Tesla cars are popular for their environmental, economic, performance, and practical benefits. Our Tesla charging cost calculator makes it easy to see how Tesla electric vehicle ownership can save you money every month.
Tesla has developed a network of Tesla destination chargers in North America, Europe, and Asia-Pacific which offers Tesla car owners convenient access to Tesla Supercharger stations. Learn more about Tesla charging costs by using our calculator.
What is electric vehicle efficiency?
Electric car efficiency is a measure of how many miles an EV can travel on a given capacity of the battery in kilowatt-hours (kWh) of electricity. Tesla’s Tesla S energy consumption was 21.75 kWh per mile, or about 112 MPG equivalent when doing 100 miles.
What is charge efficiency?
The efficiency with which a Tesla battery is charged affects the overall cost of charging your car. The charge efficacy of a battery is the ability of a battery to take charge. Most Tesla drivers are unaware that their Tesla’s battery causes significant power loss.
These losses were largely prevented by the advancement of electric vehicle charging technology, although they had an impact.
How Tesla charging efficiency is determined
On the Tesla charging, Tesla has ensured that it will be efficient for how much power you are using. You can also see how many miles will be able to drive off the charge based on what you are doing while charging.
Tesla recommends that owners charge their vehicles at home where they do not need to pay an electrician for installing a cable.
- Charge efficiency is about how much energy your battery packs store up (in percentage) after taking the input of amps, volts, and other factors like temperature. That’s why Tesla cars require low amp rates if they’re going to maintain optimal performance levels.
- Charge efficiency varies from person to person and EV to EV, but with Tesla vehicles, Tesla has ensured that it will be efficient for how much power you are using. You can also see how many miles will be able to drive off the charge based on what you are doing while charging.
Tesla Charging Cost Calculator
Our charging cost calculator for Tesla is easy to use. Just follow these steps to start using the calculator:
- Select the Tesla Model: We have captured the battery size by Tesla model in the calculator.
- Input the average electricity rate: The average retail price for electricity is $0.13 per kWh (see below for an average electricity rate by state) and the average cost of a Tesla supercharger is $0.25 per kWh (this varies significantly by state).
- Select the level of charging: Between the different levels of charging results in different charging efficiency. The lower the level of charging, the likely lower level of efficiency you’ll have.
The calculator will display the cost of a full charge. If you know that you are charging only 75%, you can then discount the total cost subtotal accordingly.
Tesla Charging Cost Calculator
Types of Electricity Rates
Depending on your specific electric plan, charging an electric vehicle versus filling a gas vehicle may result in significantly different overall charging costs. Gasoline prices are generally regulated by the government and consumers can buy gasoline from that business or look for alternatives. Depending on the type of electricity you want, your utility might deliver electricity to your home.
The following are the four main electricity rates that Tesla defines, and how they might affect your cost of Tesla charging:
Real-time pricing
Realtime pricing for electricity is defined as electricity pricing rates that fluctuate throughout the day, as a result of current market demand.
In the near future, as electricity prices decrease, customers will be able to take advantage of real-time pricing. Tesla has already installed this technology in order to allow their customers to charge their cars at the lowest possible price.
The real-time pricing system will enable Tesla drivers to get the cheapest rates for charging their cars.
Time-of-Use Rate
Tesla owners in California can save money on charging their cars by using time-of-use (TOU) electricity rates. TOU rates are lower than the regular rates during off-peak hours, so Tesla owners can save money by charging their cars during those hours. The chart below shows the off-peak hours for each day of the week.
Charging your Tesla during off-peak hours can save you a lot of money. For example, charging your Tesla from 9 pm to midnight will cost only $0.11 per kWh, while charging from 7 am to 9 am will cost $0.26 per kWh. So if you charge your Tesla overnight, you can save $0.15 per kWh.
Flat rates
Flat rate electricity pricing is a newer way of billing customers for their electricity usage. With this type of pricing, customers are charged a flat fee for all the electricity they use during a specified time period. This time period can be anywhere from one hour to one month.
Flat rate pricing is an alternative to the traditional way of billing customers for electricity, which is based on how much electricity they use during certain time periods. Under this system, customers are charged a higher rate for electricity used during peak hours, when demand is highest.
Many people prefer flat-rate pricing because it is easier to understand and it ensures that you won’t pay more for electricity than you need to. It also makes budgeting for your electricity easier since you always know how much you’ll be paying for electricity.
As Tesla vehicles become more popular, Tesla owners will have a greater opportunity to take advantage of Tesla charging flat rates.
Tiered rates
Electricity pricing is often tiered, meaning that customers will be charged different rates depending on how much power they consume. This is the case with Tesla’s charging, where lower rates are applied for the first 1% of the energy used, and then a higher rate is applied for any additional consumption.
This can be helpful for customers who want to conserve energy, as they can avoid being charged a higher rate for their electric use. Tesla’s charging pricing is also more affordable than many traditional automotive charging systems.
Electricity Rates by State in the US
Gasoline costs differ by state and nation, however electric providers charge an average cost for their energy to operate. This rate may be discovered directly at your utility bill or use our table of the average electricity rate by state from the EIA.
The charging cost is calculated as follows: Battery capacity in kWh x percent of battery charge = charging costs per kWh (kWh = Kilowatt Hour). Tesla calculates that 100 kWh of battery power takes approximately 20 hours to fully charge: 100 kWh x .2 (20%) = 20h.
For Tesla’s Model S, this means a full charge would cost around $4.80 in California and $6.30 in New York State. For Tesla’s Model X, Tesla estimates the cost to be around $5.50 in California and about $6.90 in New York state.
The Tesla charging cost calculator is a quick way of obtaining Tesla’s prices for charging your Tesla electric vehicle per state. Tesla recommends that customers do not charge their car with Tesla chargers more than once every 20 hours in order to maximize the life of the Tesla battery.
Tesla also expects its customers to be prompt when charging their Tesla vehicles because Tesla chargers are in high demand and have low supply in many areas.
How much does it cost to charge a Tesla at Supercharger?
The cost to charge a Tesla at a Supercharger depends on where you are charging as the electricity rates at each Supercharger station vary. For example, the electricity rate to charge in Minnesota is approximately $0.33 per kWh compared to my home electricity rate of ~$0.12 per kWh, this is approximately a 300% increase.
But, given that the charging efficiency is much better at a Supercharger, the increase is slightly less than that. Use our Tesla charging cost calculator to help you determine the cost to charge a Tesla car by the make and model of the vehicle.
FAQ
How do you calculate the cost of charging a Tesla?
To estimate a charging rate simply multiply your battery capacity (a kWh) by the percentage charge you have for your battery, then multiply that by the effective cost of a kWh charged.
How much does it cost to charge Tesla at home?
This varies depending on the model of Tesla, your level of charging, and your electricity rate. Our Tesla charging cost calculator indicates that it costs anywhere between $4 and $20 to charge your Tesla electric car at home. For example, charging a Tesla Model 3 Standard to a full battery would cost approximately $7.27 using a standard Level 2 charger.
How much does charging a Tesla at home cost monthly?
The average monthly charging cost of a Tesla is $25 or $33. This average monthly cost varies depending on how much you charge, how often you drive, your charging efficiency, and the type of electricity rate you are charged.
How much does it cost to charge Tesla once?
Our Tesla charging cost calculator indicates that it costs anywhere between $4 and $20 to charge your Tesla electric car at home. For example, charging a Tesla Model 3 Standard to a full battery would cost approximately $7.27 using a standard Level 2 charger.
