Home Charging Helps to Maximize EV Savings Over Gas Vehicles
There are many reasons why so many Canadian drivers are making the switch from gas-powered to electric vehicles. Thanks to the many EV rebates and incentives, the upfront cost is much lower. The environmental benefits are difficult to overstate. And of course, in the long run, EVs will save drivers money on gas costs. But EVs aren’t free; so how much does it cost to charge an electric car in BC, and how can you minimize that cost?
As Vancouver’s leading EV charging experts, our team at TCA Electric has helped numerous EV owners maximize their savings through home EV charging stations. Here’s why charging at home does so much to offset the cost of charging an electric car in BC.
How Much Does It Cost to Charge an Electric Car in BC? 
The cost to charge an electric vehicle at a public charging station varies widely. BC Hydro lists out the prices for their stations, at 28.65 cents per kWh for Level 2 charging; 34.79 cents per kWh for Level 3 (fast charging), and a fee of 40 cents per minute once your vehicle has finished charging for at least five minutes. A safe estimate for Tesla chargers, meanwhile, is around $0.25 per kWh, with the cost increasing to the highest rate at the fastest charging speeds. In terms of hourly cost, Level 3 chargers will typically run about $20 per hour.
Time of day can also be a factor, and of course the total cost to charge your vehicle will also depend on how low your battery is and its total capacity.
Cost to Charge Also Depends on Province
Here in BC, our electric vehicle charging infrastructure continues to grow year over year, and currently our public charging network is fairly robust. This gives EV owners a lot of options for charging and has generally reduced the cost to charge an electric car for BC EV owners.
More sparsely populated areas of Canada face significantly higher charging costs, however. For example, provinces like the Northwest Territories and Nunavut have much fewer charging options and less infrastructure, resulting in higher prices for charging.
Charging at Home Is Typically the Cheaper Option
On the other hand, if you charge an electric car at home, the cost will largely be felt in your BC electric bill. Charging an electric car at home typically costs anywhere from $2–4 per 100km you drive. According to Natural Resources Canada, the average Canadian driver drives around 1,266 km per month, which results in a cost of around $25–$50 per month to charge an EV.
This cost is significantly lower than what most drivers spend on gas, and lower than the cost of using a supercharger. What’s more, those savings only increase the more you drive. This makes home EV charging supremely cost-effective.
Finding the True Cost: Time Considerations
There’s another cost factor that sometimes goes overlooked when comparing public charging to charging at home: time. While using public chargers to charge your EV will get you the same speeds as charging at home (or better, if you use a public Level 3 charger), you must spend that time waiting for your EV to charge. If you go elsewhere, and you don’t return promptly, you may be charged a fee for the additional time you leave your fully charged EV plugged in.
At home, however, you can simply leave your EV on the charger overnight while you go about your life. This convenience is difficult to overstate, as time spent waiting for your EV at a public charger is likely just lost to you.
Cost Savings for Strata Housing, Too
Because of the potential for cost savings, and the continued lag in multifamily charging infrastructure, this makes EV chargers an excellent upgrade for multifamily residential buildings. Tenants will appreciate the ability to charge at home without owning a single-family property, and strata managers will be able to set prices at a level that will offset the cost to install a multifamily EV charging network. Further, if you are a resident of a strata building, approving EV charger installation recently became much easier.
Of course, this is all before factoring in the many strata EV charging rebates that are available in BC from multiple sources. BC organizations are heavily incentivizing EV infrastructure, potentially opening the door to thousands of dollars in savings on installation costs. This allows EV chargers to recoup costs much faster for strata stakeholders.
Ready for Home EV Charging? Contact TCA Electric Today!
At TCA Electric, we’ve helped further BC’s EV revolution by installing charging stations for single-family homeowners, strata residents, business owners, and more. We’re excited at the move from gas-powered to electric vehicles, and the cost savings for EV drivers make chargers a wise investment.
If you’re looking to get the most out of your electric car ownership experience, reducing the cost to charge in BC is easier than ever with home charging. Contact TCA Electric today to get started!