The cost to charge an electric car in the UK varies between home, work, and public charging.
For a typical electric car with a 60kWh battery and ~200-mile range:
Charging at home: Costs about £8.40 for a full charge.
Charging at work: Many employers will install workplace charging points and typically offer free access throughout the day.
Charging at public locations: Public charge points at supermarkets or car parks are often free to use for the duration of your stay.
Rapid charging: Rapid charging points are normally found at motorway service stations and typically cost £6.50 for a 30 min, ~100-mile charge.
Tip: Electric cars very rarely need a “full” charge, as they never arrive completely empty and usually just need a “top up”
Cost to charge an electric car at home
Charging an electric car at home costs about £8.40 for a full charge and is the most convenient and cost-effective way to keep your car fully charged. Most drivers will charge their electric car overnight, waking up to a full battery every morning.
Average domestic electricity rate in the whole of the UK is about 14p per kWh.
Fully charging a 60kWh electric car will cost between £8.30 and £9.40 (depending on where you live) and give you about 200 miles of range.
Cost to charge an electric car at work
The cost of charging an electric car at work can vary between organisations with some choosing to provide free charging while others set a paid tariff.
Some employers offer free charging as a staff incentive.
Others opt for a time-based tariff to encourage sharing of charging stations.
Another model is to offer free employee charging for a set period and a fee after this time to encourage employees to vacate charging spaces.
Cost to charge an electric car at public charge points
Charging your electric car while out and about is a great way to top up your battery and many locations offer free charging to their customers or visitors.
On most modern networks you can use a free-to-download mobile app to find charge points and start your charge.
Some older public charge points require an RFID card (like a contactless debit card) to start charging which can be ordered online.
For app-enabled charge points, if the host has set a tariff, you will be able to pay for your charge in app.
Cost to charge an electric car at rapid chargers
Rapid chargers are typically found in motorway service stations and range from being free to one of the more expensive ways to charge.
Pod Point’s rapid chargers cost 23p/kWh at Lidl which is about £6-7 for 30 minutes of charging (about 100 miles of range).
The Tesla Supercharger Network has points across the UK which are often free to use for owners of Tesla electric vehicles.
Other sites can be found around the UK and typically have an associated tariff that is chosen by the operator.