Reading Time: 3 minutes

FIAT’S popular 500 is currently the cheapest EV to charge at just £5.76 per charge according to analysis carried out by Leasing Options.

The survey of 50 models found that coming a close second was Mini electric with a recharge price of  £7.82 with Honda’s new “e” and the Mazda MX-30 behind in joint third with a price of £8.52.

The Mini is also slightly quicker than the “e” and the MX-30, taking just 6 minutes longer than the 500 at 30 minutes for a recharge, six minutes faster than the others.

At the other end of the scale, the Audi e-tron. Recharging an e-tron from 20%-100% will cost around £23, a difference of £17.24 compared to the Fiat 500, and will also take around 1.5 hours to complete. The 500 takes 24 minutes.

The “S” version of the e-tron is slightly cheaper when it comes to full recharge, however it sits at the bottom of the leaderboard when we look at the cost per mile. The e-tron S will cost owners around 14.6p per mile. In comparison, the cheapest on the market today is the Hyundai IONIQ Electric, only costing 6.3p per mile. A difference of 8.3p per mile.

Another manufacturer that can be found towards the bottom of the cost per charge list is Tesla. Its Model S and X, while cheaper per mile than Audi’s e-tron, also costs £23 for a recharge from 20% to 100%. The Model 3 performs much better, sitting at around £14.40 and 7.5p per mile, but not as well as their rivals do. The Polestar 2 can be found within the top 20 with a recharge cost of only £10.98 and a cost per mile of around 8.6p.

However, where Tesla does shine is the number of miles that it can do with one charge. You may pay more at the plug recharging a Model S or X, but you’ll drive away with 297 (S) and 266 (X) additional miles, putting Tesla in 1st and 2nd place on the leaderboard.

At the bottom is the Fiat 500 (Hatch) with only 81 miles added per recharge, which is hardly surprising based on its size and main city-life purpose, but a 216-mile difference nonetheless.

Model Charge Cost (£) Cost Per Mile (p) Miles Added kWh Added Real-World Electric Range (miles) Charge Time (Minutes)
1 Fiat 500 Hatch 5.76 7.1 81 19 101 24
2 MINI Electric 7.82 7.5 105 26 131 30
3 Honda e 8.52 8.3 103 28 129 36
4 Mazda MX-30 8.52 9.1 94 28 118 36
5 SEAT Mii Electric 8.83 7.2 122 29 153 36
6 Volkswagen e-up! 8.83 7.3 121 29 151 36
7 Hyundai IONIQ Electric 9.19 6.3 147 31 184 36
8 Hyundai KONA Electric 9.36 7.7 121 31 151 36
9 KIA e-Niro 9.36 6.8 137 31 171 36
10 Nissan LEAF 9.60 7.5 128 32 160 36
11 Fiat 500 Cabrio 10.08 7 143 34 179 42
12 BMW i3 10.13 7.1 143 34 179 42
13 BMW i3s 10.13 7.6 133 34 166 42
14 MG Motors UK ZS EV 10.68 8.6 124 36 155 42
15 Volkswagen ID.3 10.80 7.8 139 36 174 42
16 Polestar 2 10.98 8.6 128 37 214 42
17 Peugeot e-208 12.00 7.5 160 40 200 48
18 Peugeot e-2008 12.00 7.6 157 40 196 48
19 Citroen e-C4 12.00 7.7 156 40 195 48
20 Vauxhall Corsa-e 12.00 7.7 156 40 195 48

Methodology

The following methodology was used to gather the data for this piece.

  • Used Zap-Map’s database to all EV charge times, cost etc.
  • Kept all of the criteria the same. Charge levels start and finish were set between 20%-100% and the charger used is a 50kW rapid charger. The connection fee is at £0 and the cost per kWh is locked at 30p.
  • Zap-Map provided the estimated ranges and specific car specs.

Business Motoring Awards 2021 Winners