Why a tower and monitor pulls more than a console
The calculator above prices a gaming desktop plus monitor at a representative 450 W under load, a point within the 300–800 W range typical hardware reviews report, since a discrete graphics card working hard, a monitor, and everything else a full tower runs (storage, cooling fans, a much larger power supply) adds up to more silicon doing more work than a single console box. Eurogamer’s Digital Foundry measured the console side of that comparison directly rather than leaving it to a spec sheet: a PlayStation 5 pulled 200 W running Spider-Man: Miles Morales, and an Xbox Series X peaked at 211 W in Gears 5, the same measurements our console standby guide already cites for idle and standby draw. Run all three at three hours a night, the computer calculator's own worked example for a gaming session, across a full year, and the desktop draws roughly twice what either console does.
Worked example, NSW: three hours of gaming a night costs about 44 cents on a desktop and monitor, 19 cents on a PS5, or 21 cents on an Xbox Series X, at the state’s current reference rate. Kept up every night for a year, the table below has the total by state.
What this costs, state by state
A gaming desktop and monitor at the calculator's own 450 W representative figure, a PlayStation 5 running Spider-Man: Miles Morales (200 W) and an Xbox Series X peaking in Gears 5 (211 W), Digital Foundry's own measurements, each run three hours a night, every night, for a year.
| State | Rate | Gaming desktop + monitor (450 W) | PlayStation 5 (200 W) | Xbox Series X (211 W) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| New South Wales | 32.4¢ | $160 | $70.96 | $74.86 |
| Victoria | 29.8¢ | $147 | $65.26 | $68.85 |
| Queensland | 31.2¢ | $154 | $68.33 | $72.09 |
| South Australia | 38.1¢ | $188 | $83.44 | $88.03 |
| Western Australia | 33.6¢ | $166 | $73.58 | $77.63 |
| Tasmania | 28.9¢ | $142 | $63.29 | $66.77 |
| Australian Capital Territory | 27.4¢ | $135 | $60.01 | $63.31 |
| Northern Territory | 31.7¢ | $156 | $69.42 | $73.24 |
Reference rates for 2026–27. Your row is highlighted once you set your location.
What the console figures leave out, and why it still doesn't close the gap
The desktop figure above already includes its monitor, the same way the computer running cost calculator prices a gaming setup. The console figures don't include the screen it's plugged into: a PS5 or Xbox normally runs through a television, not a monitor, and that's a separate running cost tracked on its own by our TV running cost calculator. Add even a large screen's own draw, our TV calculator's own registry figures run from 31 W for a 32-inch LED up to 115 W for a 65-inch OLED, and a console-plus-TV setup still comes in under a gaming desktop's own 450 W, since the gap between 200–211 W and 450 W is bigger than any one TV's own draw closes. However the two setups are counted, the PC is the pricier one to run.
None of this changes what either machine is actually for. A console is a fixed, single-purpose box, while a gaming PC also handles everything the computer running cost calculator's everyday-use setting covers, browsing, video calls, work, at a fraction of its own gaming-load draw. The running-cost gap above is real, but it's the cost of a more flexible machine, not evidence a PC is the worse buy.
Common questions
Is a gaming PC more expensive to run than a PS5 or Xbox?
Yes, by a wide margin. At the same three hours of gaming a night, a gaming desktop and monitor costs $135 (ACT) to $188 (SA) a year, against $60 to $83 for a PS5 and $63 to $88 for an Xbox Series X, roughly twice as much either way, using Digital Foundry's own measured wattages.
Does a PS5 or Xbox Series X use more power?
They're close. Xbox Series X peaked at 211 W in Digital Foundry's own testing, a touch above the PS5's 200 W running Spider-Man: Miles Morales, a gap of only a few dollars a year on Australian rates, nowhere near the gap either console has against a gaming PC.
Does this comparison include the TV or monitor?
The desktop figure already includes its monitor, the same way the computer running cost calculator above prices it. The console figures don't include the TV it's plugged into. That's tracked separately by our TV running cost calculator, but even adding a large screen's own draw, up to 115 W for a 65-inch OLED, a console setup still costs less to run than a gaming PC.
Sources
PS5 and Xbox Series X gameplay wattage (Eurogamer/Digital Foundry's own measurements, Spider-Man: Miles Morales and Gears 5): Stealth Optional, PS5 Power Consumption, the same source our console standby guide cites. Gaming desktop and monitor wattage (450 W representative figure, 300–800 W range): the same typical published figures our computer running cost calculator above cites. TV registry wattages: the same energyrating.gov.au registration database (July 2026 snapshot) our TV running cost calculator uses. Electricity rates: AER Default Market Offer and each state's regulated reference tariff, current for 2026–27. All fetched July 2026.