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How to Compare EV Charging Costs vs Gasoline Costs

Whether an EV actually costs less to run than a gas car per mile depends on a fairly simple formula β€” but the local price of electricity and gasoline changes the answer more than almost anything else.

Gasoline cost per distance: distance Γ· fuel economy Γ— fuel price

For a car getting 10km per liter with fuel priced at a given amount per liter, the cost per 100km is (100 Γ· 10) Γ— price per liter. The same logic applies with miles per gallon and price per gallon.

EV cost per distance: distance Γ· efficiency Γ— electricity price

For an EV rated at a certain number of km per kWh, the cost per 100km is (100 Γ· efficiency) Γ— price per kWh. Electric efficiency is sometimes also expressed in kWh per 100km, in which case you multiply directly instead of dividing.

Efficiency units vary by country and context

You may see EV efficiency as miles per kWh, km per kWh, kWh per 100km, or MPGe (miles-per-gallon equivalent), so converting everything to a consistent unit before comparing is an important first step.

Home charging and public fast charging can have very different prices

Charging at home overnight is often priced at a household electricity rate, while public DC fast chargers frequently charge a per-kWh or per-minute premium β€” sometimes several times the home rate β€” so the "EV is always cheaper" comparison depends heavily on where most charging actually happens.

Fuel or energy cost is only part of total running cost

Maintenance, insurance, depreciation, and purchase price also factor into total cost of ownership, so a pure fuel-cost comparison is useful but incomplete on its own.

The break-even point shifts enormously by region

Because electricity and gasoline prices vary dramatically from country to country and even by local utility, the same math can favor an EV strongly in one region and show a much smaller gap in another.

Why comparing cost "per distance" beats comparing a single fill-up or charge

A gas tank and an EV battery hold very different amounts of energy, so comparing one full tank's cost to one full charge's cost is misleading. Normalizing both to a cost per 100km or per mile removes that mismatch and gives a genuinely comparable number.

Why the answer varies so much country to country

The ratio between electricity price and gasoline price differs enormously by region depending on local energy markets, taxes, and subsidies. A calculation showing EVs are dramatically cheaper to run in one country can show a far smaller advantage, or even a disadvantage on public fast-charging-heavy usage, somewhere with a different electricity-to-gasoline price ratio.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does the EV cost advantage always hold true?

Not universally β€” it depends heavily on local electricity and gasoline prices, and how much of the charging happens at cheaper home rates versus pricier public fast chargers. Running the actual local numbers is more reliable than assuming a fixed advantage.

Should home charger installation cost be included in the comparison?

For a pure per-distance fuel cost comparison, it is usually left out since it is a one-time cost rather than a per-distance running cost, but it is worth factoring into a broader total-cost-of-ownership comparison if switching to an EV.