Model
Cafe CDT87***N***
Rank #373 means 372 of the 709 dishwasher models we track cost less to run each year; the 35th efficiency percentile means it uses less energy for its size than 35% of those models.
What does the Cafe CDT87***N*** cost to run per year?
The Cafe CDT87***N*** holds rank #373 of 709 on running cost, at about $45 a year, an unremarkable but typical figure for the class. It uses 21.8% less energy than the U.S. federal standard model in its class, which would cost about $57/yr to run, a saving of roughly $12 a year. Its size-adjusted efficiency percentile of 35 suggests its capacity is doing more work than its efficiency to keep the headline cost down. This class has no published efficiency-factor figure beyond annual kWh itself, so at 12 place settings (the class spans 2 to 18), size is the clearest lever we can point to for this model's running cost.
Immediately around it on the leaderboard, the Cafe CDT858**V*** at $45/yr runs a little cheaper and the Cafe CDT888**V*** at $45/yr runs a little more, a sense of how tightly models are packed at this point in the ranking. A dishwasher typically stays in service for somewhere around 9 years; over that span, the Cafe CDT87***N***'s $45/yr adds up to roughly $405 in electricity alone, before purchase price or repairs.
Also sold as: Amana ADFS2524R**.
By the numbers
The Cafe CDT87***N*** normalized against its whole class, so each figure means something.
What it costs you over time
Running cost is an every-year number, so it compounds. At $45/yr, here is what the Cafe CDT87***N*** adds up to before purchase price, water, or repairs enter the math.
Left running for a decade at today's US average rate, the Cafe CDT87***N*** costs about $450. That is roughly $120 less than a standard model in its class, which would run closer to $570 over the same ten years.
How the Cafe CDT87***N*** compares
The dishwasher class we track runs from $15 to $45 a year. At $45/yr, it runs about $1 a year above the class median of $44, and it is about $30 a year more than the cheapest dishwasher to run at $15. Against the US federal standard model for its class at about $57/yr, the Cafe CDT87***N*** uses 21.8% less energy.
What drives its running cost
At 12 place settings, the Cafe CDT87***N*** is a small dishwasher for its class, which spans 2 to 18 place settings with a median of 14 place settings, less capacity to service is usually the first reason a running-cost figure lands on the low side, before efficiency even enters the picture.
- Place-setting capacity. Place-setting capacity is the main driver of how much water a cycle has to heat, and heating that water is most of a dishwasher's electricity use.
- Water heating. Most dishwashers have a booster heater that raises incoming water to sanitizing temperature; this heating step, not the pump or motor, accounts for most of a cycle's electricity use.
- Cycle length and drying method. Heavy or sanitize cycles run longer and hotter than a normal or eco cycle, and heated-dry options cost more to run than air-dry or condensation drying.
Common questions
Is the Cafe CDT87***N*** cheap to run?
Roughly, yes. Its $45/yr figure is close to the class median, ranking #373 of 709, neither a bargain nor a splurge on running cost.
How much does the Cafe CDT87***N*** cost per month?
About $3.71 a month, which is the $45 annual estimate spread across twelve months at the US average rate of $0.1856/kWh. Your own bill scales with your local electricity rate and how heavily you use it.
How is this running-cost figure calculated?
The formula is annual kWh times price per kWh: 240 kWh from ENERGY STAR times the US average of $0.1856/kWh comes to about $45 a year. It covers electricity only, not the purchase price, water, or installation.
How efficient is the Cafe CDT87***N*** for its size?
35th percentile once size is factored in, a fairly typical result for the class.
Cheaper to run in the same class
Source
ES_1123206_CDT87***N***_02172023081908_80153105View certified dishwasher listingsENERGY STAR data as of July 2026Cafe and CDT87***N*** are used here for identification only and are not endorsements. Figures are computed by WattWise Labs from public ENERGY STAR data, not measured in our own lab.