{
  "slug": "ev-van-tco-vs-diesel",
  "title": "EV Delivery Van TCO vs Diesel Calculator",
  "heading": "EV Van vs Diesel Van TCO Calculator",
  "category": "financial",
  "url": "https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/ev-van-tco-vs-diesel",
  "summary": "Total cost of ownership comparison over your holding period.",
  "description": "Electric delivery vans cost more upfront but save on fuel and maintenance, so the right comparison isn't sticker price — it's total cost of ownership over your expected holding period and mileage. This calculator takes purchase price, any tax incentive, energy or fuel cost per mile, and maintenance cost per mile for both an EV and diesel van, and computes the total cost over your specified years and annual mileage. It also shows the mileage breakeven point where the EV's higher upfront cost is paid back through lower running cost, which is the number fleet managers actually need to justify the switch to finance.",
  "formula": "Total cost = net purchase price + (annual miles × years × (energy CPM + maint CPM)); breakeven miles = price gap ÷ CPM savings.",
  "dateModified": "2026-09-30",
  "run_url": "https://www.revenuelab.fyi/api/public/calc?tool=ev-van-tco-vs-diesel",
  "inputs": [
    {
      "id": "evPrice",
      "label": "EV van price (after incentives)",
      "kind": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "default": 52000,
      "unit": "$",
      "min": 0,
      "max": null
    },
    {
      "id": "dieselPrice",
      "label": "Diesel van price",
      "kind": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "default": 40000,
      "unit": "$",
      "min": 0,
      "max": null
    },
    {
      "id": "evCpm",
      "label": "EV energy + maintenance CPM",
      "kind": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "default": 0.14,
      "unit": "$/mi",
      "min": 0,
      "max": null
    },
    {
      "id": "dieselCpm",
      "label": "Diesel fuel + maintenance CPM",
      "kind": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "default": 0.32,
      "unit": "$/mi",
      "min": 0,
      "max": null
    },
    {
      "id": "annualMiles",
      "label": "Annual miles",
      "kind": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "default": 24000,
      "unit": "mi/yr",
      "min": 1,
      "max": null
    },
    {
      "id": "years",
      "label": "Holding period",
      "kind": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "default": 6,
      "unit": "years",
      "min": 1,
      "max": null
    }
  ],
  "outputs": [
    {
      "id": "savings",
      "label": "EV savings vs diesel over period",
      "format": "currency",
      "hint": null,
      "primary": true
    },
    {
      "id": "evTotal",
      "label": "Total EV cost",
      "format": "currency",
      "hint": null,
      "primary": false
    },
    {
      "id": "dieselTotal",
      "label": "Total diesel cost",
      "format": "currency",
      "hint": null,
      "primary": false
    },
    {
      "id": "breakevenMiles",
      "label": "Breakeven miles",
      "format": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "primary": false
    },
    {
      "id": "breakevenYears",
      "label": "Breakeven at your annual mileage",
      "format": "decimal",
      "hint": null,
      "primary": false
    }
  ],
  "worked_example": {
    "inputs": [
      "EV van price (after incentives): 52000 $",
      "Diesel van price: 40000 $",
      "EV energy + maintenance CPM: 0.14 $/mi",
      "Diesel fuel + maintenance CPM: 0.32 $/mi",
      "Annual miles: 24000 mi/yr",
      "Holding period: 6 years"
    ],
    "outputs": [
      "EV savings vs diesel over period: $13,920",
      "Total EV cost: $72,160",
      "Total diesel cost: $86,080",
      "Breakeven miles: 66,667",
      "Breakeven at your annual mileage: 2.78"
    ]
  },
  "how_to": {
    "title": "How to use this",
    "steps": [
      "Enter ev van price (after incentives) ($).",
      "Enter diesel van price ($).",
      "Enter ev energy + maintenance cpm ($/mi).",
      "Enter diesel fuel + maintenance cpm ($/mi).",
      "Enter annual miles (mi/yr).",
      "Enter holding period (years).",
      "Read your ev savings vs diesel over period on the right — it updates as you type.",
      "Hit Share to keep the scenario or send it to someone."
    ]
  },
  "scenarios": [
    {
      "name": "Conservative",
      "description": "Lower-end numbers — what if things land soft?",
      "values": {
        "evPrice": 31000,
        "dieselPrice": 24000,
        "evCpm": 0.084,
        "dieselCpm": 0.192,
        "annualMiles": 14500,
        "years": 4
      }
    },
    {
      "name": "Typical",
      "description": "Defaults — the most common real-world setup.",
      "values": {
        "evPrice": 52000,
        "dieselPrice": 40000,
        "evCpm": 0.14,
        "dieselCpm": 0.32,
        "annualMiles": 24000,
        "years": 6
      }
    },
    {
      "name": "Ambitious",
      "description": "Higher-end numbers — what if things really pop?",
      "values": {
        "evPrice": 83000,
        "dieselPrice": 64000,
        "evCpm": 0.22400000000000003,
        "dieselCpm": 0.512,
        "annualMiles": 38500,
        "years": 10
      }
    }
  ],
  "limitations": [
    "Results are estimates before tax, fees, and inflation unless an input explicitly covers them.",
    "Rates are treated as fixed for the whole period — variable-rate products will drift from this projection.",
    "This is educational maths, not financial advice. Check anything contractual with the lender or your accountant."
  ],
  "faq": [
    {
      "q": "What's typically cheaper per mile for EVs — is 0.14 realistic?",
      "a": "It depends heavily on electricity rates and route type. Depot charging on off-peak commercial rates often lands EV energy cost at $0.06-0.10/mile, and EV maintenance (no oil changes, fewer brake jobs, fewer moving parts) commonly runs $0.03-0.06/mile, so a combined $0.10-0.16/mile total is a reasonable range."
    },
    {
      "q": "Does this include charging infrastructure cost?",
      "a": "No — depot charger installation (often $10,000-$50,000+ per site depending on electrical service upgrades needed) is a separate fleet-level capital cost, not a per-van cost, and should be amortized across your whole EV fleet separately from this per-van comparison."
    },
    {
      "q": "What if my routes exceed EV van range?",
      "a": "Then TCO doesn't matter if the van physically can't complete the route without a mid-shift charge that isn't operationally feasible — verify route range fits comfortably within the van's real-world range (accounting for cold weather range loss, often 20-30%) before running the cost comparison."
    },
    {
      "q": "Are incentives already baked into the EV price I should enter?",
      "a": "Yes, enter the net price after any federal commercial clean vehicle credit, state grants, or utility incentives you actually qualify for and expect to receive — using the gross MSRP without incentives will make the EV look worse than the real economics."
    }
  ],
  "related": [
    "https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/van-fleet-replacement-cycle",
    "https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/fuel-surcharge-recovery",
    "https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/truck-lease-vs-buy"
  ],
  "license": "CC-BY-4.0",
  "citation": "RevenueLab — EV Delivery Van TCO vs Diesel Calculator (https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/ev-van-tco-vs-diesel)"
}