EV charging cost calculator
What a charge costs at your electricity price, what that means per mile, and how it stacks up against filling up a gas car.
Compare with a gas car
The break-even: what gas price matches your electricity?
Energy cost per mile is price ÷ efficiency for both cars. Setting them equal gives the break-even gas price: electricity price per mile × mpg. Move the electricity price to see how home and fast charging compare.
How to calculate charging cost
cost = battery kWh × (to% − from%) ÷ (1 − losses) × price per kWh
Most drivers charge to 80% day to day, so a 20→80% charge is the realistic "fill-up". Check your electricity bill for the price per kWh. Time-of-use plans often have overnight rates far below the daytime average. The U.S. Department of Energy's eGallon comparison uses the same logic to price electricity in "gallons".
Comparing a road trip? Price the gas version with the fuel cost calculator. For every cost, not just energy, use the cost per mile calculator.
Questions drivers ask
How much does it cost to charge an electric car?
Multiply the kWh you add by your electricity price, then allow roughly 10% for charging losses. Adding 60 kWh at 17¢/kWh costs about 60 × 0.17 ÷ 0.9 = $11.33 at home. DC fast charging often costs 40–60¢/kWh, so the same charge can cost three times as much.
Is an EV cheaper to run than a gas car?
Usually, when you charge mostly at home. At 17¢/kWh and 3.5 miles per kWh, an EV spends about 5.4¢ per mile on electricity; a 30 mpg car at $3.75 a gallon spends 12.5¢ on gas. Relying on fast chargers narrows or erases the gap.
What is miles per kWh?
The EV equivalent of mpg: how far the car goes on one kilowatt-hour. Most EVs manage 3–4.5 mi/kWh in mild weather and less in cold weather or at high speed. To convert from an EPA MPGe rating, divide MPGe by 33.7 (the kWh the EPA treats as equal to a gallon of gas).
Why does charging lose energy?
Some electricity becomes heat in the charger, cables and battery. Level 2 home charging typically loses about 10%, and slow Level 1 charging from a standard outlet can lose more.