At the 20-litre size the Arete Two is barely cheaper to run than the Arete One. In a heated room at 20°C and 60% humidity it removes a litre of water for 15.4p at the October 2026 price cap, against 16.1p for the Arete One 20L. That 0.7p gap is too small to pay back the Arete Two’s higher price in any normal lifetime of use.
It is a different answer from the 12-litre pair, where the Arete Two saves 2.3p a litre and earns its premium back after 859 litres. We read both 20L performance tables on Meaco’s own pages on 28 September 2026 and priced them at 26.32p per kWh, the Ofgem cap rate from 1 October to 31 December 2026.
The verdict, 28 September 2026
- At 20°C and 60% humidity both remove 8.5 litres a day. The Arete One draws 216W and the Arete Two 207W, so a litre costs 16.1p against 15.4p.
- Meaco sells the Arete One 20L for £259.99 and the Arete Two 20L for £299.99. At 0.67p a litre, the pence-back point on that £40 is about 6,000 litres.
- Amazon UK lists the Arete Two 20L at £410.00, £110.01 more than Meaco’s own price. Against the Amazon price the pence-back point is over 22,000 litres.
- The Amazon listing gives the Arete Two 20L’s wattage as 350W. Meaco’s own table never goes above 271W, even at 30°C and 80% humidity.
- The biggest gap in Meaco’s tables is a cold, damp room: 20.5p against 19.3p a litre at 10°C and 80%.
| Room | Arete One 20L | Per litre | Arete Two 20L | Per litre | Two saves |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10°C, 60% | 180W, 3.4 L/day | 33.4p | 176W, 3.35 L/day | 33.2p | 0.3p |
| 10°C, 80% | 184W, 5.68 L/day | 20.5p | 180W, 5.90 L/day | 19.3p | 1.2p |
| 20°C, 60% | 216W, 8.5 L/day | 16.1p | 207W, 8.50 L/day | 15.4p | 0.7p |
| 20°C, 80% | 225W, 14.02 L/day | 10.1p | 217W, 13.85 L/day | 9.9p | 0.2p |
The pence-back point
Buying direct from Meaco, the Arete Two 20L costs £40 more. In a 20°C room it saves 0.67p on each litre, so it needs about 5,980 litres of water to earn that back. A 3kg load of washing holds about 1.74 litres after a normal spin, so a household drying five loads a week indoors gives the machine 8.7 litres a week. At that rate the payback takes about 13 years.
The cold, damp room is the Arete Two’s best case, and it still does not rescue the maths. At 10°C and 80% humidity the saving is 1.19p a litre and the pence-back point is about 3,360 litres, or more than seven years of the same laundry.
| Room | Saving per litre | Against Meaco’s prices (£40.00) | Against the Amazon price (£150.01) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10°C, 80% | 1.2p | 3,358 litres | 12,592 litres |
| 20°C, 60% | 0.7p | 5,981 litres | 22,428 litres |
| 20°C, 80% | 0.2p | 16,636 litres | 62,390 litres |
Why the 12L and 20L answers differ
At 12 litres, Meaco’s DC fan motor and newer design cut the Arete Two’s draw from 151W to 136W while it removes a little more water, which is a 13% saving per litre. At 20 litres the draw falls only from 216W to 207W for the same 8.5 litres, a saving of about 4%. The same upgrade buys a lot less at the bigger size.
| Size | Arete One per litre | Arete Two per litre | Two saves | Price gap | Pence-back point |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10L | 22.0p | 20.5p | 1.5p | £20.00 | 1,356 litres |
| 12L | 18.2p | 15.9p | 2.3p | £20.00 | 859 litres |
| 20L | 16.1p | 15.4p | 0.7p | £40.00 | 5,981 litres |
The 12L is the size where the Arete Two makes the most sense. Our 12L comparison has the full six-condition table for that pair.
What the Amazon listing gets wrong
The Amazon UK listing for the Arete Two 20L gives its wattage as 350W and its tank volume as 20 litres. Meaco’s own table tops out at 271W, at 30°C and 80% humidity, and Meaco gives the tank as 4.8 litres. The 20 litres is the machine’s rated water removal per day. Priced on the listing’s 350W, an eight-hour night would look like 73.7p. On Meaco’s 207W at 20°C it is 43.6p.
The price is the bigger problem. On 28 September 2026 Amazon UK showed £410.00 for the Arete Two 20L and Meaco’s own site showed £299.99. If you want the Arete Two, buy it direct.
Which one to buy
Buy the Arete One 20L. At this size it removes the same water for almost the same electricity, and it is £40 cheaper from Meaco. The warranty is five years on both.
Buy the Arete Two 20L only if you want what it adds beyond running cost: Meaco’s app and voice control, and an extra fan speed. Meaco rates that top speed at 50 dB(A), against 38 and 40 dB(A) for the two speeds the machines share. Buy it from Meaco at £299.99.
How we worked it out
| Item | What we did |
|---|---|
| Electricity rate | 26.32p per kWh, the Ofgem cap for 1 October to 31 December 2026, direct debit, Great Britain average. Standing charge left out. |
| Power and water removed | Watts and litres a day from the performance tables on Meaco’s own product pages. The two 20L tables share four room conditions. The Arete One’s also covers 50% humidity and the Arete Two’s covers 30°C, and we left those rows out. |
| Cost per litre | Watts × 24 hours ÷ 1,000 × 26.32p, divided by the litres removed in those 24 hours. |
| Prices | Meaco’s own site and Amazon UK, both read 28 September 2026. |
| The pence-back point | The price gap divided by the saving per litre. At 20°C and 60%: £40.00 ÷ 0.67p = 5,981 litres. |
What this comparison could not check
- We have not run either machine on a meter. Every wattage and extraction figure is Meaco’s own.
- Why Amazon’s price for the Arete Two 20L is £110 above Meaco’s. Prices on both change often.
- Noise in a real room. The decibel figures are Meaco’s.
The two machines
MeacoDry Arete One 20L
£259.99. 16.1p per litre removed in a 20°C room at the October 2026 cap, from Meaco’s table. It removes the same 8.5 litres a day as the Arete Two and doubles as a HEPA air purifier. Five-year warranty.
The catch: At 15 kg it is heavy to carry between rooms, and it has no app or voice control.
See it on AmazonMeacoDry Arete Two 20L
£299.99 direct from Meaco. 15.4p per litre removed in a 20°C room. App and voice control and an extra fan speed. This link goes to Meaco, not Amazon, and earns us nothing.
The catch: £40 more than the Arete One for a 0.7p saving per litre, and £410.00 on Amazon UK on the day we checked.
See it at MeacoLook Into earns a commission on qualifying purchases made through the Amazon link above, at no extra cost to you. The Meaco link earns us nothing. Neither changes the arithmetic.
Common questions
Is the Meaco Arete Two 20L cheaper to run than the Arete One 20L?
Slightly. At 20°C and 60% humidity both remove 8.5 litres a day, and the Arete Two draws 207W against 216W, so a litre costs 15.4p against 16.1p at the October 2026 cap of 26.32p per kWh.
Is the Arete Two 20L worth the extra money?
Not on running cost. It is £40 more from Meaco and saves 0.67p a litre, so it needs about 5,980 litres of water to pay back. Buy it for the app and the extra fan speed if you want those.
Why is the Arete Two 20L more expensive on Amazon?
We cannot say. On 28 September 2026 Amazon UK listed it at £410.00 and Meaco’s own site at £299.99. Buying direct saved £110.01 that day.
How many watts does the Meaco Arete Two 20L use?
207W at 20°C and 60% humidity, and between 176W and 271W across the six conditions in Meaco’s own table. The 350W on its Amazon UK listing does not appear anywhere in Meaco’s figures.
Compare more
- All our running-cost head-to-heads
- Meaco Arete One vs Arete Two 12L: the Two is cheaper per litre in every room Meaco publishes
- Meaco Arete One 12L vs MeacoDry ABC 10L: same night, different cost per litre
- Meaco vs Pro Breeze 12L dehumidifier: one publishes its wattage, one does not
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- Ninja AF300UK vs Tefal Easy Fry Dual Zone: nine years of cooking to earn back £62
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- Electric blanket vs heater: 1.8p an hour against 17.1p and up
- Electric blanket vs hot water bottle: half an hour of blanket costs less than one kettle fill
- Oil filled radiator vs fan heater: watt for watt, exactly the same bill
- Best dehumidifiers UK, ranked by what a night costs
Sources
- Ofgem, energy price cap unit rates and standing charges (1 October to 31 December 2026)
- Meaco, MeacoDry Arete One 20L product page and performance table
- Meaco, MeacoDry Arete Two 20L product page and performance table
- Meaco, Arete One 10L and Arete Two 10L product pages and performance tables
- Amazon UK listings for the Arete One 20L (B093TK2M7F) and Arete Two 20L (B0D2Q9LBBG), prices and specification fields read 28 September 2026