What charging at home really costs
It's cheaper than gas almost everywhere. How much cheaper depends on when you plug in, and your utility would very much prefer you didn't do it at six o'clock.
By Aatish Patel, founder of XCharge North America
The math
Four numbers: how far you drive, how far the car goes on a kWh, how much gets lost on the way in, and what you pay per kWh.
Cost per month = miles ÷ miles per kWh ÷ charging efficiency × price per kWh.
For example: 1,000 miles, at 3.5 miles per kWh, is 286 kWh in the battery. Charging loses about 10% on Level 2, so 317 kWh from the wall. At 18 cents that's about $57. The national average residential price was 18.3 cents in July 2026, per the EIA, and your own rate is the only one that matters.
Miles per kWh ranges from about 4 for an efficient sedan to under 2 for a big electric pickup. Winter cuts it by a fifth or more, because the heater runs on the same battery. Level 1 loses more on the way in than Level 2, closer to 15 to 20%, because the car's electronics stay awake for longer.
What's actually on your bill
- Energy. Priced per kWh. On many bills it's split into supply, which is the electricity, and delivery, which is the wires. Charging pays both.
- Tiers. Some utilities charge more once you pass a monthly baseline. An EV can push you into the expensive tier, and then every kWh the house uses costs more, not just the car's.
- A fixed charge. A flat monthly fee for being connected. Charging doesn't change it. Some utilities have raised these a lot recently, which makes each kWh look cheaper while the bill doesn't.
- Time of use. The price per kWh changes with the hour. This is where the money is.
Homes almost never pay demand charges, the per-kW fees that wreck commercial charging sites. If yours does, you're on an unusual rate, and the business guide explains why that should worry you.
Time of use, and the 4pm trap
The grid is busiest in the late afternoon and early evening, when people get home, cook, and turn on the air. Power is expensive to supply then, so a time-of-use rate charges more for it. Everywhere else, and especially overnight, it's cheap.
One summer weekday on a time-of-use rate
The trap: most people get home around 5:30, plug in, and the car starts charging straight into the most expensive hours of the day. On a rate like the one above, that can more than double the cost of the same kWh. The fix costs nothing. Tell the car, or the charger, to start after the peak ends, or to finish by the time you leave.
- Peak windows vary. 4 to 9pm is common in California. Others run 2 to 7pm, 5 to 9pm, or only on summer weekdays. Read yours off the rate sheet, not a blog.
- Weekends are often all off-peak. Check before you plan around it.
- Some plans have a super off-peak. Midnight to 6am, or the middle of a sunny day where there's a lot of solar. These are the cheapest kWh you can buy.
- Time of use is whole-house on most plans. Running the dryer at 6pm costs more too. Most households shift easily. Some don't, and should stay where they are.
EV rate plans
Many utilities offer a plan built for EV owners: a very cheap overnight price in exchange for an expensive peak. A few examples, as of 2026:
- PG&E EV2-A (Northern California): off-peak from midnight to 3pm at about 23 cents, peak 4 to 9pm at 41 to 54 cents.
- SDG&E EV-TOU-5 (San Diego): super off-peak around 13 cents overnight and late morning, peak around 80 cents.
- Georgia Power Overnight Advantage: 11pm to 7am at about 2 cents per kWh of energy, with a steep summer afternoon peak.
- ComEd Residential Time of Day (northern Illinois): overnight all-in around 6 cents against about 28 cents in the summer afternoon peak.
- Texas "free nights" plans from retail providers: the energy is free overnight, but delivery charges still apply, and some plans exclude homes with EVs, solar or batteries. Read the fact sheet.
Some plans require a second meter just for the charger. That can cost more to install than it saves unless you drive a lot. Most don't, and price the whole house instead.
Rates change every year. The charging calculator can look up your utility's current plans by ZIP code and find the cheapest hours for your car.
Versus gas, and versus public charging
Gas: divide the price per gallon by the car's miles per gallon to get cost per mile. At $4.40 a gallon and 28 mpg, that's about 16 cents a mile. For an EV, divide the price per kWh by miles per kWh, then allow for charging losses: at 18 cents and 3.5 miles per kWh, about 6 cents a mile. On a cheap overnight rate, less than that.
Public DC fast charging usually runs 40 to 60 cents per kWh, because the station owner is paying for a very expensive charger, a demand charge, and a parking space. That's more per mile than charging at home, and sometimes more than gas. Fast charging is for road trips. Home is for living.
What a gallon costs, in electrons
The calculator runs the same comparison for your car, your rate, your plug-in time and this week's gas price, so nobody has to pretend one example fits everybody.
Solar changes the timing
If you have solar, the cheapest kWh is the one your roof makes while the car is home. That's easy for anyone who works from home and awkward for anyone whose car is at the office all day. Under net billing rules like California's, exporting solar at midday earns much less than it costs to buy power back at night, which is why people add batteries, or cars that can act like one. The batteries guide covers that.
Incentives
- The federal 30C credit for home chargers ended for chargers placed in service after June 30, 2026.
- Many utilities still pay rebates for a charger or the wiring, sometimes several hundred dollars, sometimes more for a panel upgrade. Some require a qualified charger or an EV rate. Check before you buy, because most won't pay retroactively.
- Some states and cities add their own. The list changes too often to publish here, so ask your utility first, then your state energy office.
This is general information, not financial or tax advice.