Should I Charge My Car?
See if charging your plug-in hybrid is cheaper than filling up on gas.
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Pick your car to start.
Select your car
Don’t see your exact year? Pick the closest one. A PHEV’s MPG and efficiency barely change within a generation, so the answer comes out about the same. Not listed, or want exact numbers? Pick “My own car” to enter your own.
Car data: US EPA & DOE (fueleconomy.gov).
Adjust numbers
Your car’s usable capacity, the part you actually charge, not the full pack size a maker advertises. It’s an EPA estimate, so it’s approximate and can vary by year. It affects the charge time and total cost.
Auto-filled from your car. Only change these if you track your own real-world numbers. Battery affects the charge time, not the verdict.
Energy price isn’t flat?
Enter each price and the time it starts (it runs until the next one). We use your device’s current time to pick the rate now and flag a cheaper window.
Set the price from the start (0 min), then add tiers that kick in after a set amount of charging time, in minutes or hours.
Charger fees (service, time, tax)
Add these only if the charger’s screen lists them.
An hourly fee for staying plugged in, on top of the energy cost. Example: free for the first 4 hr, then $5/hr.
A percentage added to the whole bill. Add one row per line on the charger’s screen (e.g. state 6.25%, city 1%); we total them.
Charge time & cost
Set your charger speed and how full you want the battery, then see how long it takes, the range you add, and the all-in price per kWh.
Charger speed
Your car’s max AC charge rate, an EPA estimate, so it’s approximate. It affects the charge-time estimate. Edit it if you know your exact rate.
PHEVs charge on AC only, so speed is capped by the car’s onboard charger. Charge power affects the time estimate only.
For this charge
Common questions
Why I built this
I drive a plug-in hybrid and got tired of standing at chargers doing the same mental math every time. With this gas price and this charger rate, am I actually saving money, or just feeling good about plugging in? Half the time I could not even work out the real price per kWh, because every network prices it differently. So I built the thing I wanted. It works out what charging my PHEV actually costs and compares that against gas. You put in your car, your gas price, and what the charger costs, and it tells you charge it or use gas. It works offline too, because every charger I use is buried in a garage with no signal. It is free, there is no signup, and nothing you type leaves your device.
How do I calculate charging cost vs gas?
- Pick your car, or choose “My own car” to enter your own numbers.
- Enter today’s gas price.
- Enter the charger’s price per kWh. For time-of-day or tiered pricing, use “Energy price isn’t flat?”. Add session, hourly, or tax charges under “Charger fees.”
- Read the verdict at the top. It updates as you type and saves for next time.
What is “Charge time & cost” for?
This section is optional. It estimates how long a charge takes and what the whole session costs.
Set the charger speed (Level 1 is a wall socket, Level 2 is a 240V unit) and the two battery sliders. You get range added, time, and total.
Charge power affects the time estimate, not the verdict. If the station bills by the hour, a “Charge for” slider appears so you can price a partial charge.
What is a break-even charging price?
The most you can pay per kWh before gas becomes cheaper. It comes from comparing cost per mile: gas is pump price ÷ MPG, electricity is charger price ÷ miles per kWh. Set the two equal and you get your break-even price.
Where do the car numbers come from?
The US EPA, via fueleconomy.gov. The electric figure is the EPA’s measured kWh per 100 miles, not a conversion from MPGe. Battery size is estimated from EPA electric range. Every value is editable.
Why can public charging cost more than gas?
The per-kWh price is often only part of the bill. Stations add session fees, hourly fees while you are plugged in, and tax. Plug-in hybrids charge slowly, 3.6 to 6.6 kW, so hourly fees hit hard. A $2/hour fee on a 3.6 kW car adds about 55 cents per kWh by itself.
My car isn’t listed.
Choose “My own car” and enter your MPG, miles per kWh, and battery size. The list covers 441 US models from 2012 to 2026, so cars sold only in the UK or Europe are missing.