Inverter vs Non-Inverter Aircon: Which Costs Less to Run?

We install and look after both types, so this is about which one suits the way you use the room. When you have chosen, an aircon installation visit puts it up. The older post on inverter and non-inverter aircons in the Philippines goes further into how the two compressors are built.

How each one uses electricity

The difference is the compressor. Carrier Philippines puts it plainly: a non-inverter's compressor can only be off or at full power, and the thermostat starts it and stops it as the room warms and cools. An inverter's compressor can vary its output. Hitachi adds the part that costs money: every restart of a non-inverter's compressor takes a surge of power, while an inverter runs continuously at a lower intensity.

1. 1 A non-inverter is on or off. It runs at full power until the room is cool, stops, and starts again at full power when the room warms. Each restart takes a surge.
2. 2 An inverter slows down instead of stopping. It works hard at the start like the other type, then settles at a lower speed for as long as it is left on.
3. 3 So the difference builds up after the room is cool. The longer the unit stays on, the more of its time is spent holding the room rather than pulling it down.

Both work hard at the start, pulling a hot room down to the setting. The difference comes after that, in the hours the room is being held cool. Carrier says staying on at low power uses less than switching on and off, which is why the hours a day decide the answer.

The difference in kWh

These use the typical running watts our running cost calculator works from: 1050 watts for a 1.0 HP non-inverter and 775 for an inverter once the room is cool. Watts times hours times 30 days gives the month. The method assumes the compressor runs the whole time, so the non-inverter figures are the top of their range in a room that cools easily.

1. 1At two hours a night the gap is small. 16 kWh a month for a 1.0 HP unit.
2. 2At twelve hours a day it is about six times that. 99 kWh a month, every month the unit runs like that.
3. 3Multiply by your own rate. The rate per kWh is printed on your bill, and the running cost calculator does the sum for any size.

To turn a kWh figure into money, multiply it by the rate per kWh on your own electricity bill. Rates differ between Meralco and the cooperatives across Central Luzon and change from month to month, which is why the calculator asks for yours rather than guessing it.

When an inverter pays

When the unit runs long hours. Carrier Philippines calls inverters a good choice for places that keep the aircon on 8 or more hours at a time, and Hitachi says the same of homes where it is used daily or for long hours. In a Central Luzon house that means:

• A bedroom where the aircon is on all night, every night, from March to May and beyond.
• A room someone works from at home through the day.
• A living room kept cool through the afternoon for the family.

At 8 hours a day the 1.0 HP gap is about 66 kWh a month, and at 12 hours about 99. On a 1.5 HP unit it is about 90 and 135. That repeats every month the unit runs like that.

When a non-inverter is still fine

When the unit runs short sessions. At 2 hours a day the 1.0 HP gap is about 16 kWh a month. If anything that overstates it, because the figures here give the inverter its lower running watts from the moment it starts, before it has pulled the room down. Hitachi says a non-inverter can still be a practical choice where the aircon is used only occasionally or in a small space, and Carrier Philippines points to its lower entry cost for someone who will not stay long in a rented place. A guest room used at weekends is the clearest case.

If the power where you live dips or flickers often, read AVR for aircon before you choose, because it covers which units already protect themselves.

Getting the saving from an inverter

• Leave it on through short breaks. Carrier Philippines says staying on at low power is more efficient than frequently turning on and off.
• Set it at 24 or 25 degrees, the setting Meralco calls comfortable. The best temperature for aircon guide explains why lower does not cool faster.
• Keep the filter and coil clean. A dirty unit runs longer for the same cool, whichever type it is. The aircon cleaning schedule sets out how often.
• Shut doors and draw the curtains in the afternoon, so it holds the room at the lower speed. More in the aircon energy saving tips.

Comparing two units in the shop

Room aircons sold in the Philippines carry the Department of Energy's energy label. Under the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Act, it shows the unit's efficiency rating, its monthly energy use at a set number of hours a day, the brand and model, and the year the rating was issued. DOE's own list of labelled aircons gives each unit a CSPF figure and a rating from 1 to 5 stars. Compare the monthly kWh of two units of the same size: the lower one costs less to run. Your bill will differ from the label because your hours do, which is what the table above is for.

Questions people ask

Does an inverter aircon really save electricity?

Yes, once the room is cool. It slows down to hold the temperature where a non-inverter keeps stopping and restarting at full power. For a 1.0 HP unit run 8 hours a day, that works out to about 66 kWh a month less on this site's typical figures. The gap is smallest for short sessions: about 16 kWh a month at 2 hours a day.

How much electricity does a 1.0 HP inverter aircon use in a month?

About 186 kWh at 8 hours a day for 30 days, against about 252 kWh for a 1.0 HP non-inverter. That uses the typical running watts this site works from, 775 for the inverter and 1050 for the non-inverter. Your unit's own nameplate and label are the better figure.

Is it bad to turn an inverter aircon on and off?

For short breaks, leave it on. Carrier Philippines says staying on at low power is more efficient than frequently turning on and off, and Hitachi says each restart takes a surge. Switch it off when nobody will be in the room for the rest of the day.

Is a non-inverter aircon still worth buying?

For a room used a couple of hours at a time, often yes. Hitachi says a non-inverter can still be practical where the aircon is used only occasionally or in a small space, and Carrier Philippines points to its lower entry cost for a short stay. The longer the daily hours, the stronger the case for an inverter.

Which is better for a bedroom used only at night?

If "only at night" means 8 hours or more, the inverter. That is the use Carrier Philippines names inverters a great choice for, and on a 1.0 HP unit it is the difference between about 252 and 186 kWh a month. If it means two hours before sleep with a fan after, the gap is about 16 kWh and a non-inverter is fine.

When to call us

When the new unit is bought, book an aircon installation, and if it replaces an old unit, taking that one down is part of the same service. If an inverter you already own is using more than you expect, an aircon maintenance visit cleans the coils and checks the gas, the two things that make any unit run longer.

Other guides

• Aircon capacitor: what it does and the signs it has failed

  The humming outdoor unit, the fan that will not spin, and why the capacitor is tested first.

• Aircon freezing up: why ice forms and what to do

  Ice on the indoor coil or the pipes, how to thaw it safely, and the three causes behind it.

• Aircon making noise: which sounds are normal and which are not

  Clicks and water sounds that are normal, and the rattles, hisses and squeals that need a technician.

• Aircon not turning on: what to check, and the 3-minute wait after a brownout

  Remote, breaker, the compressor’s restart delay, and the flashing lamp that means a technician.

• AVR for aircon: when you need one and how to size it

  What an AVR does in a brownout, which units already protect themselves, and sizing it from the nameplate.

• Aircon watts: how many watts a 1 HP aircon uses, size by size

  Running watts and kWh per hour for each size, how to read the nameplate, and starting watts for a generator.

• Types of aircon: split type, window type, portable and centralized

  How each is installed, how noisy and costly to run it is, which rooms suit it, and what a clean has to reach.

• What is freon, and why your aircon should not need a yearly refill

  The sealed loop, why low gas means a leak, the three refrigerants in Philippine units, and the refill myth.

• Aircon HP and room size: what each size cools, 0.5 to 2.5 HP

  The square metres each size suits in a shaded room and a hot one, with the arithmetic behind 0.6 HP.

• Aircon cleaning schedule: what to clean, and how often

  The filter every two weeks, a full clean by how hard the unit works, the deeper clean, and when in the year to book it.

• Common aircon problems, symptom by symptom

  Not cold, weak air, water inside, a smell, ice, noise, tripping and blinking: what each points to and what you can check.

• Aircon lifespan: how long it lasts, and repair or replace

  How many years a unit usually gives, what shortens it, and the signs that a repair is no longer worth it.

• What size aircon for a bedroom, living room or kitchen

  Room by room: what each kind of room adds to the size you need, worked through for a sample two-storey house.

• Aircon energy saving tips that lower the bill

  Where the heat gets in, the setting and the fan, the timer, the cleaning, and reading the DOE energy label.

Sources: Carrier Philippines, “What’s the difference? Inverter vs Non-Inverter Air Conditioners” (22 April 2026); TCL Philippines, “What is the Difference Between Inverter and Non-Inverter AC?” (18 January 2023); Hitachi Cooling and Heating, “Non-inverter vs. Inverter air conditioners: What’s the difference?”; Republic Act No. 11285, the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Act, Section 15; Department of Energy, list of active energy labels for air conditioners as of 30 June 2026; Meralco, “Tips for the Bedroom”. Watt figures: this site’s running cost calculator. Read 23 October 2026.