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What it costs to charge an EV at home each month
Updated
Take the miles you drive in a month, divide by your car's miles per kWh, add about 10% for charging loss, and multiply by your electric rate. For 1,000 miles at 3.3 miles per kWh, that is about 337 kWh a month. Put in your own numbers below.
Monthly home charging cost calculator
Estimate. Assumes about 10% charging loss, the same as our charge time calculator. Your bill may also include fixed fees and taxes that do not change with charging.
The math, so you can check it
- Energy the car uses: 1,000 miles / 3.3 miles per kWh = 303 kWh.
- Energy you pay for: 303 / 0.9 = about 337 kWh. The extra is lost as heat in the charger, cable and car.
- Cost: kWh x your rate. At 15 cents per kWh that is about 50.51 a month.
Where to find your numbers
- Your rate: look at your power bill for the price per kWh. Add delivery charges that are billed per kWh. Leave out fixed monthly fees.
- Your car's efficiency: the trip screen shows miles per kWh, or Wh per mile. To convert, divide 1,000 by the Wh per mile number. Small cars often get 3.5 to 4. Trucks and big SUVs often get 2 to 2.5.
- Your miles: the odometer change over a normal month.
How monthly kWh changes with driving
| Miles per month | kWh at 2.5 mi/kWh | kWh at 3.3 mi/kWh | kWh at 4.0 mi/kWh |
|---|---|---|---|
| 500 | 222 | 168 | 139 |
| 1,000 | 444 | 337 | 278 |
| 1,500 | 667 | 505 | 417 |
Two ways to pay less
- Ask about a time-of-use or EV rate plan. Many power companies charge much less overnight. Run the calculator once with your normal rate and once with the overnight rate to see the gap. Check how the plan changes the price of your daytime power too.
- Schedule the charge. A charger with a scheduling app starts at the cheap hour without you. The Emporia 48A has scheduling and energy tracking, and owners say off-peak scheduling cut their bill. Caveat: its WiFi is 2.4 GHz only, and some owners had trouble getting it connected. The EVIQO 48A app shows cost per charge, according to owners. Caveat: newer brand. Many cars can also schedule charging from their own screen, so a basic charger may be enough.
A faster charger does not lower the cost per mile. It only shortens the time, which matters if your cheap-rate window is short. Check that with the charge time calculator, and see every pick on the best chargers page.
This is an estimate. Cold weather, fast driving and preheating the cabin all raise the real number.
Electrical caveat: this page is general information, not electrical advice for your house. Circuits, outlets and breakers for EV charging should be checked or installed by a licensed electrician, to your local code, with a permit where required.