How much does a high-end 850 W gaming PC cost to run? Yearly power math

How this is calculated

850 W is the mainstream high-end class in 2026, typically a current-gen flagship GPU (RTX 5080 / 5090, RX 9070 XT) paired with an 80-watt CPU. The PSU rating is the upper bound. Actual draw rarely exceeds 500-650 W even in the most demanding games, which is why 80% average draw is the reasonable average. Enthusiast mining-era 1200 W builds are a separate category worth pricing at closer to $300/year on this same schedule.

Verdict

The arithmetic: 850 W at 80% utilization for 4 hours daily at $0.18/kWh consumes 993 kWh annually and costs $178.78 ($14.90 monthly), about 75% more than a 500 W build on the same schedule. The 850 W figure is the PSU rating's upper bound for a 2026 flagship GPU (RTX 5080 / 5090, RX 9070 XT) with an 80 W CPU, but real gaming draw typically sits in the 500-650 W band, which is why 80% average utilization is the defensible assumption rather than peak. The schedule-doubling point matters: at 8+ hours/day as a work-and-play machine the annual cost crosses $350 and the power-versus-performance trade starts competing with the cost of the games, which is when undervolting or an MSR cap earns its keep.