Calculate the cost to charge your EV from a current charge level to a target level, accounting for charging losses, plus an optional cost-per-mile estimate.
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Charging an EV isn't perfectly efficient, some energy is lost as heat in the charging cable, onboard charger and battery management system. This calculator applies a charger efficiency percentage (commonly around 85-90% for AC home charging) to the energy actually added to your battery, to estimate the larger amount of energy actually drawn from, and billed by, the grid.
If you enter your vehicle's rated efficiency in miles per kWh (found in your owner's manual or EPA rating), this calculator estimates the miles that charging session added and the resulting cost per mile, letting you compare running costs directly against a gas vehicle's cost-per-mile from our Fuel Cost Calculator.
A 75 kWh battery charged from 20% to 100% at $0.15/kWh, 90% charger efficiency, and 3.5 miles/kWh vehicle efficiency: energy added to the battery = 75 × (100−20)/100 = 60 kWh. Because the charger is only 90% efficient, the grid actually supplies 60 ÷ 0.90 = 66.67 kWh, costing 66.67 × $0.15 = $10.00 total. At 3.5 miles/kWh, that 60 kWh added supports about 210 miles, working out to roughly $0.048 per mile.
Using the vehicle's rated miles-per-kWh figure for cost-per-mile while pricing the trip at a public fast-charging rate, mixing an efficiency figure from one context with a price from another (home vs public charging) skews the resulting cost-per-mile estimate.
Forgetting that the grid draws more energy than what actually reaches the battery, the cost is based on energy drawn from the grid (after charging losses), not just the energy added to the battery, ignoring the efficiency factor understates the real cost by 10% or more.
Applying a single flat electricity rate when your utility actually charges time-of-use pricing, if you charge overnight at a lower off-peak rate, use that specific rate rather than an average, since it can meaningfully change the total cost.
Level 1/2 AC home charging is commonly estimated around 85-90% efficient. DC fast charging efficiency varies by station and vehicle but is often similar or slightly lower. Check your utility or vehicle manufacturer's guidance for a more precise figure.
No, this calculator uses a single flat electricity rate you provide. If your utility charges different rates by time of day, use the rate that applies during your actual charging window for the most accurate estimate.
Yes, generally. Public DC fast charging networks typically charge a premium per kWh compared to residential electricity rates, so home charging is usually the cheaper option when available.
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