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Christian HoerningAlright: The continuous flow electric water heater should use less electricity (kWh) than an electric cylinder for providing the same amount of hot water. This is because there are no standing losses. However, as no hot water is stored it needs to be on an uncontrolled electricity supply.
If your uncontrolled electricity supply is metered and charged separately at a higher rate than the controlled supply then it could be that the total cost for hot water is higher, depending on the amount of hot water used. If you use only small amounts of hot water then it could be that the higher electricity cost and the savings from not having standing losses cancel each other more or less out.
Some households only have one meter and hence pay the same rate for their controlled and uncontrolled electricity usage, based on a generically estimated split between the two. Some households have two meters but only get charged a single rate for everything. In these cases the only thing that would make a difference in the running cost would be the standing losses you would have with a cylinder but not with a continuous flow system (assuming the same hot water usage).
