An electric heated driveway is one of the biggest loads a house can have. Snow melting mats are designed at 50 watts per square foot, so a 480 sq ft 2-car driveway (20 x 24 ft) draws 24,000 W while it runs.
Our picks at a glance
From published specs and our sizing rules. Not lab tested.
- 1
Walk and steps, no install
HeatTrak Snow Melting Mat Starter Kit (walkway mat, 2 stair mats, power unit)
468 watts output
Check price on AmazonPaid link
- 2
Embedded tire tracks
WarmlyYours Snow Melt PowerMat, 120V, 2 x 10 ft (embedded)
1,000 watts output
Check price on AmazonPaid link
- 3
Portable driveway tracks
HeatTrak Snow Melting Driveway Mat, 24 in x 10 ft (one tire track)
636 watts output
View at HeatTrakNot a paid link
Warmup, a snow melting maker, says systems run about 5 to 8 hours per snowfall. At 6 hours that is 144 kWh, about $25 per snowfall at the US average of 17.3 cents per kWh. Thirteen 8-hour storms, the Chicago example Warmup uses, comes to about $430 a winter.
Most people do not need the whole driveway. Heating only the two tire tracks cuts the area by about 80 percent, and plug-in HeatTrak mats clear the walk and steps for about 50 cents a snowfall with no contractor.
Top picks, and why
HeatTrak Snow Melting Mat Starter Kit (walkway mat, 2 stair mats, power unit)
- 468 W continuous
Walkway mat, two stair mats and the power unit, about 468 W on a normal outlet, $500 to $1,000. About 49 cents per 6-hour snowfall.
$500 to $1,000, live price on Amazon
Check price on AmazonPaid link. We earn a commission at no cost to you.
WarmlyYours Snow Melt PowerMat, 120V, 2 x 10 ft (embedded)
- 1,000 W continuous
20 sq ft, 1,000 W, 50 W per sq ft, set into new concrete or asphalt. About 17 cents per hour per mat while it runs.
$250 to $500, live price on Amazon
Check price on AmazonPaid link. We earn a commission at no cost to you.
636watts output
HeatTrak Snow Melting Driveway Mat, 24 in x 10 ft (one tire track)
- 636 W continuous
Drive-over tire track mat, about 636 W each at 120V, around $1,075 each. Two cover one car's tracks.
Compare every pick
Paid links: we earn a commission if you buy, at no cost to you. Amazon prices change often, so we show a range and link to the live price.
The math for a whole heated driveway
Watts = square feet x 50. Cost per snowfall = watts x hours / 1,000 x your rate.
Single car (12 x 20 ft, 240 sq ft): 12 kW, 72 kWh per 6-hour snowfall, about $12. Two car (20 x 24 ft, 480 sq ft): 24 kW, 144 kWh, about $25. Three car (30 x 24 ft, 720 sq ft): 36 kW, 216 kWh, about $37. All at 17.3 cents per kWh.
Warmup's rule of thumb is about 1 amp per 6 sq ft at 240V, so a 480 sq ft driveway needs about 80 amps of dedicated circuits. Many homes need a panel upgrade first. Bob Vila puts installed cost at about $15 to $30 per sq ft, roughly $7,200 to $14,400 for a 2-car driveway.
Heat only the tire tracks
Warmup and WarmlyYours both recommend tire tracks as the cost-effective layout. Two 2 ft wide tracks down a 24 ft driveway are 96 sq ft instead of 480: 4.8 kW, about $5 per 6-hour snowfall and about $86 for thirteen 8-hour storms.
Embedded tracks go in when the driveway is poured or repaved. The WarmlyYours PowerMat is 2 x 10 ft at 1,000 W, so a 24 ft driveway takes about five mats for two tracks.
WarmlyYours Snow Melt PowerMat, 120V, 2 x 10 ft (embedded)
- 1,000 W continuous
20 sq ft per mat, 50 W per sq ft, rated to melt 1 to 3 inches of snow an hour per WarmlyYours.
$250 to $500, live price on Amazon
Check price on AmazonPaid link. We earn a commission at no cost to you.
636watts output
HeatTrak Snow Melting Driveway Mat, 24 in x 10 ft (one tire track)
- 636 W continuous
Lays on top, drive-over rated, plugs in. About 11 cents an hour each at 120V and the US average rate.
Walkway and steps: the cheap fix
HeatTrak mats lie on top, plug into a GFCI outlet and melt about 2 inches of snow an hour per HeatTrak.
One power unit runs up to 13 amps of linked mats. The starter kit (3.9 A) uses less than a third of that, so you can add stair mats later.
Cost: the starter kit at 468 W runs about 8 cents an hour. Thirteen 8-hour storms is about $8 a winter.
HeatTrak Snow Melting Mat Starter Kit (walkway mat, 2 stair mats, power unit)
- 468 W continuous
Walkway mat, two stair mats, power unit and extender, $500 to $1,000.
$500 to $1,000, live price on Amazon
Check price on AmazonPaid link. We earn a commission at no cost to you.
HeatTrak Heated Snow Melting Stair Mat, 10 x 30 in
- 84 W continuous
0.7 A (about 84 W) per tread, $100 to $250. Links to the same power unit.
$100 to $250, live price on Amazon
Check price on AmazonPaid link. We earn a commission at no cost to you.
HeatTrak Heated Snow Melting Walkway Mat, 30 x 60 in
- 420 W continuous
30 x 60 in, 3.5 A (about 420 W), $250 to $500. Needs a power unit.
$250 to $500, live price on Amazon
Check price on AmazonPaid link. We earn a commission at no cost to you.
The bottom line
From published specs and our sizing rules. Not lab tested.
- 1
Walk and steps, no install
HeatTrak Snow Melting Mat Starter Kit (walkway mat, 2 stair mats, power unit)
468 watts output
Check price on AmazonPaid link
- 2
Embedded tire tracks
WarmlyYours Snow Melt PowerMat, 120V, 2 x 10 ft (embedded)
1,000 watts output
Check price on AmazonPaid link
- 3
Portable driveway tracks
HeatTrak Snow Melting Driveway Mat, 24 in x 10 ft (one tire track)
636 watts output
View at HeatTrakNot a paid link
Frequently asked questions
How much does a heated driveway cost to run?
About $25 per 6-hour snowfall for a 480 sq ft 2-car driveway at 50 W per sq ft and the US average of 17.3 cents per kWh. Over thirteen 8-hour storms that is about $430 a winter. Heating only the tire tracks cuts it to about $86.
How many watts does a heated driveway use?
Electric snow melting mats are designed at about 50 W per square foot. A 480 sq ft driveway draws about 24,000 W, which needs roughly 80 amps of 240V circuits.
Do heated snow melting mats work?
HeatTrak says its mats melt about 2 inches of snow per hour and keep the surface about 40 F above the air temperature.
Is a heated driveway worth it?
At $15 to $30 per sq ft installed plus a few hundred dollars a winter to run, a full driveway is a luxury for most homes. Tire tracks or a heated walk and steps get most of the safety benefit for a fraction of the cost.
How fast does a heated driveway melt snow?
WarmlyYours rates its 50 W per sq ft PowerMat to melt 1 to 3 inches of snow an hour, and HeatTrak says its plug-in mats melt about 2 inches an hour. Warmup puts typical run time at 5 to 8 hours per snowfall.
Can you add heat to an existing driveway?
Not embedded heat: mats like the WarmlyYours PowerMat go in when concrete, asphalt or pavers are poured or replaced. For an existing driveway, HeatTrak's drive-over tire track mats lie on top and plug in, about 636 W each at 120V. You need two, one per tire track.
What electrical service does a heated driveway need?
A lot for a full driveway. Warmup's rule of about 1 amp per 6 sq ft at 240V means about 80 amps of dedicated circuits for a 480 sq ft 2-car driveway, and many homes need a panel upgrade first. Two 2 ft tire tracks down a 24 ft driveway are 96 sq ft, about 16 amps at 240V by the same rule. Plug-in HeatTrak walkway mats run on a regular GFCI outlet.
How much does it cost to heat a sidewalk and steps?
About 8 cents an hour for the HeatTrak starter kit (walkway mat plus two stair mats, about 468 W) at 17.3 cents per kWh. That is about 49 cents per 6-hour snowfall and about $8 for thirteen 8-hour storms. Each added stair mat draws about 84 W, about 1.5 cents an hour.
How many HeatTrak mats can run on one power unit?
One HeatTrak power unit handles up to 13 amps of linked mats. The starter kit uses 3.9 A, which leaves about 9 A, enough for about 13 more stair mats at 0.7 A each. A 30 x 60 in walkway mat draws 3.5 A, so add up the amps before you link another.
Should a heated driveway run all winter?
No. Run it when snow or ice is coming and turn it off once the surface is clear. A 480 sq ft driveway at 24 kW uses 24 kWh every hour it runs, about $4.15 an hour at 17.3 cents per kWh. Left on around the clock for a 90 day winter it would use about 51,840 kWh, about $8,970.
8 products are linked on this page. We have not lab-tested these products; picks are based on published specifications and our sizing rules. Amazon prices change, so we show a range and link to the live price. See our disclosure.
Size it for your home
Marcus Reed
Founder and Editor, CrunchYourDollars
Marcus Reed builds the sizing tools on CrunchYourDollars. He is a software engineer with a long-running PC hardware and power supply habit, which is where the watts, watt-hours and surge math on this site comes from. Product specs are pulled from manufacturer data sheets, electricity rates from the U.S. Energy Information Administration, and water chemistry rules from the Water Quality Association. He is not a licensed electrician or plumber: the tools show the math and the matching models so you can make the call, and anything involving your electrical panel should be checked by a licensed pro.
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