Freeze Dryer vs Dehydrator: Cost per Pound Compared
A freeze dryer and a dehydrator make different products, so this page compares cost only. It puts the electricity for one batch of each side by side, divides it by the pounds of fresh food in the batch, and shows how far apart the two machines are in price. The dehydrator figures start as one worked example (an Excalibur 6-tray); replace them with your own machine.
The freeze dryer uses 2.8 times the electricity per pound of fresh food. These are the example figures until you change them.
| Freeze dryer | Dehydrator | |
|---|---|---|
| Electricity, one batch | $4.83 | $1.10 |
| kWh, one batch | 26.4 | 6 |
| Fresh food, one batch | 12.5 lb | 8 lb |
| Electricity, per lb fresh | $0.39 | $0.14 |
| With oil and bags, per lb fresh | $0.80 | not counted |
| Purchase price | $2,395 | $250 |
The math, line by line
- Freeze dryer: 1,100 W × 24 h ÷ 1,000 = 26.4 kWh × $0.18 = $4.83, ÷ 12.5 lb = $0.39 per lb
- Dehydrator: 600 W × 10 h ÷ 1,000 = 6 kWh × $0.18 = $1.10, ÷ 8 lb = $0.14 per lb
- Freeze dryer with oil and bags: ($4.83 + $0.64 + $4.50) ÷ 12.5 lb = $0.80 per lb
- Price gap: $2,395 − $250 = $2,145
- Running costs match the gap: $2,145 ÷ ($0.80 − $0.14) = 3,247 lb of fresh food
After about 3,247 lb of fresh food, what the freeze dryer costs extra to run would add up to the $2,145 it costs extra to buy. Before that, the purchase price is the larger part of the difference; after it, running costs are. The freeze dryer is the dearer machine on both counts, so the number shows how much of the cost gap comes from running costs. It does not mean one machine ever overtakes the other.
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Where the dehydrator figures come from
- Power and price: Excalibur's own shop feed (excaliburdehydrator.com/products.json, opened October 19, 2026) lists the 6 Tray Performance Digital Dehydrator at 600 watts, 9.6 square feet of drying space and $249.99. The 10-tray model is 800 watts, 16 square feet and $379.99. A dehydrator's heater switches on and off with its thermostat, so watts times hours is the most it can use. Your real figure is probably lower.
- Hours: Colorado State University Extension says that at 140 °F you should "plan on about 6 hours for thin apple slices to 36 hours for peach halves". Its guide gives 6–10 hours for banana slices. The 10 hour example sits in that range. Humidity, slice thickness and how full the trays are all move it.
- Load: I found no maker figure for pounds of fresh food per batch. The National Center for Home Food Preservation says twelve square feet of drying space dries about a half-bushel of produce, without a weight. The 8 lb example is my own assumption for 9.6 square feet. Weigh what you load.
- Freeze dryer side: the same Harvest Right and Trimleaf figures as the main calculator, with its sources listed there.
- Harvest Right's blog post on freeze drying vs dehydrating cost (July 21, 2026) gives no operating figures. It says a freeze dryer "generally costs more to operate than a dehydrator because cycles are longer and the equipment is more complex", and that a dehydrator needs a much smaller initial investment. The numbers above fit both statements. Harvest Right sells freeze dryers.
What this leaves out
- What comes out. A dehydrator makes dried food and a freeze dryer makes freeze-dried food, with different textures and uses. Pounds of fresh food in is the only quantity both machines share, so it is the divisor here. Pounds of finished food out would differ by food and by how dry you take it.
- Packaging on the dehydrator side. The freeze dryer column includes oil and mylar bags and the dehydrator column does not, since many people store dried food in jars or bags they already own. If you buy bags for it too, add them to the dehydrator's electricity by hand.
- Everything else: the pump, the food itself, your time, the counter space, and how long each machine lasts. I found no maker figure for lifespan.
- Storage and food safety. This page covers cost only. For how long dried or freeze-dried food keeps and how to store it safely, use the manual and your state extension office.
More
The freeze dryer cost calculator adds food cost and store prices and works out cost per pound of dry food and payback. How much it costs to run a freeze dryer lists electricity per batch by model and rate.