EV Charging Cost by State

Utah and North Dakota tie for the cheapest, both at about 11.3 cents per kWh — roughly 3.4 cents per mile for a typical EV using 30 kWh per 100 miles, or about $441 a year at 13,000 miles. Idaho, Nebraska, and Washington sit a tenth of a cent behind, with Wyoming just after them. Every one of these states is well under the US residential average of about 16 cents per kWh, largely on the strength of hydro, coal, and wind generation.

Hawaii, by a wide margin: about 41.3 cents per kWh, or 12.4 cents per mile — roughly $1,611 a year at 13,000 miles. California (31.8 cents), Connecticut (31.4 cents), Massachusetts (30.5 cents), and Rhode Island (28.6 cents) follow. The spread between the cheapest and most expensive state is about 3.7x, which is the single biggest variable in what an EV costs to run.

As much as your state does. The Tesla Model Y is rated at 28 kWh per 100 miles and the Ford F-150 Lightning ER at 49, so the truck draws 1.75 times the energy for the same mile — everywhere, at every rate. At the US average of 16.0¢ per kWh that is 4.48¢ a mile against 7.84¢, or $582 against $1,019 over 13,000 miles. Efficiency and rate multiply rather than add, which is why the car you pick matters as much as the state you charge it in.

At California's average residential rate of 31.8¢ per kWh, home charging costs about 8.90¢ a mile in a Tesla Model Y, 9.54¢ in a Hyundai Ioniq 5, and 15.58¢ in a Ford F-150 Lightning ER. A 30 mpg gas car at $3.30 a gallon costs 11.00¢. Over 13,000 miles a year that is $1,158 of electricity for the Tesla Model Y against $1,430 of gasoline, a saving of $272. The Ford F-150 Lightning ER is the exception: at 31.8¢ per kWh it costs more per mile to charge than the gas car costs to fuel. Public fast charging is priced separately and runs two to three times the home rate.

At Florida's average residential rate of 15.5¢ per kWh, home charging costs about 4.34¢ a mile in a Tesla Model Y, 4.65¢ in a Hyundai Ioniq 5, and 7.60¢ in a Ford F-150 Lightning ER. A 30 mpg gas car at $3.30 a gallon costs 11.00¢. Over 13,000 miles a year that is $564 of electricity for the Tesla Model Y against $1,430 of gasoline, a saving of $866. Public fast charging is priced separately and runs two to three times the home rate.

At Texas's average residential rate of 15.0¢ per kWh, home charging costs about 4.20¢ a mile in a Tesla Model Y, 4.50¢ in a Hyundai Ioniq 5, and 7.35¢ in a Ford F-150 Lightning ER. A 30 mpg gas car at $3.30 a gallon costs 11.00¢. Over 13,000 miles a year that is $546 of electricity for the Tesla Model Y against $1,430 of gasoline, a saving of $884. Public fast charging is priced separately and runs two to three times the home rate.

At Washington's average residential rate of 11.4¢ per kWh, home charging costs about 3.19¢ a mile in a Tesla Model Y, 3.42¢ in a Hyundai Ioniq 5, and 5.59¢ in a Ford F-150 Lightning ER. A 30 mpg gas car at $3.30 a gallon costs 11.00¢. Over 13,000 miles a year that is $415 of electricity for the Tesla Model Y against $1,430 of gasoline, a saving of $1,015. Public fast charging is priced separately and runs two to three times the home rate.

At New York's average residential rate of 24.1¢ per kWh, home charging costs about 6.75¢ a mile in a Tesla Model Y, 7.23¢ in a Hyundai Ioniq 5, and 11.81¢ in a Ford F-150 Lightning ER. A 30 mpg gas car at $3.30 a gallon costs 11.00¢. Over 13,000 miles a year that is $877 of electricity for the Tesla Model Y against $1,430 of gasoline, a saving of $553. The Ford F-150 Lightning ER is the exception: at 24.1¢ per kWh it costs more per mile to charge than the gas car costs to fuel. Public fast charging is priced separately and runs two to three times the home rate.

Charging at home beats gas in 49 states and the District of Columbia. Hawaii is the sole exception at national-average gas prices: at 41.3 cents per kWh a home-charged EV costs about 12.4 cents per mile versus 11.0 cents for a 30 mpg car at $3.30 a gallon. In practice Hawaii's pump prices run well above the national average too, which usually pulls the EV back in front — the point is that Hawaii is the one state where the answer depends on your local gas price rather than being a foregone conclusion.

Don't use the per-kWh number printed next to "supply" or "generation" on your bill — that's only part of what you pay. Divide your total bill by the kWh you used that month, which folds in delivery, distribution, and fixed fees, and gives you the all-in rate that actually applies to charging. The state averages on this page come from the EIA's Electric Power Monthly (Table 5.6.A) and are useful for comparison, but your own bill is the number to run through a calculator.

At the US average residential rate of about 16 cents per kWh, an EV using 30 kWh per 100 miles costs about 4.8 cents per mile — roughly $624 a year at 13,000 miles. The same 13,000 miles in a 30 mpg gas car at $3.30 a gallon costs about $1,430, so the typical driver saves around $806 a year on fuel. That figure assumes home charging; leaning on DC fast charging can double or triple the per-mile cost.

Substantially, and always in the EV's favor. The rates on this page are flat statewide averages. Most utilities offer an EV or whole-home time-of-use plan with an overnight super-off-peak window priced at 8 to 12 cents per kWh, which is below the average rate in all but a handful of states. If you can charge between roughly 11 PM and 6 AM, a TOU plan typically cuts 30 to 50 percent off the per-mile figures in the table.

Three things drive most of the spread: generation mix, fuel imports, and transmission. States with abundant hydro (Washington, Idaho), coal (Wyoming, North Dakota), or wind (Nebraska) generate power cheaply and close to where it's used. The Northeast pays for natural gas delivered through constrained pipelines and for an aging transmission network. Hawaii burns imported oil for most of its electricity, which is why it sits in a category of its own.