EV Charging Cost Calculator
Estimate how much it costs to charge your electric vehicle at home based on your electricity price, EV energy consumption and daily driving distance.
Daily Driving & Energy Use
Full Battery Charge Cost
Optionally, estimate how much it costs to charge your battery from 0% to 100% at home.
Why use an EV charging cost calculator?
Owning an electric vehicle is great for running costs and the environment, but many drivers are still unsure about one simple question:
“How much does it actually cost to charge my EV?”
Electricity tariffs, different EV efficiencies and changing daily mileage make it difficult to answer this by memory. A clear estimate helps you:
- Plan your monthly and yearly transport budget
- Decide whether switching from a gasoline car really saves money
- Understand the impact of off-peak tariffs and smarter charging habits
- Compare different EV models when you are shopping for a new car
This EV charging cost calculator gives you a quick, transparent estimate based on just a few inputs, using simple formulas you can easily understand.
How to use this EV charging cost calculator
Using the tool at the top of this page is straightforward:
- Enter your electricity price
- Take the price from your latest utility bill.
- Use the value in USD per kWh (or convert your local currency to USD if you prefer).
- Enter your EV’s energy consumption
- Use the average value in kWh per 100 km.
- You can start with the official WLTP/EPA rating and adjust later based on your real-world experience.
- Enter your daily driving distance
- Estimate how many kilometres you usually drive per day.
- If your usage is irregular, use a weekly distance divided by seven.
- Click “Calculate EV charging cost”
- The calculator will show your estimated daily, monthly and yearly charging costs.
- Optional: estimate full battery charge cost
- Enter your battery capacity in kWh and your electricity price.
- The tool will show how much it costs to charge from 0% to 100%.
These few numbers already give you a surprisingly accurate picture of your home EV charging costs.
How the calculation works
This EV charging cost calculator is intentionally simple. It uses basic energy and cost formulas that anyone can follow.
Daily energy use
First, the tool estimates how much electrical energy your car uses per day:
Daily energy use (kWh) = EV consumption (kWh / 100 km) × Daily distance (km) ÷ 100
Example:
If your EV uses 18 kWh / 100 km and you drive 40 km per day:
- Daily energy = 18 × 40 ÷ 100 = 7.2 kWh per day
Daily, monthly and yearly cost
Once we know your daily energy use, we multiply it by your electricity price:
Daily cost = Daily energy use × Electricity price (USD / kWh)
Using the previous example, if your electricity price is $0.15 / kWh:
- Daily cost = 7.2 × 0.15 = $1.08 per day
For convenience, the tool then estimates:
- Monthly cost ≈ Daily cost × 30
- Yearly cost ≈ Daily cost × 365
These are only approximations, but they are close enough for budgeting purposes.
Full battery charge cost
When you enter your battery capacity, the calculator estimates how much it costs to go from 0% to 100%:
Full charge cost = Battery capacity (kWh) × Electricity price (USD / kWh)
For a 60 kWh battery and $0.15 / kWh:
- Full charge cost = 60 × 0.15 = $9.00
In reality you rarely charge from 0% to 100%, but this number helps you understand the upper bound of a full charge at home.
Example EV charging cost scenarios
To make the numbers more concrete, here are three typical scenarios. All results are based on home charging only and rounded for readability.
Example 1 – Compact city EV
- EV consumption: 15 kWh / 100 km
- Daily distance: 30 km
- Electricity price: $0.15 / kWh
Daily energy use: 15 × 30 ÷ 100 = 4.5 kWh
Daily cost: 4.5 × 0.15 = $0.68
- Monthly cost (30 days): ≈ $20
- Yearly cost (365 days): ≈ $246
This shows that running a small EV for everyday commuting can be extremely cheap compared with a gasoline car.
Example 2 – Family SUV with longer commute
- EV consumption: 20 kWh / 100 km
- Daily distance: 60 km
- Electricity price: $0.20 / kWh
Daily energy use: 20 × 60 ÷ 100 = 12 kWh
Daily cost: 12 × 0.20 = $2.40
- Monthly cost: ≈ $72
- Yearly cost: ≈ $876
Even with a larger EV and higher electricity price, the total yearly charging cost is still competitive compared with many gasoline SUVs.
Example 3 – High electricity price region
- EV consumption: 18 kWh / 100 km
- Daily distance: 40 km
- Electricity price: $0.35 / kWh
Daily energy use: 7.2 kWh
Daily cost: 7.2 × 0.35 = $2.52
- Monthly cost: ≈ $76
- Yearly cost: ≈ $920
In regions with high tariffs, switching to an off-peak or time-of-use plan can significantly reduce these costs. The calculator makes it easy to test different prices per kWh.
Home charging vs public fast charging costs
This EV charging cost calculator focuses on home charging, because that is where most drivers do the majority of their charging. However, it is useful to understand the cost difference to public fast charging:
- Home AC charging often uses residential tariffs, which are usually the lowest price per kWh you can get.
- Public DC fast chargers are convenient and powerful, but they often cost two to three times more per kWh than home electricity.
- Some networks charge per minute or per session. When converted back to a kWh price, it can be surprisingly expensive.
- For everyday commuting, charging slowly at home overnight is almost always the cheapest option. Fast charging is best reserved for long road trips or urgent situations.
You can use the same formulas as this EV charging cost calculator and simply replace the electricity price with your local fast-charging rate to estimate the extra cost.
Factors that influence your real EV charging cost
The calculator gives you a solid estimate, but real-world results will always differ slightly. Some key factors include:
- Tariff structure – Time-of-use tariffs often have peak and off-peak prices. Charging at night can cut your cost dramatically.
- Driving style and speed – Aggressive acceleration, heavy braking and high motorway speeds increase energy consumption.
- Climate – Very hot or cold weather means more energy is used for heating or cooling the cabin and the battery.
- Tyre type and pressure – Winter tyres, oversized wheels or under-inflated tyres raise consumption.
- Vehicle load – Carrying extra passengers or cargo adds weight and increases energy use.
- Battery temperature and degradation – Older batteries may be slightly less efficient.
Because of these variables, you should treat the output of the EV charging cost calculator as a good planning estimate, not an exact bill.
Tips to reduce your EV charging bill
Here are some practical ideas to make the numbers from the calculator even lower:
- Charge during off-peak hours if your utility offers cheaper rates at night.
- Pre-condition the cabin while plugged in, so the energy comes from the grid rather than the battery.
- Keep your tyres properly inflated and avoid unnecessary weight in the car.
- Use eco driving modes and smooth acceleration whenever possible.
- If your climate and roof are suitable, consider adding solar panels and charging during sunny hours.
- Review your electricity tariff once a year and switch to a better plan if necessary.
Small changes in behaviour can have a big impact over thousands of kilometres per year.
Limitations and disclaimer
This EV charging cost calculator is designed for simplicity and clarity. It does not try to model every detail of your local grid or your specific EV. Please keep in mind:
- All results are estimates based on your inputs and a simplified model.
- Real electricity bills may include fixed daily charges, taxes and fees that are not included here.
- The tool assumes you fully charge at home. If you rely heavily on public fast charging, your real costs will be higher.
- Data and examples on this page are for general information only and are not financial advice.
Always check your own utility bill and your EV’s onboard consumption data to refine your numbers.
EV charging cost calculator – FAQ
1. How accurate is this EV charging cost calculator?
The calculator uses your electricity price, average consumption and daily distance to produce an estimate. In normal use it is often within 10–20% of real-world costs, but actual bills may vary depending on driving conditions, climate and additional grid fees.
2. Where do I find my price per kWh?
Open your latest electricity bill and look for a line labelled “energy charge”, “unit rate” or similar. The price is usually shown in cents or dollars per kWh. If you only see a total cost and total kWh used, you can divide the cost by the kWh to calculate your effective price.
3. What if my EV’s real consumption is different from the brochure?
This is very common. Start with the official rating, then monitor the consumption shown on your EV’s display over a few weeks. Update the “EV consumption” field in the calculator with this real-world value to get better estimates.
4. Does this work outside the United States?
Yes. The formulas are the same everywhere. You can either keep the numbers in USD for easy comparison, or simply treat “USD” as your local currency and use your local price per kWh.
5. Can I use this calculator for plug-in hybrids (PHEVs)?
You can estimate the electric portion of your driving by entering the kWh/100 km value when the car runs in EV mode. However, fuel costs from the gasoline engine are not included in this tool.
6. Will you add more EV charging tools?
Yes. This EV charging cost calculator is just the starting point. We plan to add tools for EV vs gasoline cost comparison, public fast-charging cost estimates and country-specific charging guides in the future.