Petrol vs Electric Car Cost Calculator UK
Enter your annual mileage, fuel type, electricity or petrol costs and charging habits to instantly compare what it actually costs to run a petrol car versus an electric car, fuel, tax, servicing, insurance and depreciation all included.
Fuel Comparison
Average UK car is ~45 mpg
Average EV is ~3.5 miles/kWh
The Truth About EV Running Costs
Five years ago, driving an electric car cost practically nothing. Supermarkets offered free charging, public rapid chargers cost pennies, and home electricity was incredibly cheap. Today, the landscape is much more complex, and blind assumptions can be costly.
The Charging Location Trap
The financial argument for an EV almost entirely collapses if you do not have a driveway or dedicated off-street parking where you can install a home charger.
Why? Because a public rapid charger on the M1 motorway currently charges around 75p to 85p per kWh. At that price, an EV costs roughly 22p per mile to drive. A standard petrol VW Golf doing 45 MPG costs about 16p per mile to drive. If you rely on public rapid charging, petrol is significantly cheaper.
How to Win with Electric
To unlock the massive financial benefits of an EV, you must be able to charge at home, overnight, on a bespoke EV electricity tariff.
Companies like Octopus Energy offer tariffs that plunge your electricity rate down from ~24p to 7p per kWh between 11:30 PM and 5:30 AM.
When utilized correctly, an EV charger on your driveway essentially acts as a petrol pump that sells fuel for £0.20 a litre.
EV Running Cost FAQs
Petrol vs Electric Car Running Cost Calculator UK
Which Is Cheaper to Run in 2026 : Petrol or Electric?
The short answer: electric cars are cheaper to run for most UK drivers in 2026, particularly for anyone with access to home charging. The gap has widened since petrol prices rose sharply following the Middle East conflict in early 2026, with petrol now averaging around 157p per litre. The savings on fuel alone can reach £600 to £1,500 per year depending on mileage and charging habits.
That said, the full picture depends on several factors: how you charge, how many miles you drive, whether you have home charging access and how you finance the vehicle. This comparison covers every cost category so you can make an informed decision for your specific situation.
Fuel vs Charging : Cost Per Mile
This is the most fundamental comparison and where the EV advantage is most clear.
| Scenario | Cost Per Mile |
|---|---|
| Petrol car (40mpg, 157p/litre) | 17p – 21p |
| Diesel car (42mpg, 170p/litre) | 16p – 20p |
| EV, home off-peak tariff (7p/kWh) | 2p – 3p |
| EV, home standard rate (24.67p/kWh) | 7p – 8p |
| EV, public fast charger (54p/kWh) | ~16p |
| EV, public rapid charger (79p/kWh) | ~24p |
| For a driver doing 10,000 miles per year, home charging on an off-peak EV tariff costs approximately £600 in electricity annually, compared to around £1,800 in petrol for a typical 40mpg car, a saving of £1,200 per year on fuel alone. Drivers who rely primarily on public rapid chargers at 79p/kWh or above lose most of this advantage, with per-mile costs matching or exceeding petrol. |
Annual Running Cost Comparison
Here is a full side-by-side breakdown for a typical UK driver covering 10,000 miles per year in 2026:
| Cost Category | Petrol Car | Electric Car (Home Charging) |
|---|---|---|
| Fuel / Charging | ~£1,800 | ~£600 (off-peak tariff) |
| Road tax (VED) | £200 | £200 (from April 2025) |
| Annual servicing | £205 avg | £165 avg |
| Insurance | £676 avg | £874 avg |
| Annual total (excl. depreciation) | ~£2,881 | ~£1,839 |
| Annual saving with EV | — | ~£1,042 |
| Even accounting for higher EV insurance costs, home-charging EV drivers save approximately £700 to £1,400 per year in running costs compared to an equivalent petrol car. The gap has widened further in 2026 as petrol prices increased while electricity rates remained capped. |
Road Tax (VED) : No Longer Free for EVs
From 1 April 2025, electric vehicles lost their VED exemption. Both petrol and electric cars now pay the same standard annual rate of £200 from year two of registration, removing one of the previous financial advantages EVs had.
There is one important exception. The expensive car supplement applies to cars with a list price over £40,000 when new for petrol and diesel vehicles and over £50,000 for zero-emission vehicles from April 2026. If your EV had a list price above £50,000, you pay an additional £440 per year from years two to six, totalling £640 annually during that period.
For EVs registered before April 2025, the standard £200 rate also applies. The only remaining VED advantage for EVs is the first year rate, just £10 for a new EV versus up to £5,690 for the highest-emission new petrol cars.
Servicing and Maintenance
This is where EVs consistently outperform petrol cars over time. Electric cars have no engine oil, no timing belt, no exhaust system, no clutch and no multi-speed gearbox, all the components that generate the majority of petrol car repair bills as vehicles age.
Annual servicing costs average £165 for an electric car compared to £205 for a petrol equivalent, a saving of roughly 20%. The gap widens significantly as petrol cars age: complex engine, emissions and drivetrain repairs become increasingly common after 60,000 miles. Over a five-year ownership period, EV servicing typically costs £600 to £825 compared to £1,000 to £1,250 for a petrol car.
One area to watch with EVs is tyre wear. Because electric cars are heavier and deliver instant torque, tyres can wear out faster than on petrol equivalents. EV-specific tyres also tend to cost slightly more. Budget accordingly for this.
Insurance : The One Area Where Petrol Has the Edge
EV insurance premiums are typically 10 to 25 percent higher than for an equivalent petrol car, roughly £200 per year more on average. The main reasons are the high cost of battery replacement (£5,000 to £20,000 or more), the need for specialist technicians, limited parts availability from manufacturers and longer repair times.
As more EVs reach UK roads and insurers build better risk data, this gap is narrowing. Shopping around with specialist EV insurers and comparing quotes from mainstream providers remains essential, premium differences between insurers for the same EV can be substantial.
Depreciation : The Biggest Cost Most People Overlook
Depreciation is the largest single cost of car ownership for most buyers, often exceeding fuel, tax, insurance, servicing combined and it is rarely factored into simple petrol vs EV comparisons.
New EVs currently depreciate faster than new petrol cars. Rapid battery technology improvements and manufacturer price cuts, particularly from Tesla, have caused some new EVs to lose 40 to 50 percent of their value within three years, compared to 30 to 40 percent for a comparable petrol car.
However, this creates a genuine opportunity in the used EV market. A two or three-year-old EV bought second-hand combines the low running costs of electric driving with a purchase price significantly below new, often offering the best overall value of any option currently available.
5-Year Total Cost of Ownership
Pulling everything together for a typical driver covering 10,000 miles per year:
| 5-Year Cost | Petrol Car | EV (Home Charging, Off-Peak Tariff) |
|---|---|---|
| Fuel / Charging | £9,000 | £3,000 |
| VED (years 2–5) | £800 | £800 |
| Servicing | £1,025 | £825 |
| Insurance | £3,380 | £4,370 |
| Depreciation (new, 40–50%) | £8,000–£10,000 | £10,000–£12,500 |
| 5-Year Estimated Total | ~£22,205 | ~£20,995 |
| The EV comes out ahead over five years even accounting for higher depreciation and insurance and the advantage grows at higher annual mileages and with off-peak charging. |
Who Should Still Consider a Petrol Car?
Electric cars win on running costs for most drivers, but petrol still makes practical and financial sense in specific situations.
Consider staying with petrol if: you drive very low annual mileage (under 5,000 miles) where fuel savings never recover the higher EV purchase price, you have no access to home charging and would rely primarily on expensive public rapid chargers, your regular routes take you to areas with limited charging infrastructure, or you need a vehicle that can cover genuinely long daily distances without charging flexibility.
Company Car Drivers : The EV Advantage Is Even Greater
For employees with a company car, the Benefit-in-Kind (BiK) tax comparison is transformative. The BiK rate for fully electric cars is just 4% for 2026/27, compared to 25 to 37% for high-emission petrol vehicles. For a higher-rate taxpayer driving a £40,000 company car, the difference in annual BiK tax between a petrol and electric version can exceed £3,000 per year.
Combined with salary sacrifice schemes, where the car is paid from gross salary, reducing income tax and National Insurance, many employees now access new EVs for significantly less per month than the equivalent petrol car would cost through the same scheme.
Related Calculators
- EV Charging Cost Calculator UK
- Road Tax Calculator UK
- Mileage Calculator UK
- Loan Calculator UK
References
- Electric Car Scheme. Electric Cars vs Petrol Cars 2026: Which Is Cheaper to Run? electriccarscheme.com, June 2026
- Brumble. How Much Does It Cost to Run an Electric Car UK 2026. brumble.co.uk, June 2026
- Regit. Car Running Costs Comparison UK: Petrol vs EV 2026. regit.cars, June 2026
- Car Spot. Electric vs Petrol Running Costs UK: Which Is Cheaper in 2026? car-spot.io, May 2026
- Zapmap. UK EV Charging Price Index, May 2026. zapmap.com
- Ofgem. Energy Price Cap Q2 and Q3 2026. ofgem.gov.uk
- CostPerMile. EV vs Petrol: The Complete UK Running Cost Comparison 2026. costpermile.co.uk, May 2026
- SoftwareApplication