There isn’t enough comparable, current evidence to name ten electric vehicles with the lowest maintenance costs. The strongest figures available compare powertrains or brands—not ten individual EV models. Those figures suggest that battery-electric vehicles (BEVs) often cost less to maintain than gasoline vehicles, but they cannot tell you which specific EV will be cheapest to own.
Here’s what the available data does establish, why the numbers differ, and what to compare before choosing an EV.
Why a reliable top-ten list isn’t available
A defensible ranking would need comparable data for ten individual models: the same country, model years, ownership period, mileage assumptions, and definition of maintenance costs. The available figures do not meet that standard. Some cover scheduled service only; others combine maintenance with repairs, while one compares brands rather than models.
Consumer Reports’ low-cost model analysis relies on ten years of data, which means newer vehicles without that history are excluded. The available evidence therefore does not support ranking ten current EVs, or inferring a ranking from brand reputation or drivetrain design. Consumer Reports explains its low-cost model methodology and data limits.
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What the cost figures actually measure
| Source and date | Measure | Reported result | How to interpret it |
|---|---|---|---|
| Consumer Reports, 2023 | Lifetime repair and maintenance estimates, in a 200,000-mile lifetime model using present-value calculations in 2019 dollars | BEVs: $0.031 per mile; PHEVs: $0.030 per mile; ICE vehicles: $0.061 per mile | Powertrain averages, not costs for particular models. |
| U.S. Department of Energy, 2021, summarizing Argonne estimates | Scheduled maintenance | BEVs: 6.1 cents per mile; conventional ICE vehicles: 10.1 cents per mile | Scheduled service only; it is not the same as total owner-reported maintenance and repair. |
| Consumer Reports, 2023 | Owner-survey-based repair and maintenance comparison over vehicle lifetimes | BEV and PHEV owners paid about half as much as ICE owners; estimated lifetime savings were about $4,600 | A broad finding under Consumer Reports’ assumptions, not a guarantee for an individual vehicle. |
| Consumer Reports, 2024 | Ten-year maintenance and repair costs by brand | Tesla: $4,035, the lowest brand total in that comparison | A historical brand-level result, not a ranking of Tesla models or ten EVs. |
| U.S. Government Accountability Office, 2025 | Argonne finding summarized by GAO; separate federal leased-sedan mileage rates for FY2024 | BEV maintenance costs may be up to 40% lower than gasoline vehicles. Federal leased-sedan rates averaged about 7 cents per mile for zero-emission vehicles and 15 cents for gasoline vehicles. | The mileage rates include maintenance and repair, but are fleet figures—not household cost estimates. The “up to 40%” statement is not a model-specific result. |
Why scheduled maintenance and repair costs aren’t interchangeable
Scheduled maintenance
This covers work planned by the manufacturer at set intervals or under specified conditions. The DOE’s per-mile estimates compare this category for BEVs and conventional gasoline vehicles. They should not be read as the total a driver will spend on upkeep and unexpected failures.
Repairs and total maintenance
Owner-survey estimates can include unscheduled repairs as well as routine maintenance. Consumer Reports’ powertrain estimates and lifetime savings figure use this broader framing, so they answer a different question from the DOE’s scheduled-service comparison.
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Actual spending can vary by vehicle, use, and repair needs. A lower average for a powertrain does not establish that every BEV—or any one EV model—will cost less than every gasoline car.
What the Tesla figure does—and doesn’t—say
Consumer Reports reported a ten-year maintenance and repair total of $4,035 for Tesla, the lowest brand-level result in its 2024 comparison. It is a historical comparison across brands. It does not identify the cheapest Tesla model, show that all Tesla models have the same costs, or establish a current ten-EV ranking.
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Why EVs can need less routine service, but still cost money to maintain
BEVs do not have some engine-related service needs found in gasoline vehicles. Consumer Reports associate director Gabe Shenhar described the reason: “With an EV, you don’t have as many parts to replace on a regular basis, because there just aren’t as many moving parts as in a gasoline-powered car.”
Fewer routine service items do not make an EV maintenance-free. Owners still need to follow the manufacturer’s maintenance instructions, and repair costs still matter to overall ownership. When estimating likely costs, distinguish routine service from unexpected repairs rather than assuming that simpler drivetrain maintenance guarantees a low total.
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How to compare EV maintenance costs before you buy
When model-specific figures are available, check whether they use the same basis. A useful comparison should specify:
- Geography: Costs and service conditions should refer to the same country or market.
- Model years and ownership period: Compare like-for-like vehicles over the same number of years.
- Mileage: Use the same distance or normalize costs per mile or kilometer.
- Cost definition: Separate scheduled maintenance from unscheduled repairs, and check whether tires, brakes, fluids, and warranty-covered work are included.
- Evidence quality: Look for the data source, sample size, and any uncertainty around the estimate.
Do not treat modeled scheduled-maintenance costs, owner-reported repair-and-maintenance totals, and government fleet mileage rates as though they were one comparable measure. Each can help answer a different ownership question, but none independently produces a fair top-ten list.
Charging equipment is separate from maintenance cost
The U.S. Department of Energy’s consumer guidance says an EV comes with a Level 1 cordset and that a dealer or manufacturer can recommend home Level 2 charging equipment. Charging setup is relevant to ownership planning, but it is not evidence that one EV has lower maintenance costs than another. The DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center outlines EV charging infrastructure.
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