GeForce RTX 3060 Power Consumption and Cost

170 W Total Graphics Power — about 145 W sustained in a real game, and 265 W from the wall with the rest of the machine. NVIDIA suggests a 550 W supply. 12 GB VRAM, RTX 30, 2021.

Running a GeForce RTX 3060

$105 a year in electricity

System draw: 265 W
Per month: $9
Card alone / yr: $47
Suggested PSU: 550 W

Gaming hours
Idle hours

Where the watts go

Power and running cost breakdown for a GeForce RTX 3060
Item	Power	Per year	Cost / year
Gaming hours	265 W	386.2 kWh	$75
Idle hours	70 W	153.3 kWh	$30
Whole machine	—	539.5 kWh	$105
GeForce RTX 3060 alone	145 W	243.8 kWh	$47

What 170 W means for this card

At the 85% load these figures assume, a GeForce RTX 3060 draws about 145 W in a game, and a machine built around it about 265 W from the wall. At California's average electricity price that comes to $187 a year, of which the card itself accounts for $85.

What stands out about the GeForce RTX 3060

A generation before the RTX 4060.
Against the RTX 4060, a generation later: 55 W more rated power (170 W against 115 W), 4 GB more memory (12 GB against 8 GB) and about $13 more a year to run at the US average.
More memory than the closest AMD card by rated power.
The RX 7600 is rated at 165 W to this card's 170 W, but carries 8 GB of graphics memory against the RTX 3060's 12 GB.
Some builds need more than the 550 W supply NVIDIA suggests.
Paired with the Core i9-14900K, the whole build calls for 600 W; 10 of the 26 processors in the RTX 3060 PSU table take the requirement above 550 W.

Running cost by state

GeForce RTX 3060 running cost in every US state
State	Cents / kWh	Per month	Per year whole machine	Card alone
Nevada	13.11	$6	$71	$32
Nebraska	13.25	$6	$71	$32
Utah	13.37	$6	$72	$33
Louisiana	13.49	$6	$73	$33
Tennessee	14.07	$6	$76	$34
Arkansas	14.12	$6	$76	$34
North Dakota	14.12	$6	$76	$34
Kentucky	14.26	$6	$77	$35
Oklahoma	14.33	$6	$77	$35
Idaho	14.37	$6	$78	$35
North Carolina	14.74	$7	$80	$36
Mississippi	14.88	$7	$80	$36
Washington	14.91	$7	$80	$36
New Mexico	15.06	$7	$81	$37
Florida	15.10	$7	$81	$37
Montana	15.14	$7	$82	$37
Arizona	15.18	$7	$82	$37
Wyoming	15.24	$7	$82	$37
South Dakota	15.36	$7	$83	$37
West Virginia	15.45	$7	$83	$38
South Carolina	15.55	$7	$84	$38
Kansas	15.71	$7	$85	$38
Iowa	15.93	$7	$86	$39
Texas	15.94	$7	$86	$39
Missouri	16.22	$7	$88	$40
Oregon	16.32	$7	$88	$40
Georgia	16.36	$7	$88	$40
Alabama	16.40	$7	$88	$40
Colorado	17.13	$8	$92	$42
Virginia	17.22	$8	$93	$42
Indiana	17.51	$8	$94	$43
Minnesota	17.52	$8	$95	$43
Ohio	19.19	$9	$104	$47
Delaware	19.29	$9	$104	$47
Wisconsin	19.56	$9	$106	$48
Illinois	19.89	$9	$107	$49
Pennsylvania	21.73	$10	$117	$53
Maryland	21.84	$10	$118	$53
Michigan	22.99	$10	$124	$56
Connecticut	24.32	$11	$131	$59
District of Columbia	24.39	$11	$132	$59
Vermont	24.44	$11	$132	$60
New Jersey	24.95	$11	$135	$61
New Hampshire	27.01	$12	$146	$66
Alaska	28.21	$13	$152	$69
Rhode Island	29.23	$13	$158	$71
New York	29.49	$13	$159	$72
Maine	29.59	$13	$160	$72
Massachusetts	29.61	$13	$160	$72
California	34.74	$16	$187	$85
Hawaii	52.72	$24	$284	$129

4 h gaming and 6 h idle a day, at 85% load with 120 W of system overhead.

The rest of the RTX 30 range

Other RTX 30 cards compared
Card	TGP	Suggested PSU	Per year US average	In California
GeForce RTX 3090 Ti	450 W	850 W	$172	$308
GeForce RTX 3090	350 W	750 W	$148	$265
GeForce RTX 3080 Ti	350 W	750 W	$148	$265
GeForce RTX 3080	350 W	750 W	$148	$265
GeForce RTX 3070 Ti	290 W	650 W	$134	$239
GeForce RTX 3070	220 W	650 W	$117	$209
GeForce RTX 3060 Ti	200 W	600 W	$112	$200
GeForce RTX 3050	130 W	550 W	$95	$170

Building around the GeForce RTX 3060

NVIDIA suggests a 550 W power supply. Across the 26 processors in the PSU calculator, a build with this card needs 550 W with the Ryzen 5 9600X and up to 600 W with the Core i9-14900K.

Frequently asked questions

How much power does the GeForce RTX 3060 use?

Its Total Graphics Power is 170 W, which is the limit rather than the average. At a realistic 85% sustained load a demanding game pulls around 145 W from the card, and roughly 265 W from the wall once the rest of the machine is counted. NVIDIA recommends a 550 W power supply.

How much does it cost to run a GeForce RTX 3060?

At the US average of 19.42 cents per kWh, 4 hours of gaming and 6 idle hours a day works out at about $187 a year for the whole machine in California, $71 in Nevada and $284 in Hawaii. The card's own share of that is roughly $85.

What power supply does a GeForce RTX 3060 need?

NVIDIA recommends 550 W. The card plus a mainstream system peaks around 290 W, so that recommendation leaves about 260 W of headroom — deliberate, because transient spikes on modern cards briefly exceed the rated limit.

Do idle hours matter?

More than most people expect. A PC left on but not gaming still draws roughly 70 W whatever card is installed, so the idle bill is flat while the gaming one is not. Over 6 hours a day that is $53 a year in California. On a GeForce RTX 3060 it takes 15.1 idle hours to cost as much as 4 hours of gaming, which a machine left on around the clock passes comfortably.

Power figures: nvidia.com GeForce specifications (Total Graphics Power). Electricity: EIA Electric Power Monthly Table 5.6.A, residential, June 2026.

Estimates for informational purposes only. Total Graphics Power is a power limit, not an average: real draw depends on the game, resolution, frame cap, board partner design and any factory overclock. Electricity prices are state residential averages and your tariff will differ.

Data on this page last verified 26 August 2026. How these figures are calculated