How much does it cost to run a Ring doorbell in the UK?

Short answer: electricity costs are tiny-usually a couple of pounds per year for wired models. The big recurring cost is cloud recording. Most UK homes pay more for the subscription than the power.

• Ring Doorbell running cost UK is typically £1-£6/year for electricity, depending on model and setup.
• Ring Protect subscription is the main expense: commonly £4.99/month per device (Basic) or household plans for multiple devices.
• Accessories add pennies to a few pounds per year (Chime, Chime Pro). PoE models can cost more to power.
• Data usage is low for most homes (about 1-5 GB/month), so broadband caps rarely get stressed.
• Use motion zones, lower resolution, and smart alerts to cut both energy and data use.

Ring Video Doorbell is a smart video doorbell from Ring (an Amazon company) that streams live video, records motion events to the cloud, and sends alerts via Wi‑Fi. UK variants include battery-powered, hardwired (8-24 VAC), and Power over Ethernet models, each with different power profiles, accessories, and subscription options.

What costs are we counting?

People usually mean three things when they ask about running costs: electricity to power the doorbell, subscription for video storage, and any extra gear like a chime or adapter. I’ll break all three down with typical UK numbers and show you how to estimate your own costs with your tariff.

Kilowatt-hour (kWh) is the standard unit UK energy suppliers use for billing electricity; 1 kWh equals using 1,000 watts for one hour. A device drawing 1 watt constantly uses about 8.76 kWh per year (1 W × 24 × 365 ÷ 1,000).

Ofgem is the Great Britain energy regulator that publishes the price cap and typical unit rates. In 2025, many fixed and variable tariffs sat roughly in the 20-30 p/kWh band, but check your exact unit rate on your bill.

Quick UK cost calculator (works for any model)

1. Find your doorbell’s average power draw in watts (W). If the spec isn’t clear, use the model estimates below.
2. Convert to annual energy: W × 8.76 = kWh/year.
3. Multiply by your unit rate: kWh/year × pence-per-kWh = annual electricity cost.

Example at a 24 p/kWh tariff: a 1.5 W device → 1.5 × 8.76 = 13.14 kWh/year → 13.14 × £0.24 ≈ £3.15/year.

Typical UK electricity costs by Ring model and setup

These figures blend manufacturer power specs with independent smart plug measurements I’ve seen in UK homes. They assume 24/7 operation and typical activity. If your doorway is busy, power can creep up; if quiet, it can be lower.

If your tariff is 30 p/kWh, add ~25%. If it’s 18 p/kWh, subtract ~25%. That swing often matters more than the model swap.

Subscription costs: where most money goes

Ring Protect is Ring’s cloud recording and premium features plan (video history, rich notifications, person alerts). Without it, you still get live view and basic alerts, but stored clips expire quickly or aren’t saved for later review depending on your device and region.

• Basic plan (per device): commonly around £4.99/month or about £49.99/year if paid annually.
• Household plan: covers multiple Ring devices at home for a higher monthly/annual fee.
• Pro tiers: bundle extras (e.g., cellular backup with certain base stations) at a higher price.

Ring has raised prices in recent years, so check the current UK pricing on the Ring site. For most households, the subscription dwarfs electricity costs by a mile.

Hidden or one-off costs to watch

Doorbell transformer is the low-voltage AC power supply (often 8-24 VAC) for wired doorbells. In the UK, you can use a DIN-rail transformer or a plug-in adapter if you don’t have existing doorbell wiring.

• Transformer or plug-in adapter: usually a one-off £15-£30. Electricity overhead is small (often ~0.5-1 W idle).
• Chime/Chime Pro: £25-£60 up front; a couple of pounds per year to power.
• Install: DIY is common. If hiring an electrician to add a transformer or PoE, budget £80-£200 depending on cable runs.

Wi‑Fi, broadband, and data usage

Wi‑Fi is the wireless network tech (often 2.4 GHz for doorbells) that connects your Ring to the internet. Signal strength affects video bitrate, retries, and sometimes power draw.

Data use depends on how many motion events you get and your video quality setting. A practical UK average for a front door with moderate footfall is 1-5 GB/month. Heavy use areas (busy street, shared entrance) can push beyond 10 GB/month.

• Rough maths: 20 events/day × 30 seconds × 1.5 Mbps ≈ 0.11 GB/day → ~3.3 GB/month.
• Live view spikes data temporarily but doesn’t usually change your monthly broadband bill.
• Your Wi‑Fi router is already on; the doorbell doesn’t meaningfully change its energy use.

PoE and hardwiring: a bit more technical, a bit more power

Power over Ethernet (PoE) is a networking standard that sends power and data over a single Ethernet cable via a PoE switch or injector. It’s rock-solid but adds a few watts of overhead to keep the port powered 24/7.

PoE setups are great for stability and neat installs, especially on new builds or big renovations. Expect ~4-6 W total per Elite doorbell including switch overhead, translating to roughly £8-£13/year at 24 p/kWh. If you’re already running PoE for cameras, the incremental cost for one more device is small, but it’s still more than the budget wired models.

How to cut running costs without hurting security

• Dial in motion zones so the camera ignores the pavement and only watches your path.
• Use People Only Mode or smart alerts to skip cars and foxes.
• Drop video quality one notch if your signal is average. Fewer retries = less data and slightly less power.
• Boost Wi‑Fi if you see regular reconnects. A steady connection saves battery and reduces PoE retries.
• Cold weather drains batteries faster. Charge indoors and consider a trickle charger in winter.

Real-world UK scenarios

New-build flat, no old doorbell wiring. A battery Ring with USB charging might cost pennies per year in electricity. Add Basic subscription if you want recordings. If you need audible chimes, a Ring Chime adds maybe £2/year in power.

Semi-detached with legacy doorbell circuit. A Ring Doorbell Wired or Pro 2 with a transformer idles around 1-2 W. Expect £2-£4/year for power and whatever plan you pick. Keep motion zones tight if you face a busier road.

Renovating and running Ethernet. A PoE Elite is clean and reliable. Budget £8-£13/year for electricity at mid-20s p/kWh, plus your subscription tier. Great for smart home hubs and multi-camera setups.

What if you don’t want a subscription?

Live view and instant alerts still work, so you can answer the door from your phone. You’ll miss out on cloud-recorded evidence unless you opt into a plan. Some Ring ecosystems support limited local processing and storage through specific base stations, but most UK doorbell users rely on the Protect plan for video history. If subscription-free recording is a must-have, compare models across brands that offer local storage to an SD card or NVR.

Assumptions, sources, and why numbers differ online

UK electricity bills use kWh. A 1 W continuous draw equals ~8.76 kWh/year. Put your exact unit rate into the calculator, because the price cap and fixed deals move. The power figures here align with a mix of manufacturer specifications, common PoE port budgets, and measured consumption from UK households using energy-monitoring smart plugs. Ofgem publishes typical unit rates; Ring publishes model power requirements; PoE standards define port classes and overhead. Your actual consumption depends on signal quality, motion activity, and cold spells.

Related concepts

Ring Chime is a plug-in speaker accessory that plays doorbell sounds around the home; it uses around 0.8-1 W in standby.

Cloud storage is internet-based storage used by Ring Protect to keep your clips for a set retention (e.g., 30-180 days depending on plan and region).

These connect to the core question because storage needs drive subscription choice, and accessories like a chime subtly affect total energy use. If you’re deep into smart home ecosystems, also think about how the doorbell integrates with your alarm system and cameras so you can pick the right plan tier once and avoid extras later.

Cost summary: what you’ll likely pay in a year

• Battery-only Ring: electricity £0.05-£0.24; with Chime add ~£2. Subscriptions dominate if you need video history.
• Wired/Pro 2: electricity ~£2-£4; Chime Pro adds ~£3-£4; subscription as needed.
• PoE Elite: electricity ~£8-£13; subscription as needed.

Connected Topics

• Choosing between battery, wired, and PoE for UK homes (doorside wiring, transformer options, future-proofing).
• Setting up motion zones and privacy masks to reduce false alerts and avoid filming public spaces.
• Integrating doorbells with alarms and cameras for a single subscription across devices.

Mini cost FAQ

Before we wrap, here are the answers most people want.

Next steps

• Grab your tariff’s p/kWh and run the calculator with the table’s wattages.
• Pick the subscription tier that actually matches how often you review footage.
• Tune motion zones this week-fewer false alerts save battery, data, and your sanity.

Troubleshooting your costs

• Battery dying fast? Check Wi‑Fi RSSI in the app; a weak signal forces retries. A better router placement or Chime Pro can stabilise it.
• Data usage high? Reduce video quality one step and tighten zones around your path and doorstep.
• PoE meter shows 7-8 W? Disable unnecessary port features and confirm the injector/switch isn’t powering extra accessories.