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Is an Electric Car Cheaper Than a Gas Car?

Is an electric car cheaper than gas?

Enter both cars and see which costs less over the years you will keep it, and when the pricier one pays itself back.

One Click Answers · Is an Electric Car Cheaper Than Gas?
oneclickanswers.com/is-an-electric-car-cheaper-than-gas · Printed
About this tool & how to use it

What it does

Compare owning a gas car and an electric car over the years you will keep it: price, fuel or electricity, upkeep, insurance, loan interest and when the pricier one pays itself back.

How to use it

  1. Enter the years you will keep the car and the miles you drive in a year.
  2. Enter each car's price and efficiency, the gas price and your home electricity price.
  3. Open "More costs and options" for an incentive, the share of charging done at home, upkeep, insurance, a loan and resale value.
  4. Press "Get a detailed answer" for the full breakdown, charts, side-by-side scenarios and a plain-language explanation of how the answer was worked out.

Whole years from 1 to 30. Running costs add up the longer you keep it.

Look up the rating for the car you are considering. 28 is a placeholder.

Look up the rating for the car. 3.5 is a placeholder.

Look at your electric bill. 0.17 is a placeholder.

More costs and options

Enter an incentive only if you know you qualify. None is assumed.

Fast chargers cost more than home electricity. 0.45 is a placeholder.

Leave at 0 if you already have one or will use a standard outlet.

Leave blank to compare buying both cars outright. Enter a rate to include interest on a loan for each.

Resale values are uncertain. Leave blank to leave resale out of the comparison.

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Assumptions

  • Prices, efficiencies, gas and electricity prices, upkeep and insurance are placeholders or your own numbers.
  • Prices stay the same every year. Real gas and electricity prices change.
  • An incentive is counted only if you enter one. Resale value is counted only if you enter it.
  • Left out: tolls, parking, time spent charging and any battery replacement beyond your upkeep figure.
  • Everything you enter, including any income or budget, is worked out in your browser and is never sent anywhere or saved.

Printed from oneclickanswers.com. Results are estimates based on what was entered; see the assumptions above.

How it works

Gas per year is the miles divided by miles per gallon, times the gas price. Electricity per year is the miles divided by miles per kWh, plus the energy lost in charging, times a price blended from your home and public charging.

Each car's total is its price (less any incentive you enter), a home charger if any, loan interest if you enter a rate, and the yearly running costs times the years, less the resale value if you enter one.

The break-even point is the first month in which the car with the higher price has cost no more in total than the other, found month by month.

The page never says either kind of car is better: range, charging access and what you like to drive are not in the numbers.

Formulas and details
  • Gas per year = miles / miles per gallon x gas price.
  • Electricity per year = miles / miles per kWh / (1 - charging loss) x (home share x home price + public share x public price).
  • Total = price - incentive + charger + loan interest in the years kept + (energy + maintenance + insurance + registration) x years - resale.
  • Break-even month = first month in which the higher-priced car's cumulative cost is no more than the other's.

Assumptions

  • Prices, efficiencies, gas and electricity prices, upkeep and insurance are placeholders or your own numbers.
  • Prices stay the same every year. Real gas and electricity prices change.
  • An incentive is counted only if you enter one. Resale value is counted only if you enter it.
  • Left out: tolls, parking, time spent charging and any battery replacement beyond your upkeep figure.
  • Everything you enter, including any income or budget, is worked out in your browser and is never sent anywhere or saved.

Example

Input: A $35,000 gas car at 28 miles per gallon and a $45,000 electric car at 3.5 miles per kWh, 12,000 miles a year for 5 years, $3.50 gas, 17 cents per kWh at home with 80% of charging at home

Result: Over 5 years, under these assumptions, the electric car costs about $6,304.76 more than the gas car; the lower running costs do not pay back the higher price within 5 years.

Questions

Does an electric car always cost less to run?

Not always. It depends on gas and electricity prices, how far you drive and how much charging you do at home. The tables on the page show how the answer changes.

What is the break-even point?

The month when the car that cost more to buy has cost no more than the other in total, because its running costs are lower.

Does this include federal or state incentives?

Only an amount you type in. Eligibility rules differ, so check before relying on one.

Why is resale value optional?

Resale values are uncertain and differ by model. Leave it blank to compare without it.

Last reviewed 2026-10-09. Report an incorrect result

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