a prepared file, also check the media workflow before leaving it unattended. The guide to repeating a video in OBS without restarting the YouTube stream addresses the broadcast behaviour, while your meter tells you what that arrangement costs to run.
Before committing, compare the operating options on the pricing page. When the file and channel are ready, start free — 24-hour trial, no card.
FAQ
Is ₹324 the electricity cost of running OBS for a month in India?
No. ₹324 is the energy-charge result for 72 kWh at an assumed ₹4.50 per kWh. That ₹4.50 figure is an illustration of a Chhattisgarh FY 2026–27 domestic slab, not a nationwide Indian rate, and the figure excludes fixed charges, duties, adjustments and subsidies.
How many units does a 100 W computer use in a month?
At a constant 100 W, it uses 2.4 kWh per day and 72 kWh in a 30-day month. Your actual total will be different if the average wall draw changes or the computer is not running continuously.
Should I use the highest tariff slab on my bill?
Not necessarily. Some tariffs are telescopic, meaning different portions of consumption are charged at different rates. Check the tariff rules for your consumer category and use the marginal calculation that applies to your existing household consumption.
How can I find the real power draw of my OBS setup?
Measure the complete setup at the wall over a representative period, especially if the draw fluctuates. Divide the measured kWh by the hours measured to find average power, then use that average instead of assuming 100 W.