Compare the cost of charging an electric car vs filling a gas car for your driving — annual fuel savings and how it adds up over 5 years. ✓ Instant
Fuel cost • Savings
Electricity is usually far cheaper per mile than gasoline. A gas car at 28 MPG and $3.40/gal costs about 12¢/mile; an EV at 3.5 mi/kWh and 17¢/kWh costs about 5¢/mile — less than half. Over 12,000 miles a year that's roughly $800–$900 in annual fuel savings, or several thousand over five years.
This compares fuel only — not purchase price, insurance, maintenance (EVs are usually cheaper here too) or any tax incentives, which changed in 2026. Home charging is cheapest; frequent fast-charging on road trips costs more. Adjust the inputs to match your rates. Estimate only.
Comparing an electric car with a petrol one requires putting both on the same basis: cost per mile. Petrol cost per mile is price per gallon divided by miles per gallon; electricity cost per mile is price per kilowatt-hour divided by miles per kWh. The comparison is unusually sensitive to local conditions, because electricity rates vary far more between US states than petrol prices do, and home charging is typically a third of the cost of public DC fast charging. Maintenance favours the EV — no oil changes, far less brake wear thanks to regeneration — while the higher purchase price and insurance work the other way.
Petrol cost/mile = Price per gallon ÷ MPGEV cost/mile = Price per kWh ÷ Miles per kWhAnnual saving = Annual miles × (petrol cost/mile − EV cost/mile)Break-even years = Price premium ÷ Annual savingwhere:
Assumptions: Energy cost only. Excludes purchase price difference, insurance, maintenance, tax credits and battery replacement. Public-only charging can erase most of the saving, so the comparison depends heavily on having home charging.
Compare running costs at typical US prices, then find the break-even on a price premium.
Result$930 a year saved — 7.0 years to recover a $6,500 premium
Add roughly $400 a year of avoided maintenance and break-even falls to about 4.9 years. But charge exclusively at $0.45/kWh public chargers and the EV costs $1,543 a year — more than the petrol car. Home charging is what makes the economics work.