EV charging times, range and cost

DC rapid charging: 10% to 80%

A 75 kWh battery takes about 26 minutes to charge from 10% to 80% on a 150 kW rapid charger. The table assumes a car whose own peak DC power matches the charge point rating, an ambient temperature of 20 °C, and a taper measured against that peak rather than a flat rate. If your car's peak differs from the post you are plugged into, the next table shows what that does.

Times include the taper, which is why going from 150 kW to 350 kW saves far less than the power difference suggests. These are best-case figures for each rating: a car matched to the post, a warm pack, and the charger to itself.

What one car actually gets from each charge point

Peak power is a headline; the average across the session decides how long you wait. This is a 75 kWh car that peaks at 175 kW - representative of a current mid-size EV - plugged into each rating in turn.

Once the charge point can supply more than the car will take, extra kW on the pillar buy you nothing: the share of the rating collapses and the time barely moves. Check your own car's peak DC figure before paying for a faster post.

AC and home charging: 20% to 80%

On an 11 kW three-phase wallbox, a 75 kWh battery takes roughly 4 hours to go from 20% to 80%. AC charging is limited by the car's onboard charger, so a 22 kW post does nothing for a car that only accepts 11 kW.

Assumes the onboard charger matches the supply. 2.3 kW is a standard household socket, 7.4 kW a single-phase wallbox, 11 and 22 kW three-phase.

Range against outside temperature

At -10 °C an electric car uses roughly 33% more energy than at 20 °C. Cold hits twice: the chemistry delivers less, and the cabin is heated from the same battery instead of from waste engine heat. Figures below assume 175 Wh/km rated consumption on mixed roads.

Full pack to empty, so subtract whatever reserve you keep. Winter tyres add roughly a further 5%.

Cost per 100 km

At 175 Wh/km and 0.20 per kWh, an EV costs 3.50 per 100 km in electricity. The rule is simple: consumption in Wh/km, multiplied by price per kWh, divided by 10.

Currency-neutral: the figures hold for euros, pounds or dollars. Charging losses are not included here - add roughly 5% on DC and 11% on AC to get what the meter bills you.

What each condition costs you

Wattrix adjusts rated consumption by a multiplier built from four independent factors. They multiply together, which is why a cold motorway run with a roof box is so much worse than any single factor suggests.

A value of 1.00 is the baseline: 20 °C, mixed roads, no extra load, summer tyres.

The charging taper curve

Charging power is not constant. These are the fractions of a car's peak power available at each state of charge, which is what makes the last fifth of a battery so slow to fill.

Generic curve. Individual cars differ, and a cold pack is derated further, but the shape holds for every battery on the market.

Charging time and range by model

The 48 cars built into the calculator, with the time to charge from 10% to 80% on an unrestricted rapid charger and from 20% to 80% on a 22 kW AC post. Range is a full pack at the listed consumption.

Published usable-capacity and peak-power figures, with consumption set to a realistic mixed-driving average rather than the official number. Use your own long-term average for a better answer.

Common questions

How long does it take to charge an electric car from 10 to 80%?

On a 150 kW DC rapid charger, a 75 kWh battery takes about 26 minutes to go from 10% to 80%. A 50 kWh pack takes around 17 minutes and a 100 kWh pack about 34 minutes. Doubling the charger power does not halve the time, because the car tapers the power down as the battery fills.

Why does charging slow down after 80%?

The battery management system reduces current as cells approach full to protect them and to keep them balanced. On DC, power at 90% state of charge is typically around a quarter of the peak, and at 95% roughly a fifth. This is why charging to 80% twice is usually faster on a long trip than charging to 100% once.

How much range does an EV lose in cold weather?

At -10 °C expect roughly 33% higher consumption than at 20 °C, and at -20 °C roughly 44% higher. A 75 kWh car using 175 Wh/km covers about 429 km at 20 °C but only about 322 km at -10 °C. Cold costs range twice over: the chemistry delivers less and the cabin has to be heated from the same battery.

How long does it take to charge an EV on a home wallbox?

On a 7.4 kW single-phase wallbox, charging a 75 kWh battery from 20% to 80% takes about 6 hours. On an 11 kW three-phase wallbox the same charge takes about 4 hours. On a standard household socket at 2.3 kW it takes around 19.5 hours, which is why a wallbox matters for larger packs.

How much does it cost to charge an electric car per 100 km?

At 175 Wh/km, electricity at 0.20 per kWh costs 3.50 per 100 km, and at 0.50 per kWh it costs 8.75 per 100 km. Multiply your consumption in Wh/km by the price per kWh and divide by 10 to get the cost per 100 km in your own currency.

Does a 350 kW charger charge my car faster than a 150 kW one?

Only if your car can accept more than 150 kW. Charging power is the lower of what the charge point supplies and what the car will take at that state of charge. A car peaking at 100 kW gains nothing from a 350 kW post, and above 80% almost every car is slow regardless of what it is plugged into.

How much energy is lost when charging an EV?

Roughly 5% on DC rapid charging and around 11% on AC charging. Those losses happen between the meter and the battery, so you pay for them but never see them in the pack. On AC that means about 11% more on your bill than the energy the battery actually gained.

Tables generated from the Wattrix calculation engine. Reuse them freely with a link back to wattrix.app/reference.html.