While the gasoline price is largely determined by the oil price and taxes, the way you charge your electric car plays an important role in the cost of driving electrically. There are three ways to charge your electric car: at home, at a public charging station, and fast charging.

As an example, we take a charging session of 20.7 kWh/100 kilometers and assume 15,000 kilometers per year. This amount includes charging losses because energy is lost in the form of heat when storing power. *Note: this is just an example, and actual costs may vary depending on your specific situation.

Charging at Home

Charging at home is often the cheapest option, and there are two ways to do this: using a power outlet or with your own charging station. The charging station is faster, but in both cases, you'll pay the kilowatt-hour rate of your own energy supplier. This rate can vary by supplier and type of contract.

Energy prices can vary significantly, so it's advisable to check what rate you have if you have your own charging station. Some variable contracts can have rates of more than €0.85 per kWh. If you have signed a new contract this year, or if your contract is variable, or if you have exceeded your electricity limit, your charging card provider (also see point two on this page) might charge a lower rate for charging at a public charging station than what you currently pay for your home electricity.

For these calculations, we assume an average rate of €0.30 per kWh for a fixed energy contract. A charging session of 20.7 kWh therefore costs €6.21. If you can charge all the 15,000 kilometers you drive per year entirely at home, that amounts to approximately €932 per year (€0.062 per kilometer).

There are also dynamic energy contracts that allow you to save an average of 30% on charging costs by charging your car when electricity is cheap. If you have solar panels, it may be more beneficial to charge when you generate your own electricity, which costs an average of €0.02 per kWh.

Charging at a Public Station

If you charge your electric car at a public station, you usually pay more per kWh. This is because the provider of the charging station has to cover costs for installation, maintenance, and also wants to make some profit. Rates from different providers of charging cards and stations can vary greatly, from around €0.25 to €0.75 per kWh. For this example, we take a rate of €0.65 per kWh, which is a common rate among some major providers. If you use the ANWB charging card, you pay a fixed rate of €0.439 per kWh.

With the same average electric vehicle as in the example above, a charging session of 20.7 kWh will cost €13.46. This means an energy cost of about €0.13 per kilometer. If you rely entirely on public charging stations, this costs about €2019 per year based on 15,000 kilometers.

Fast Charging

Fast charging is not only the fastest but also the most expensive way to charge your electric car. Fortunately, you only occasionally need a fast charger in practice. The prices for fast charging range between €0.65 and €0.90 per kWh. For these calculations, we use a rate of €0.85 per kWh. Charging 20.7 kWh with this rate costs €17.60, which is about €0.18 per kilometer. Also, note that it is usually not necessary to charge your car up to 80% with a fast charger. If, for example, you need five minutes of fast charging to get home, you can then calmly fully charge the car at a lower rate. This saves both time and money.

Practical Costs of Electric Charging

In practice, you will likely use a combination of different charging methods. For these calculations, we assume a combination of 60% home charging at €0.30 per kWh, 30% public charging at €0.65 per kWh, and 10% fast charging at €0.85 per kWh. This results in an average kWh price of €0.46. If you do not have the ability to charge at home, the mix is 90% public charging and 10% fast charging, resulting in an average kWh price of €0.67.

For comparison: an average mid-sized gasoline car consumes about 6.7 liters per 100 kilometers (about 1 in 15) and costs about €0.14 per kilometer at an average gasoline price of €2.12 per liter. This means that fuel costs for 15,000 kilometers per year are approximately €2,130, based on the above examples per 100 kilometers that are €14.20.