Freeze Dryer Cost Calculator: Cost per Pound and Payback
Pick a machine size, then change any number that doesn't match your kitchen. The page works out the cost of one batch, the cost per pound of dry food, what a month of use costs, and how long until the machine pays for itself against buying freeze-dried food. Every line of the math is printed under the result, so you can check it or argue with it.
Small at 2 batches a month, against store-bought at $75.00/lb.
- Cost per batch
- $33.07
- Per lb of dry food
- $41.34
- Running cost a month
- $18.15
- With food, a month
- $66.15
The math, line by line
- Electricity: 1,100 W × 24 h ÷ 1,000 = 26.4 kWh × $0.18 = $4.83
- Pump oil: $16.00 ÷ 25 batches = $0.64
- Packaging: 4 bags × ($0.50 + $0.40) = $3.60
- Food: 8 lb × $3.00 = $24.00
- Cost per batch: $4.83 + $0.64 + $3.60 + $24.00 = $33.07
- Dry food: 8 lb × 10% = 0.80 lb
- Per lb dry: $33.07 ÷ 0.80 lb = $41.34 (without food: $11.34)
- Same food store-bought: 0.80 lb × $75.00 = $60.00
- Saved per batch: $60.00 − $33.07 = $26.93
- Running cost a month: $9.07 × 2 = $18.15
- Payback: $1,795 ÷ ($26.93 × 2) = 33.3 months
Send this result to someone: the address bar holds every input.
What's next
I'm thinking about a log where you note each batch (food, fresh and dry weight, hours, bags used) and see your real cost per pound and payback from your own numbers. It isn't built yet. The button only adds one to a counter, so I can see if enough people want it.
Thanks, counted.
More detail: how much it costs to run a freeze dryer (electricity by model and rate), how many pounds per tray and per batch, is a freeze dryer worth it at 1, 2 or 4 batches a month, freeze-dried candy: cost per bag and what to charge, oil changes against an oil-free pump, and freeze dryer against dehydrator cost per pound.
Where the preset numbers come from
I opened each of these on 2026-10-15. Prices and specs change, so treat every preset as a starting point and type your own.
- Power and capacity: the Harvest Right FAQ says the small and medium draw "on the average about 9 to 11 amps (990-1210 watts)", the large about 1,500 W and the X-large about 1,700 W. Fresh food per batch is 6–10 lb (small), 10–15 (medium), 18–27 (large) and 40–50 (X-large). Most foods take "between 13 hours and 35 hours".
- Oil: the same FAQ says the Premier oil pump needs an oil change "every 20–30 batches", the Standard pump "every 4–5 batches". The $16 default is close to Harvest Right's own bottle of pump oil ($15.98); the shop doesn't list how much a bottle holds, so put in what one change costs you.
- Prices: Trimleaf list prices of 2026-10-17, from Trimleaf's freeze dryer cost guide, a Harvest Right reseller, in October 2026. Powder coated: $1,795 (small), $2,395 (medium), $3,095 (large) and $1,399 (Countertop 360). The X-large is $4,995 in stainless steel. Stainless costs $100–500 more on the other models. Sales and bundles change these, so type what you pay.
- Harvest Right's own site, October 18, 2026 (prices change often): black Home Freeze Dryer small $1,895 on sale ($2,495 compare-at), medium $2,395 ($3,195), large $2,995 ($3,895). Stainless: small $2,395, medium $2,795, large $3,395, X-large $4,995. The presets stay at the Trimleaf list prices; type the one you pay.
- Countertop 360: four trays, about 1,600 W and 5–9 lb of fresh food per batch (the preset uses the 7 lb middle), as Trimleaf quotes Harvest Right. I couldn't find its tray area, so the per-tray page leaves it out.
- Packaging: Harvest Right sells 50 mylar bags (8 × 12 in) for $24.99, about $0.50 each, and 50 oxygen absorbers for $19.99, about $0.40 each. One bag per tray is my own guess; count yours.
- Electricity: the EIA's table of average electricity prices puts U.S. residential power at 18.31 cents per kWh for July 2026. Your bill has your own rate.
- Dry weight: Iowa State Extension's AnswerLine writes that "a 10-pound bag of fresh apples weighs about one pound after freeze drying". That's the 10% default. Foods with less water to begin with keep more of their weight, so weigh a full tray before and after.
- Store price: Mountain House diced chicken (14 servings of 34 g for $77.99) works out to about $74 per pound, and I use $75 as the default. Store prices vary by product and retailer, so put in your own number.
- Fresh food at $3 per lb is a placeholder with no source behind it. It moves the answer a lot.
Worked examples
Three setups run through the same code. Open one to see it filled in above.
| Setup | Per batch | Per lb dry | Payback |
|---|---|---|---|
| Medium, 4 batches a month, default costs | $47.47 | $37.98 | 12.9 months |
| Large, 2 batches a month, cheap power (12 cents) | $77.86 | $34.60 | 17.0 months |
| Small, 1 batch a month, store price $40/lb | $33.07 | $41.34 | never |
The third row shows how much the store price matters. At $40 a pound, the small machine's food costs $41.34 a pound to make, more than buying it ready-made, so it never pays back.
What this calculator leaves out
It compares money only. It doesn't count your time, repairs after the warranty, a new circuit if you need one, trays or a sealer bought later, or the resale value of the machine. Payback assumes you would otherwise buy the same food ready-made. If you wouldn't, the saving is smaller than shown.
It says nothing about how long food keeps or how to store it safely. For that, read your machine's manual and a food preservation source such as your local extension office.