To begin with, How Much Does An EV Charging Station Cost? The charging cost of your EV depends on the type of charging station you’re using (level 2 or 3) and the time of the day you’re charging your car. You will be charged more as a result of increased traffic at the charging stations. Depending on the kind of car you drive and how quickly the charger charges, you may use different charging levels for your EV. Level 3 chargers are more expensive because of this.
Depending on how much time you have and the range of your vehicle, you can choose to charge your car at home or at public charging stations. Although they are generally more expensive than charging your car at home, public charging stations save a lot of time. Using your home charger would be preferable to charging in public places if you have enough free time.
Continue reading.
How Much Do Car Charging Stations Cost to Use on Average?
You must take the type of EV chargers the charging stations are using into account when estimating how much you’ll spend on them. In contrast to charging a car for days or hours, charging stations are more expensive to use but reduce the amount of time it takes to charge to a few minutes.
An electric vehicle’s charge typically runs between $0.30 and $0.60 per kWh. This implies that a small car might cost between $11.50 and $23 to fully charge, whereas a larger or long-distance vehicle might cost between $22.50 and $45.
Because the cost of charging a vehicle varies depending on the business offering the charging services, the level of EV charging, the type of charger, and the location of the charging port depending on demand, the prices are different.
In comparison to level 2 chargers, which cost between $0.20 and $0.25 per kWh, level 3 chargers will cost between $0.40 and $0.60 per kWh.
Your electricity rates, the type of charger you use, and whether you charge during peak hours all affect how much it will cost to charge your car at home (using a level 1 charger).
Although the average price is $0.20, there are many factors that can affect this. Consider those factors, then.
If you prefer to charge at home, you could install a level 2 charger, which could cost between $1700 and $4000 to buy and have professionally installed. Add these costs to your calculations when estimating the cost of charging at home.
To calculate the cost of charging your electric vehicle, use the formula of ;
Electric Vehicle Battery Size (kWh) x Electricity Rate ($ per kWh) = Charging Cost ($)
How EV Charging Stations Are Priced?
Because there are so many different factors at play, estimating the cost of an EV charging station can be challenging. To begin with, charging rates can change depending on the kind of vehicle and charger. Furthermore, different charging stations have different pricing structures. Some companies might bill by the minute, session, or kilowatt-hour (kWh), for instance. Chargers come in levels one through three and have different capacities. The quickest level is level three, but it usually costs more.
The cheapest places to charge your electric vehicle are at home or at a public charging station, but this may not always be an option when you’re on the road. The best way to minimize expenses is to plan ahead.
Types of Commercial EV Chargers
Depending on your needs for electrification, the cost of your commercial electric vehicle charging station will vary. Which power level is best for your company must be known.
There are three different power levels of EV charging stations: Level 1, Level 2, and Level 3 or DC fast charging.
Level 1 is the standard for home charging using a wall plug of 120 volts and is the slowest type of Equipment for charging EVs.
Level 2 chargers are usually found at public charging stations and use 240 volts.
DC fast chargers are the most robust of the three and charge with 480+ volts. The current fastest method for charging an EV is a DC fast charger.
Since EV batteries can only accept direct current (DC), the alternating current (AC) supplied by Level 1 and Level 2 chargers must be converted to DC by the battery of the electric vehicle. The conversion is what accounts for the Level 1 and Level 2 chargers’ sluggishness in comparison to DC fast chargers.
Types of EV Charging Stations
Understanding the different types of charging stations is crucial if you want to organize your trip to minimize your spending on charging and the amount of time you waste. Once you have a solid grasp of the different styles and their average costs, you can use apps such as RV LIFE Trip Wizard to plot your road trip route.
Home Charging Stations
The most convenient and affordable option is to charge your EV at home. The majority of charging for most EV owners takes place at home, usually over the course of one or more nights. At the very least, this will help you get ready to leave on your trip for electric RVs or towing vehicles. Depending on your electricity rates, filling up at home will cost you.
A level one charging station is one that can be reached by plugging into a regular outlet. Although this method is the slowest, your car will have plenty of time to charge overnight. However, some motorists decide to install a level 2 charger at home. Sadly, the price tag for this can reach $2,000 or higher.
To estimate the price of charging your EV at home, you can use an average of 2.9 miles per kWh if you don’t know your vehicle’s exact numbers. Suppose your car has a 200-mile range and your electricity costs $0.135. Then it will cost you approximately $9.31 to charge your EV at home.
Free Charging Stations
The most affordable method for charging your EV once you’re on the open road is to locate free charging stations. Unexpectedly, these are more common than you might imagine. Additionally, they are simple to locate using apps like Plugshare that allow users to search only for free charging stations.
In public parking lots at places like malls or grocery stores, you might find free charging stations by Volta. Since they make money from advertisements, their level two chargers are provided without charge. Perhaps more convenient for those hauling a trailer or driving an electric RV, you can often find free charging stations at hotels or tourist destinations.
You won’t have to pay anything to fill up your car at one of the free charging stations. However, these locations occasionally have time restrictions and probably don’t have level three chargers.
Read about How Many Batteries Are in An Electric Car?
Network Charging Stations
You can also use one of the expanding charging networks to charge your EV. The three most well-known networks are EVGo, Electrify America, and Tesla. Networked charging stations can access online management tools and are linked to a large infrastructure of other charging stations. That means they provide user-friendly maps on their apps and even the capability for reservations.
For free charging sessions on particular networks, some EVs include a subscription. The networks usually provide pay-as-you-go or monthly membership options if you don’t already have a free pass from buying your car.
It is difficult to calculate how much it will cost to fill up your car because there are so many variables involved in networking charging stations. Based on the previous example of a 200-mile range and EVGo’s pay-as-you-go pricing of $0.34 per kWh plus a $0.99 session fee, it would cost about $24.40 to charge your vehicle.
Commercial Charging Stations
Additionally, most commercial charging stations are connected to a network. Businesses can install chargers that let them set their own prices, though. These companies may provide free charging for clients or staff, as was already mentioned. Others may impose fees in the hopes of earning a little extra money each month.
For instance, ChargePoint offers other organizations hardware and software that enables them to provide level one, level two, or level three charge points. In contrast to other network charge points, if these companies choose to charge for the stations, they will keep every penny of the money made.
It’s difficult to determine how much a full charge might cost because these businesses are free to set their own prices and offer a variety of charging levels. But, on average, charging your EV can cost between $10 and $30 on paid commercial charging stations.
How Much Does It Cost to Charge Your Car at a Tesla Charging Station?
To begin with, you still can’t just stroll over to a Tesla charger and plug in your car. The ports don’t work together. Thus, in order to do that, you must purchase the J1772 connector.
You can get this connector for less than $160. Another choice is the TeslaTap brand, which ranges in price from $140 to $260 depending on the number of amps you need.
The cost to use a Tesla supercharger is typically $0.28 per kWh. Using stations that charge per minute will cost you $0.26 for cars that have less than 60kWh of battery power and $0.13 for those that have more than 60kWh.
Because of this, even though it is possible to charge at a Tesla charging station, you will need a connector to use the charging port. Depending on your requirements and situation, this factor might be cheap or expensive.
Is Charging An Electric Car Cheaper Than Gas?
Utilizing an electric vehicle typically results in lower operating costs than a gas-powered vehicle. While most electric vehicles are expensive to purchase, over time they end up being more affordable than conventional vehicles.
Depending on where you charge, you could expect to pay between $300 and $400 per year to charge an electric car. On the other hand, the cost of fuel alone for a car that runs on gasoline can range from $1000 to $2000.
Electric cars have fewer moving parts than gas-powered cars, so they won’t require as many repairs. This is evident when you compare the number of moving parts between electric and gas-powered cars. Gas-powered vehicles have a lot of moving parts, which makes maintenance expensive.
When you first buy an electric car, you might see an increase in your electricity bill, especially if you charge your car at home. Don’t worry about this cost; it will eventually balance out because you won’t need to buy gas, which is typically much more expensive than the electricity you’ll use to charge your car at home or at public charging stations.
Do You Pay to Charge Your Car at a Charging Station?
There are fewer free EV charging stations than paid ones, though you might find one. In terms of charging rate, the majority of charging stations use the kilowatt-hour (kWh) unit.
It is more expensive to charge your car at a public charging station than it is to do so at home. The typical cost per kWh at home would be $1.12. Finding a charging station for less than that is less likely.
Regardless of the label that is placed on top of the charger, the cost of charging your car in public depends on what the owner decides to charge.
To get free charging, you might find that at some grocery stores, like Whole Foods, or new car dealerships. These deals have a short shelf life, which is a problem. Since they are always located in the most awkward locations, the car dealers will ultimately close the gates to keep people out. Compared to paying to charge elsewhere, it would cost much more to go to their charging stations.
Because of how much it will cost them, grocery stores that offer free charging always offer this for a brief period of time.
Don’t expect to receive free charging forever; that’s quite impossible, despite the possibility that you might occasionally receive these perks.
So, How Much Does An EV Charging Station Cost?
When planning a camping trip with an electric tow vehicle or even an electric RV, you must be prepared in advance if you want to pay the least amount of money possible. You can charge your car for nothing by strategically choosing rest stops and lodging facilities that offer free charging stations.
Unfortunately, not all of the options in the country are free. Depending on your route, you might have to pay a fee. You should expect to pay between $10 and $30 for a full charge, despite the fact that there are a lot of unknowns.
