How much does it cost to charge an electric car?
How much does it cost to charge an electric car at home?
The main difference between petrol and electric cars is that you’ll usually charge an electric car at home rather than fill it with petrol. You’ll save the cost of buying petrol at the forecourt, but in return your electricity bill will increase. The question is, how much by?
Electricity costs slightly different amounts across the country - different regions will pay varying rates per unit of electricity used, as well as different daily standing charges - but currently the average cost per unit of electricity for a medium energy user in the UK is 26.3p, based on the October 2026 Ofgem price cap. We can therefore use that as a baseline for overall electric vehicle charging costs.
The average EV usable battery size is 62.5 kWh, so we can use the following formula to calculate how much it costs to charge:
Electricity unit rate (enter as 0.263) x battery size (62.5 kWh) = cost to fully charge: £16.44
This formula can be applied to any EV - you just need to make sure you’re using the right electricity unit rate and the correct battery size.
We can also divide the total charging cost (in pence) by the car's real-world range to get a cost-per-mile figure, which you can use to compare how efficient different models are.
| Electricity unit rate (UK average) | Usable battery size | Cost to fully charge | Range under standardised conditions | Cost per mile | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Honda Super-N | 26.3p | 28 kWh | £7.36 | 110 miles | 6.7p |
| Nissan LEAF Standard Range | 26.3p | 52 kWh | £13.68 | 200 miles | 6.84p |
| Porsche Macan Electric | 26.3p | 94.9 kWh | £24.96 | 305 miles | 8.18p |
| Mercedes-Benz EQS 450+ | 26.3p | 122 kWh | £32.09 | 445 miles | 7.21p |
Figures taken from https://ev-database.uk/
If you sign up for a dedicated EV tariff from your electricity supplier, then these costs can come down even further if you choose a time-of-use energy tariff. These are designed to help EV owners by offering cheaper electricity at certain hours of the night (typically 12am to 5am). Some suppliers charge as little as 7-8p per unit of electricity during these hours, but most cars will need longer than the cheaper time period to fully charge using a standard 3-7 kW home charger.
Nevertheless, we can illustrate how the overall charging costs come down with a projected lower unit rate of 7.5p/kWh:
| Example time-of-use UK unit rate | Usable battery size | Cost to fully charge | Cost per mile | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Honda Super-N | 7.5p | 28 kWh | £2.10 | 1.91p |
| Nissan LEAF Standard Range | 7.5p | 52 kWh | £3.90 | 1.95p |
| Porsche Macan Electric | 7.5p | 94.9 kWh | £7.12 | 2.34p |
| Mercedes-Benz EQS 450+ | 7.5p | 122 kWh | £9.15 | 2.06p |
Figures taken from https://ev-database.uk/
These time-of-use (TOU) tariffs are often marketed specifically as EV tariffs to entice EV owners to sign up, and they present the most affordable way to charge an electric car at home. The flipside, though, is that suppliers charge much more for “peak” electricity to make up the shortfall from off-peak hours, which is the rate you’ll pay for most of your overall electricity use. You’ll therefore have to be disciplined about your energy use and know exactly what your overall spend is likely to be to determine whether a TOU tariff offers good value. One way to maximise savings with a time-of-use tariff is to combine it with solar panels.
If you own a hybrid car, a TOU tariff may appeal in some circumstances, but check our guide as to whether you could benefit from one.
Other home charging costs
You will also need to pay for a home charging unit, which adds another £350 to £1,000 depending on how you get it. We also recommend purchasing an EV charging cable, which you’ll need to charge your car using public charging points when not at home.
How much does it cost to charge an electric car at public charging points?
The cost of charging an EV at public charging points – including workplaces – varies depending on the type of charger (slow, fast or rapid) and the company operating it. Some workplaces offer free electric car charging points for employees, while you may also find free charging points at places like gyms, hotels and supermarkets, although they’ll almost certainly be of the slower (7kW) type.
According to ZapMap, as of September 2026, the average PAYG cost of charging your EV using a slow or standard public charger (3-49kW) is 54p/kWh. That rises to an average 79p/kWh for those using a rapid or ultra-fast charger (50kW or above).
What you’ll actually pay depends on which network you use. The following are for illustrative purposes only:
| Charging point | Standard/Standard Plus (7-22kW) | Rapid/Ultra-rapid (50-300kW) |
|---|---|---|
| BP Pulse | £0.65/kW | £0.83-£0.87/kW |
| Char.gy | £0.39/kW (weeknights), £0.59/kW (weekdays), £0.54 (weekends) | N/A |
| Osprey | N/A | £0.89/kW |
| Shell Recharge | £0.64-£0.79/kW | £0.74-£0.89/kW |
Prices are correct as of September 2026 and based on standard PAYG prices. Other options, such as subscribers or contactless/pay online, may vary.
You can sometimes pay with standard contactless payments, but others require you to set up an account or use a specialist electric car charging card.
How do electric car charging cards work?
Radio frequency identification (RFID) electric car charging cards are used by most providers of public electric car charging stations, including Ecotricity and Shell Recharge. You’ll usually need to also download the provider’s mobile app or go to its website, where you should have an account connected to the card. This is, admittedly, a drawback of the public charging system, but a UK-wide rollout of many more charging points that take contactless payment is underway.
How much does it cost to charge an electric car at rapid public charging points?
Paying to charge your EV at rapid public EV charging points works in the same way as using public electric vehicle charging points with lower charging rates. Because they’re more powerful and charge cars faster than other chargers, they tend to cost more to use.
According to Zapmap, pay-as-you-go prices across the Top 10 Rapid charging networks range from 59p/kWh to 92p/kWh. Charging your EV for 30 minutes at a 50kW rapid charger costs around £15 to £25 and provides roughly 100 miles of range.
How does the cost of a petrol vehicle compare?
With diesel and petrol prices on the rise, the costs of charging an EV look incredibly attractive – particularly if you’re able to do the bulk of your charging at home. You could easily save yourself hundreds of pounds a month in fuel costs alone. However, there are other costs you need to account for when making the switch from petrol to an electric car. They include:
- Purchase – most electric cars will cost more than their petrol counterparts because there are fewer options and the technology they use is newer, so the initial outlay will be higher
- Maintenance – on the other hand, in addition to charging working out much cheaper than filling up a fuel tank, maintenance costs should be much lower because there are fewer parts to wear out and stop working when you compare an EV battery to an internal combustion engine.
You may need to spend more upfront, but over the car’s life, running and maintaining it should cost much less than a petrol or diesel car.
FAQs
Can electric cars be more expensive to run than petrol?
As we’ve said, electric cars tend to be more expensive than petrol cars when it comes to the initial outlay, but unless fuel prices crash or you charge your EV in the most inefficient way possible (maybe by using a three-pin plug, which would mean charging times of more than 24 hours), it's unlikely that an electric car would be more expensive to run than a petrol car.
Are there any free public electric car charge points?
Free electric car charging is possible, but the numbers are small. In May 2025, there were just over 1,800 free EV chargers, primarily located at supermarkets, hotels, car parks and public attractions looking to entice visitors. Ultimately, they’re probably not really free - you’d expect to pay to visit the places that operate them - but in theory, you won’t have to worry about RFID cards or provider accounts to use them.
How many electric vehicle charging points are in the UK?
According to Zapmap, there are nearly 125,000 public EV charging stations across over 48,000 charging locations in the UK as of September 2026, up 7.4% from 2025. They’re spread across three broad locations: en-route (such as service stations and petrol forecourts), destination (such as supermarkets and hotels) and on-street (next to public parking spaces).
Find out more about these and other EV charging statistics with our dedicated guide.
