Electric cars - how much do they cost to run?
While electric cars remain more expensive to buy than their petrol or diesel counterparts, they are much cheaper to run – and the savings you could make over time are significant.
There are a number of factors to consider when deciding between an electric or a petrol/diesel car. The cost of running an electric car will vary depending on the model and make you choose, but some general costs you should be aware of include:
Maintenance costs
Tax and insurance
Charging costs
Depreciation
One of the largest costs of running an electric car is the charging cost, which varies considerably. The time it takes to charge your vehicle will vary widely too, ranging from 30-60 minutes up to 8-10 hours. Duration and cost will depend on many things:
The power rate of your charger
The type of charging point you use
Electricity tariffs
How many miles you drive between charging and the size of your battery
EV charging point (and price)
Slow (from £6; average £17)
Power rate & duration
Rated up to 3kW (8-10 hours)
Location
Home or workplace
EV charging point (and price)
Fast (from £7-10)
Power rate & duration
Either 7kW or 22kW (3-4 hours)
Location
Supermarkets, carparks, leisure centres etc
EV charging point (and price)
Rapid or ultra-rapid (averaging around £22)
Power rate & duration
Usually from 43 kW (30-60 mins)
Location
Motorway services, petrol stations, supermarkets
Charging an electric car at home
Most electric car owners install a charging point at home and plug their cars in overnight. This is by far the most convenient and economical way to charge an electric car, costing from as little as £6 to fully charge a small EV. A dedicated home charger will set you back around £800, but the savings you will make over time will soon offset this one-off cost.
Charging an electric car at public stations
No off-street parking at home? No problem: there are plenty of other options if it’s not possible to have a charging point where you live. At the time of writing there are 38,982 public EV charging points around the UK in over 23,000 locations. And these numbers are increasing all the time. Charging points can be found at service stations, supermarkets, public car parks and other public spaces – and some of them are free to use.
Public electric car chargers are either ‘fast’ or ‘slow’, meaning that it can take from three hours (so-called ‘fast’) to fully charge.
Many supermarkets, shopping and leisure centres will allow you to charge for free while you use their facilities, and a growing number of workplace car parks let you charge your car during the working day, also sometimes free of charge.
Rapid charge points
These can usually be found at motorway service stations and can fully charge your EV within 30-60 minutes. Rapid or ultra-rapid charge points are generally the priciest way to charge your car, typically costing £22 for a 30-minute, 90-mile charge. Although free ultra-rapid charging points do exist, they are rare.
As rapid charge points can be expensive, they are unlikely to form part of your regular charging routine; but they are vital for longer journeys where you need to give your EV a top up to get it through a lengthier trip. Rapid charge points are only compatible with fast-charging EVs and you will pay a premium for the convenience, much like you do when filling up at a motorway forecourt.
Charging networks
There are a number of networks and payment plans for electric cars across the UK. Pod Point, BP Pulse and Ubitricity are just three of the larger networks, but there are many others. Each network operates its own payment card, app or website, meaning there is no one-size-fits-all. Very few charging points allow you to pay with a bank card, and none accept cash.
Electric car charging cards
EV charging cards – or Radio Frequency ID cards (RFID for short) – are a popular way to access public charging points in the UK. RFID cards are gradually being replaced by smartphone apps, but they are still widely used. They work like contactless bank cards, allowing you to charge your car by tapping the card against a card reader at the charge point. You simply register for one via your preferred charge point supplier, set up your payment details and you’re good to go. Electric cars are also cheaper to maintain and service than petrol or diesel models.
While maintenance costs will vary, fully electric cars will require less maintenance than internal combustion engine cars: with no engine or oily bits to worry about, you may not need to service your electric car as often. And when you do, with fewer moving parts to replace, the service is likely to cost you much less.
While you can expect to pay standard maintenance costs for tyres, windscreens, wiper blades and washer fluid, plus general wear and tear, brake pads on EVs will outlast those on traditional models thanks to the regenerative braking systems that EVs rely on.
Today’s electric car batteries are designed to last so long – between 15 and 20 years (compare this with 3-5 years for a petrol car battery) – that some manufacturers expect the battery to outlive the rest of the vehicle. So that’s another expense you won’t need to worry about.
Fully electric cars are exempt from paying road tax – for now. Hybrid car drivers must pay road tax, albeit at a reduced rate to petrol/diesel cars. From April 2025 the government plans to introduce road tax for all electric vehicles. See the government’s VED page for more information on how this will work.
Traditionally, electric cars have been more expensive to insure than combustion engine cars, but this is gradually changing as EVs become more commonplace. Make sure you shop around for EV car insurance and consider black box insurance as a way of keeping your costs down.
Electric cars tend to depreciate more slowly than petrol or diesel cars, holding up to 50% of their value after three years (the average for all cars is around 40%). Hybrids depreciate at a slower rate than traditional combustion engine models but depreciate faster than fully electric vehicles. Tips to help minimise depreciation include:
Keeping your mileage as low as you can
Taking care of the battery (don’t under or over charge)
Making sure your EV is in good condition inside and out
Maintaining a full service history
According to the RAC, it can cost from as little as £6 to fully charge an electric car at home. Broadly speaking it costs between £7 and £10 to top up to 80% at a public fast charger. Compare this to around £85 or more for a full 55-litre tank of petrol.
Of course, differences in charging speed, battery size and tariff will all have an impact on costs, but it’s safe to say that – unless you’re only using rapid or ultra-rapid charging points – charging an electric vehicle will always cost you less than fuelling a traditional petrol or diesel equivalent.
