Low-cost far-field wireless electrical load monitoring system applied in an off-grid rural area of Tanzania

•A low-cost radio frequency-based wireless energy monitoring system is introduced with embedded open source code.•The proposed system is neither confined to any geographic location nor limited by the development of local infrastructure.•Data loss is effectively minimized to enhance the sustainability of the system operating outdoors.•A standby device is proposed to prevent the monitoring system from being disabled by external environmental factors.