Choosing between Philips Hue vs IKEA Trådfri usually starts with price, app quality and ecosystem. However, with UK electricity prices still far above pre-2021 levels, plenty of British homeowners are asking a different question. Which system actually costs less to run? The answer is more interesting than the marketing suggests.
The Short Answer: Which Smart Lighting System Saves More?
On raw energy use, the two systems are almost identical. A typical Hue colour bulb draws around 9-10W. A comparable IKEA Trådfri bulb draws 8.5-10W. Over a full year, that gap is worth pennies per bulb.
Therefore, IKEA Trådfri wins on total cost of ownership. It costs roughly a third of the price, runs at broadly the same wattage, and pays for itself in under a year. Philips Hue, meanwhile, wins on automation depth. Furthermore, automation is what genuinely shrinks a bill.
UK Electricity Prices in 2026: What You Are Really Paying
Ofgem’s price cap sets the maximum unit rate for most households on standard variable tariffs. Through much of 2026, that has meant roughly 24-26p per kWh, plus a standing charge of around 60p a day. For every calculation below, we use 25p per kWh.
Check your own tariff, though. Time-of-use deals can drop to 10-15p per kWh overnight. Consequently, when you run your lights matters far more than which brand you buy. You can check the latest cap figures on the Ofgem price cap pages.
Working out your own running costs
The maths is simple. Multiply the bulb’s wattage by the hours it runs each day. Divide by 1,000, then multiply by your unit rate.
For example: a 10W bulb running four hours a day uses 14.6 kWh a year. At 25p per kWh, that is £3.65 per bulb, per year. That is the entire running cost of a smart bulb in a busy room.
Philips Hue vs IKEA Trådfri: Wattage and Running Costs Compared
Typical bulb wattage in 2026
- Philips Hue White E27 (1100 lm): around 8.5W
- Philips Hue White Ambiance E27 (1100 lm): around 9W
- Philips Hue White and Colour Ambiance E27 (1100 lm): around 9-10W
- IKEA Trådfri E27 white spectrum (806 lm): around 8.5W
- IKEA Trådfri E27 white spectrum (1055 lm): around 10W
- IKEA Trådfri E27 colour bulb: around 10W
Figures vary between generations, so always check the label on the box. Even so, the pattern is clear. Both brands sit in a narrow 8-11W band.
Annual cost per bulb at 25p per kWh
Assuming four hours of daily use in a living room or kitchen:
- 8.5W bulb: 12.4 kWh = £3.10 per year
- 9W bulb: 13.1 kWh = £3.29 per year
- 10W bulb: 14.6 kWh = £3.65 per year
So the worst performer costs 55p more per bulb each year than the best. Across ten bulbs, that is around £5.50 a year. In other words, the brand debate is worth about 1.5% of a typical £1,700 annual energy bill.
The hub’s hidden running cost
Both systems need a bridge or gateway unless you rely on Bluetooth or a standalone remote. A Hue Bridge draws roughly 1-2W continuously. That works out at 8.8-17.5 kWh a year, or £2.20-£4.40 at 25p per kWh.
The IKEA Trådfri gateway is similar, at around 1-2W. As a result, your hub can cost more to run than the difference between the bulbs themselves. In addition, running both a Hue Bridge and a Trådfri gateway makes no financial sense at all.
Where the Real Savings Actually Come From
The brand question is a distraction. These four factors drive almost all of your lighting savings, and they apply to any smart bulb you install.
1. Replacing halogen and incandescent bulbs
A 42W halogen GU10 costs about £15.33 a year to run for four hours a day at 25p per kWh. A 4.5W LED equivalent costs around £1.64. That is a saving of nearly £14 per bulb, every single year.
For a ten-bulb home, switching from halogen to Hue or Trådfri saves roughly £130 annually. That dwarfs every other consideration in this article. The Energy Saving Trust notes that modern LEDs use up to 90% less energy than traditional bulbs.
2. Dimming
Dimming an LED to 50% does not halve power use exactly, but it typically cuts consumption by 30-40%. Therefore, dimming an evening light from full brightness to a comfortable glow is one of the cheapest efficiency wins in the home.
3. Scheduling and automation
This is where smart bulbs beat ordinary LEDs. Motion sensors, sunrise routines and Away modes stop lights burning in empty rooms. If automation saves just one hour of use per bulb each day, a 10W bulb falls from £3.65 to £2.74 a year.
Multiplied across ten bulbs, that is about £9 saved annually. Better still, pair scheduling with a time-of-use tariff and you can shift evening lighting into cheaper hours. Our guide to smart lighting energy savings in the UK covers this in more detail.