Energy
What Uses the Most Energy in Your Home?
Warren Buffett describes his first rules of investing as: “Rule #1: Never lose money. Rule #2: Don’t forget rule #1”.
But losing money doesn’t just happen in a stock portfolio – it’s also a common occurrence in other facets of life. That’s why Warren Buffett leads such a frugal lifestyle. He knows that every extra dollar spent on something he doesn’t need is wasted capital.
In practically every house in America, capital is being wasted on energy consumption. That’s because the average electricity spend per year is $1,368.36 per year, and 35% of the power used is actually wasted.
This is neither good for your bank account or the environment.
What Uses the Most Energy in Your Home?
Today’s infographic from Connect4Climate shows the breakdown in the energy use of a typical home.
It highlights the average cost per year of different appliances, while also showing what uses the most energy over the course of the year.
Modern comfort comes at a price, and keeping all those air conditioners, refrigerators, chargers, and water heaters going makes household energy the third-largest use of energy in the United States.
Here’s what uses the most energy in your home:
- Cooling and heating: 47% of energy use
- Water heater: 14% of energy use
- Washer and dryer: 13% of energy use
- Lighting: 12% of energy use
- Refrigerator: 4% of energy use
- Electric oven: 3-4% of energy use
- TV, DVD, cable box: 3% of energy use
- Dishwasher: 2% of energy use
- Computer: 1% of energy use
One of the easiest ways to reduce wasted energy and money? Shut off “vampire electronics”, or devices that suck power even when they are turned off. These include digital cable or satellite DVRs, laptop computers, printers, DVD players, central heating furnaces, routers and modems, phones, gaming consoles, televisions, and microwaves.
Warren Buffett would probably agree that a penny saved is a penny earned – and being more efficient with your energy use is good for your pocketbook and the environment.
Energy
Ranked: Electric Vehicle Sales by Model in 2023
Today, electric vehicle sales make up 18% of global vehicle sales. Here are the leading models by sales as of August 2023.

Ranked: Electric Vehicle Sales by Model in 2023
Electric vehicle (EV) sales are gaining momentum, reaching 18% of global vehicle sales in 2023.
As new competitors bring more affordable options and new performance features, the market continues to mature as customers increasingly look to electric options.
This graphic ranks the top-selling EVs worldwide as of August 2023, based on data from CleanTechnica.
The Best Selling EVs in 2023 (Through August)
Below, we show the world’s best selling fully electric vehicles from January to August 2023:
Model | Country | Vehicles Sold (Jan-Aug 2023) |
---|---|---|
Tesla Model Y | 🇺🇸 U.S. | 772,364 |
Tesla Model 3 | 🇺🇸 U.S. | 364,403 |
BYD Atto 3 / Yuan Plus | 🇨🇳 China | 265,688 |
BYD Dolphin | 🇨🇳 China | 222,825 |
GAC Aion S | 🇨🇳 China | 160,693 |
Wuling HongGuang Mini EV | 🇨🇳 China | 153,399 |
GAC Aion Y | 🇨🇳 China | 136,619 |
VW ID.4 | 🇩🇪 Germany | 120,154 |
BYD Seagull | 🇨🇳 China | 95,202 |
As we can see, Tesla‘s Model Y still holds a comfortable lead over the competition with 772,364 units sold. That’s more than double the sales of the #2 top selling vehicle, Tesla’s Model 3 (364,403)
But it’s hard to ignore the rising prevalence of Chinese EVs. The next five best selling EV vehicles are Chinese, including three from BYD. The automaker’s Atto 3 (or Yuan Plus, depending on market), is being sold in various countries including Germany, the UK, Japan, and India.
Meanwhile, Chinese automaker GAC Group also had two models of its Aion EV brand make the rankings, with the Aion S selling 160,693 units so far.
Regional market strength is also clear. For Volkswagen’s ID.4 model (120,154 units sold), Europe and China account for the majority of sales.
Given growing cost efficiencies and changing consumer behavior, global EV sales are projected to make up half of new car sales globally by 2035, according to forecasts from Goldman Sachs.
-
GDP6 days ago
Visualizing U.S. GDP by Industry in 2023
-
Brands2 weeks ago
Ranked: Fast Food Brands with the Most U.S. Locations
-
Markets2 weeks ago
Visualizing 30 Years of Imports from U.S. Trading Partners
-
Markets2 weeks ago
Ranked: The Biggest Retailers in the U.S. by Revenue
-
Globalization2 weeks ago
The Top 50 Largest Importers in the World
-
Maps1 week ago
Mapped: Which Countries Recognize Israel or Palestine, or Both?
-
Misc1 week ago
Ranked: America’s Best Universities
-
War1 week ago
Ranked: Share of Global Arms Imports in 2022