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Does a thermostat setback really save money?
Yes, and it costs nothing. The U.S. Department of Energy says a 7–10°F setback for eight hours a day can save as much as 10% a year on heating and cooling.
Short answer: for the example home, the ladder counts a setback at $43–$108 a year, depending on the state, using DOE's full 10%. In a heat pump home, keep winter setbacks small.
How it works
A setback means turning the heat down while you sleep or are away, and the air conditioning up. The ladder applies DOE's full 10% to what you spend on heating and cooling, which it measures from your own bills where it can.
Heat pump homes
DOE says programmable thermostats are generally not recommended for heat pumps, unless they're designed for them: in heating mode, a setback can make the unit bring on its backup heat to recover. So in a heat pump home the ladder counts the 10% on cooling only. The Tennessee Valley Authority advises lowering a heat pump only 3–5°F when you're away, and never so far that the backup heat comes on.
Two more things from DOE
- A colder setting won't cool the house any faster.
- A thermostat in direct sun or a draft misreads the room: it belongs on an inside wall, away from sunlight, drafts, doorways, skylights and windows.
By state
The table runs one house: the example home from the example ladder, a 1960s single-family home with gas heat and central air that spends $2,600 a year on energy ($1,900 of electricity and $700 of gas). Each row moves that same house, with the same bills, to another state. What changes from row to row is how much of a typical home's energy spending goes to heating and cooling in that state (EIA's household energy survey). Your own bills will move the figures, up or down.
Setting the thermostat back 7–10°F for eight hours a day: yearly savings for the example home at DOE's full 10%, in each state
| State | Saves | Share of the yearly bill |
|---|---|---|
| Alabama | $96/yr | 4% |
| Alaska | $50/yr | 2% |
| Arizona | $108/yr | 4% |
| Arkansas | $99/yr | 4% |
| California | $67/yr | 3% |
| Colorado | $78/yr | 3% |
| Connecticut | $81/yr | 3% |
| Delaware | $84/yr | 3% |
| District of Columbia | $89/yr | 3% |
| Florida | $95/yr | 4% |
| Georgia | $94/yr | 4% |
| Hawaii | $43/yr | 2% |
| Idaho | $70/yr | 3% |
| Illinois | $91/yr | 4% |
| Indiana | $88/yr | 3% |
| Iowa | $86/yr | 3% |
| Kansas | $98/yr | 4% |
| Kentucky | $93/yr | 4% |
| Louisiana | $98/yr | 4% |
| Maine | $67/yr | 3% |
| Maryland | $89/yr | 3% |
| Massachusetts | $83/yr | 3% |
| Michigan | $82/yr | 3% |
| Minnesota | $77/yr | 3% |
| Mississippi | $105/yr | 4% |
| Missouri | $98/yr | 4% |
| Montana | $64/yr | 2% |
| Nebraska | $88/yr | 3% |
| Nevada | $99/yr | 4% |
| New Hampshire | $73/yr | 3% |
| New Jersey | $91/yr | 4% |
| New Mexico | $85/yr | 3% |
| New York | $83/yr | 3% |
| North Carolina | $92/yr | 4% |
| North Dakota | $75/yr | 3% |
| Ohio | $87/yr | 3% |
| Oklahoma | $101/yr | 4% |
| Oregon | $61/yr | 2% |
| Pennsylvania | $85/yr | 3% |
| Rhode Island | $82/yr | 3% |
| South Carolina | $96/yr | 4% |
| South Dakota | $77/yr | 3% |
| Tennessee | $91/yr | 4% |
| Texas | $104/yr | 4% |
| Utah | $85/yr | 3% |
| Vermont | $63/yr | 2% |
| Virginia | $85/yr | 3% |
| Washington | $56/yr | 2% |
| West Virginia | $87/yr | 3% |
| Wisconsin | $76/yr | 3% |
| Wyoming | $75/yr | 3% |
A setback costs nothing, so it is one of the quick wins a ladder starts with.
Your own numbers
Your heating and cooling bills decide your figure. The Upgrade Ladder measures them from your own bills and shows the setback with the other no-cost steps.
Build your ladder How the estimates are made
Sources
- Savings: U.S. Department of Energy, Energy Saver guidance on thermostats.
- Heat pump setbacks: Tennessee Valley Authority EnergyRight (April 2026), as cited in the tool's notes on this upgrade.
- Typical heating and cooling shares, where your bills can't measure them: EIA Residential Energy Consumption Survey (RECS 2020).
- Every step in detail: how the estimates are made.
More guides: How much of your energy goes to heating and cooling · Will a heat pump lower my bill · How much does attic insulation save · all guides