{
  "slug": "how-much-to-charge-an-ev",
  "title": "How Much Does It Cost to Charge an EV?",
  "heading": "How Much Does It Cost to Charge an EV?",
  "category": "financial",
  "url": "https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/how-much-to-charge-an-ev",
  "summary": "Charging a 75 kWh EV battery from empty at 16¢/kWh costs about $12.00.",
  "description": "Charging cost for an electric vehicle is simply battery capacity times the percentage charged times your electricity rate, adjusted for charging losses that typically waste 10-15% of the energy drawn from the wall. This calculator also shows the cost per mile based on your car's efficiency.",
  "formula": "Energy Drawn (kWh) = Battery Capacity × Charge % ÷ Charging Efficiency. Cost = Energy Drawn × Rate per kWh. Cost per Mile = Cost ÷ Miles of Range Added.",
  "dateModified": "2026-09-06",
  "run_url": "https://www.revenuelab.fyi/api/public/calc?tool=how-much-to-charge-an-ev",
  "inputs": [
    {
      "id": "batteryKwh",
      "label": "Battery capacity",
      "kind": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "default": 75,
      "unit": "kWh",
      "min": 10,
      "max": 150
    },
    {
      "id": "chargePct",
      "label": "Percent charging",
      "kind": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "default": 100,
      "unit": "%",
      "min": 1,
      "max": 100
    },
    {
      "id": "rate",
      "label": "Electricity rate",
      "kind": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "default": 0.16,
      "unit": "$/kWh",
      "min": 0.05,
      "max": 0.6
    },
    {
      "id": "efficiency",
      "label": "Charging efficiency",
      "kind": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "default": 88,
      "unit": "%",
      "min": 70,
      "max": 100
    },
    {
      "id": "milesPerKwh",
      "label": "Efficiency",
      "kind": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "default": 3.5,
      "unit": "mi/kWh",
      "min": 1,
      "max": 6
    }
  ],
  "outputs": [
    {
      "id": "cost",
      "label": "Charging cost",
      "format": "currency",
      "hint": null,
      "primary": true
    },
    {
      "id": "energyDrawn",
      "label": "Energy drawn from wall (kWh)",
      "format": "decimal",
      "hint": null,
      "primary": false
    },
    {
      "id": "costPerMile",
      "label": "Cost per mile",
      "format": "currency",
      "hint": null,
      "primary": false
    }
  ],
  "worked_example": {
    "inputs": [
      "Battery capacity: 75 kWh",
      "Percent charging: 100 %",
      "Electricity rate: 0.16 $/kWh",
      "Charging efficiency: 88 %",
      "Efficiency: 3.5 mi/kWh"
    ],
    "outputs": [
      "Charging cost: $13.64",
      "Energy drawn from wall (kWh): 85.2",
      "Cost per mile: $0.052"
    ]
  },
  "how_to": {
    "title": "How to use this",
    "steps": [
      "Enter battery capacity (kWh).",
      "Enter percent charging (%).",
      "Enter electricity rate ($/kWh).",
      "Enter charging efficiency (%).",
      "Enter efficiency (mi/kWh).",
      "Read your charging cost 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": {
        "batteryKwh": 45,
        "chargePct": 60,
        "rate": 0.16,
        "efficiency": 70,
        "milesPerKwh": 2.1
      }
    },
    {
      "name": "Typical",
      "description": "Defaults — the most common real-world setup.",
      "values": {
        "batteryKwh": 75,
        "chargePct": 100,
        "rate": 0.16,
        "efficiency": 88,
        "milesPerKwh": 3.5
      }
    },
    {
      "name": "Ambitious",
      "description": "Higher-end numbers — what if things really pop?",
      "values": {
        "batteryKwh": 120,
        "chargePct": 100,
        "rate": 0.16,
        "efficiency": 100,
        "milesPerKwh": 5.6000000000000005
      }
    }
  ],
  "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": "How much does it cost to charge an EV?",
      "a": "Fully charging a 75 kWh battery at 16¢/kWh with 88% charging efficiency draws about 85.2 kWh from the wall, costing around $13.64, or about 5.2 cents per mile at 3.5 mi/kWh."
    },
    {
      "q": "Why isn't charging 100% efficient?",
      "a": "AC-to-DC conversion and battery heat management losses mean roughly 10-15% of the energy pulled from the outlet never makes it into usable battery capacity, which is why the 'energy drawn' number exceeds the battery capacity charged."
    },
    {
      "q": "Is charging at home cheaper than public charging?",
      "a": "Usually yes, often by 2-4x — home electricity rates average 12-20 cents/kWh while public DC fast chargers can charge 30-50+ cents/kWh for the convenience and speed."
    },
    {
      "q": "How does this compare to gas cost per mile?",
      "a": "At 5 cents/mile for EV charging versus roughly 10-15 cents/mile for a 30-mpg gas car at $3.50/gallon, EV charging is typically half to a third the per-mile cost."
    }
  ],
  "related": [
    "https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/how-much-gas-will-my-trip-use",
    "https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/how-much-will-my-electric-bill-be"
  ],
  "license": "CC-BY-4.0",
  "citation": "RevenueLab — How Much Does It Cost to Charge an EV? (https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/how-much-to-charge-an-ev)"
}