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How Much Does It Cost to Charge a Small Electric Car at Home and on Public Chargers?

UK advisory rates put home charging at 24.47p/kWh and public slow or fast charging under 50 kW at 54p/kWh from 1 September 2026. Your own cost depends on tariff, charger and car efficiency.
Entry803 Date Time4 min MechanicCarCody Team
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In the UK, the Department for Business and Trade’s advisory rates effective 1 September 2026 put electricity at 24.47p per kWh at home and 54.00p per kWh on public slow or fast chargers under 50 kW. At the same assumed efficiency of 3.59 miles per kWh, those work out to 6.81p and 15.02p per mile respectively. Your own bill depends on your electricity tariff, the charger’s price and your car’s efficiency.

How to calculate the cost of a charge

Multiply the energy added during the session by the price per kilowatt-hour (kWh):

Session cost = kWh added × price per kWh

For example, using the UK advisory rates effective 1 September 2026, adding 10 kWh would cost £2.45 at the 24.47p-per-kWh home rate, or £5.40 at the 54.00p-per-kWh public rate. These are illustrations using the advisory rates, not a quote for a particular household, network or car.

Use the kWh actually billed for the session when you can. Battery capacity is not necessarily the same as energy drawn from the wall: the battery may not be empty when charging begins, and charging losses can affect the billed amount. The sources available do not quantify those factors for a particular small car, so they cannot support a precise full-charge total for an unnamed model.

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UK home and public charging rates compared

Charging basis Advisory electricity rate Cost per mile at 3.59 miles/kWh Scope
Home 24.47p/kWh 6.81p (rounded advisory rate: 7p) Department for Business and Trade rate effective 1 September 2026.
Public slow or fast charging under 50 kW 54.00p/kWh 15.02p (rounded advisory rate: 15p) Department for Business and Trade rate effective 1 September 2026; public price input uses the Zapmap public charging price index.

On these standardized rates, public electricity is about 2.2 times the home price per kWh. The per-mile comparison is also about 2.2 times because both figures use the same assumed efficiency of 3.59 miles per kWh. The Department for Business and Trade presents these as advisory business-mileage rates, not as prices every driver will pay.

Why your actual cost may be different

Your household tariff

Home charging is charged through your household electricity bill. Substitute your actual unit rate for 24.47p in the formula above. If your tariff varies by time, the rate that applies during the charging period matters; an off-peak window can change the result. The Department for Transport noted in January 2024 that some overnight tariffs worked out at under 3p per mile, but that dated estimate is not a current guarantee or a substitute for checking your own tariff.

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  • GLOW-IN-THE-DARK HOLSTER: The included high-visibility holster glows in the dark so you can find and dock the plug easily at night. Holds the connector securely when not in use.

The public charger and its price

Do not treat 54.00p/kWh as the price at every public charger: the advisory figure covers public slow or fast charging under 50 kW. Prices vary by network and charging speed. The Competition and Markets Authority’s market study distinguishes on-street charging from rapid charging and found rapid charging more expensive than on-street and home charging in its analysis. The Department for Transport’s Public Charge Point Regulations 2023 guidance addresses operator price disclosure, so check the price shown by the operator for the charger you intend to use.

Your car’s efficiency

To estimate cost per mile using your own figures, divide the price per kWh by the car’s miles per kWh. For example, at 30p/kWh and 3 miles/kWh, the arithmetic is 10p per mile. This is a calculation, not a claim about a particular small EV. A model-specific estimate needs the vehicle’s efficiency figure and the relevant electricity price.

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  • Charge with Confidence: ChargePoint builds reliable, flexible EV charging stations for home, business, and fleets. Get 24/7 support and access to hundreds of thousands of North American charging locations
  • Charge Smart: With the user-friendly ChargePoint Mobile App, you can control your electric car charger, manage reminders, connect to smart home devices, find stations, get data and charging info, and access the latest features
  • Vast Network: Wherever you go, ChargePoint’s network includes 274k+ stations across North America and Europe and 565k+ roaming partner stations
  • Safe & Durable: Rely on this UL-certified EV charger for safe home charging. It can be installed indoors or outdoors by an electrician and includes a cold-resistant cable
  • Fast & Powerful: This EV charger charges 9× faster than a 120V outlet, delivering up to 45 mi/hr., dependent upon your vehicle. It features a J1772 connector for all non-Tesla EVs and plugs into a 240V outlet with a 14-50 receptacle, requiring a 40A or 50A circuit. For Tesla EVs, this will require an adapter
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What does a typical month of charging cost?

There is no single monthly total for a small electric car: it depends on how far you drive, the car’s efficiency and where and when you charge. Historical estimates can illustrate why the charging mix matters, but should not be mistaken for current prices.

Charging type Historical monthly estimate Qualification
Home £31/month Competition and Markets Authority weighted-average analysis for a typical driver using data from 26 February 2021; not a current estimate.
On-street public £38/month Competition and Markets Authority weighted-average analysis for a typical driver using data from 26 February 2021; not a current estimate.
Rapid public £48/month Competition and Markets Authority weighted-average analysis for a typical driver using data from 26 February 2021; not a current estimate.

The Department for Transport also estimated around 8p per mile for home charging a medium-sized EV as of January 2024. That dated, broad estimate is neither a current small-car quote nor directly comparable with the 2026 advisory figure, which uses a different published rate and stated efficiency assumption.

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  • [Plug-play Mode(The Default Setting), Smart Touch Screen, No APP Needed]: Clearly show the charging amperage, charging speed, input voltage, delay time, etc. For the touch buttons: 1. Pull out the charging gun before press the buttons, otherwise no respond; 2. Long press "Ⓐ" or "Time" button to enter the setting interface, then you can adjust the amperage from 16A to 48A freely or Set the charging start time; 3. You can do "factory reset" if doesn't charging.
  • [Smart WIFI APP, You can Set the Charging Period]: By APP, you can wirelessly check the charging cost, history, fully-charged notification, track the charging status, during off-peak period, etc. [Wi-Fi Reset/Factory Reset Function, Add New Device Quickly]: If you can't find your device or you have replaced a new phone, just pull out the charging latches, simultaneously long press the Ⓐ button and time adjustment button on the product screen until it shows "Factory Reset", then wait 3-5 seconds and re-start your device.

What you need for a reliable estimate

  • Your car’s miles-per-kWh efficiency for a cost-per-mile estimate.
  • The kWh added for the session, or a defensible estimate of energy needed, for a per-charge cost.
  • Your household unit rate and any applicable time window for home charging.
  • The displayed per-kWh price for the specific public charger, including its charging speed.

A home charger and its installation are separate upfront costs from electricity. No reliable current installation-cost figure for a particular location is established here. Buying charging equipment does not, by itself, lower the electricity unit price; check connector and electrical compatibility and account for installation separately. The US Environmental Protection Agency’s consumer guidance describes home charging as typically a convenient and cost-effective method, but its guidance is not a UK price source.

Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on Amazon at the time of purchase will apply.

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