Repair or Replace
What a repair actually costs, how long appliances really last, and how to decide without guessing.
These four guides use published ENERGY STAR figures rather than the repair-cost ranges that dominate this subject, because those come from quote aggregators using proprietary data that varies by region and cannot be verified. You supply your own quote; we supply the numbers somebody published.
The conclusions differ by appliance more than people expect. A washing machine has the strongest energy case for replacing, at about $530 over the product's lifetime. A dryer has the weakest, at roughly $210 across its whole life — and the only replacement that changes that arithmetic is a heat pump model, which also removes the vent that caused the fault. On a dishwasher the ceiling is around 115 kWh a year, small enough that efficiency barely enters the decision.
What decides it in every case is which component failed, not the age of the machine.
How Long Do Appliances Last? One Real Source, and It's From 2006
NAHB surveyed manufacturers and published the only traceable figures: washers 10 years, dryers 13, dishwashers 9. Every by-brand chart you have seen is unsourced.
Dryer Repair vs Replace? A New One Saves $210 Over Its Whole Life
ENERGY STAR puts the saving from a certified electric dryer at about $210 across the product's lifetime — not per year. Only one kind of replacement changes that.
Is It Worth Repairing a Dishwasher? The Ceiling Is 115 kWh a Year
The $220-a-year saving is measured against handwashing, not against your machine. Replacing a legal-minimum dishwasher with the most efficient one saves 115 kWh.
Refrigerator Repair or Replace? EPA's Own Numbers Disagree
ENERGY STAR says an old fridge uses about 20% more energy. Its own factsheet says about twice as much. That gap decides whether replacing pays for itself.
Washer Repair or Replace? 90% of Its Energy Is Heating Water
ENERGY STAR puts the lifetime saving at about $530, the strongest case of any appliance. But 90% of a washer's energy is water heating, which you control for free.