EV Charging Cost Calculator

This calculator estimates a charge from the usable battery capacity, state-of-charge change, charging losses and the unit rate entered.

Pick a car, set the charge you actually do, and add your unit rate. The calculator shows what the charge costs, what it costs per mile, and how much energy your meter records rather than how much your car reports.

The kWh your car reports is not the kWh you pay for

Battery energy and metered energy use different measurement boundaries, so they are kept separate throughout the calculation.

Your car reports the energy that arrived in the battery. Your electricity meter records the energy that left the wall. Between the two sit the onboard charger converting AC to DC, resistance in the cable, and battery conditioning. The size of that difference is the editable charging-loss input; this page does not claim one value for every car and charger.

The cost is therefore calculated from estimated metered energy, not battery energy. Replace the loss input with evidence for the charging setup you are assessing.

How the unit rate changes the result

The cost changes directly with the unit rate entered. If a tariff has more than one rate, use the rate that applies to the modelled charge.

A single calculation cannot mix an off-peak part with a peak-rate part. Run the portions separately if a charge crosses tariff bands.

To see what the rates actually look like where you live, the price cap by region page gives the standard-rate ceiling, and when to use electricity shows the hours that are typically cheapest and cleanest.

Home charging against public charging

This calculator starts from a unit rate entered by the reader. For a public charge, use the price and energy boundary stated by that charging network rather than a domestic tariff.

If the advertised price applies to energy delivered by the charger, set the loss input to zero so the calculator costs the same boundary. Check the network's own price terms before comparing it with a home-meter result.

What this calculator assumes

The preset capacities and efficiencies are illustrative site inputs, not measured averages for body styles or specific models. Replace both with your vehicle's usable capacity and long-term efficiency.

The annual estimate holds your unit rate constant for twelve months. That is this site's assumption for the purpose of the estimate, and not a published forecast. If the entered rate changes, rerun it.

An annual result is only as representative as the efficiency entered, so use a long-term figure if available. Full workings for every calculator on this site are on the methodology page.