More than 60 million homeowners can now answer one simple question: “Am I an energy hog or an energy miser?”

Microsoft Corp. announces the availability of the Hohm Score, an estimate of a home's energy efficiency, offered as part of the company's free online home energy management tool, Microsoft Hohm. By simply typing in an address at http://www.microsoft-hohm.com, anyone can see the Hohm Score for almost any home in the United States.

“The Hohm Score provides an easy way for anyone to measure their home energy efficiency and compare it with others. It's important to note that the average Hohm Score here in the U.S. is a failing grade,” said Troy Batterberry, product unit manager of Microsoft Hohm. “Fortunately, by making some simple changes to your household, consumers can easily achieve a passing mark and save an estimated tens of billions of dollars each and every year.”

Hohm Scores are calculated by comparing a home's actual and potential energy efficiency, and is grounded with advanced analytics licensed from Lawrence Berkeley National Labs and statistical data from the Department of Energy. In addition to individual scores, Hohm Scores are available by ZIP code, city and state, so anyone can compare a home's score with others around the country.

The national average Hohm Score comes in at 61, with Hawaii topping the list as having the highest average Hohm Score and with Texas coming in last. Here are the states with the highest and lowest Hohm Score averages:

• Highest: Hawaii (81), Delaware (70), Maryland (70), District of Columbia (68) and New Jersey (67).

• Lowest: Arkansas (53), Oklahoma (52), Nevada (51), Tennessee (51) and Texas (51).

“If each of the 60 million households improved their Hohm Score by five points, collectively that would equal an estimated US$8 billion in savings a year,” Batterberry said.

Available free to all U.S. residential energy consumers, Hohm is working to help everyone save energy and money by offering insight into home energy usage and by providing personalized recommendations. Hohm has established partnerships with utilities and the Ford Motor Co., and is actively working with these partners to realize a long-term vision of connecting just about anything that uses energy to help automate and optimize energy use.

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