Where can I find a charging station for my electric car? And how much does a charging session cost?
Nice car, an EV or electric vehicle. But where do you actually charge it? It's one of the logical questions when buying an electric car. What about the power cable if your apartment is on the fifth floor? And how do you get to Italy next summer without having to camp near a power outlet every time? A crash course in charging...
There's no place like (charging at) home
Unless there are practical reasons standing in the way, the most obvious charging spot is your own garage or driveway. Using a regular outlet, you can expect a charging time of 4 to 9 hours to get the battery from 'completely empty' to 'full', depending on the type of car. Not ideal, of course. To reduce charging time and because a household outlet is not actually designed to deliver power for so long and so often, home charging stations exist.
A home charging station charges your battery in a few hours. The faster they charge your electric car, the more expensive the installation. Whether you charge quickly or slowly, it makes no difference to your electricity bill. The price you pay depends on your energy provider, your network manager, single rate or day and night rates, ... . So it's best to check which provider and tariff are most beneficial in your case.
Charging at work or while shopping
Increasingly more companies and stores, such as Ikea, Lidl, Nissan, and many others, are providing charging stations for their employees and customers. This way, you can charge your electric vehicle during work hours, your meeting, or your weekly grocery shopping. This is convenient if you regularly need to travel longer distances. At some companies, you can plug in your EV for free, while at others you need a charging pass.
Overview of charging stations
Visiting your aunt in Barcelona or going on a road trip through Scandinavia with the whole family? Even though there are an estimated 100,000 public charging stations in Europe, you better prepare well for your car vacation. In some countries like the Netherlands, Norway, and Germany, you can always find a charging station nearby. However, in countries such as Romania, Bulgaria, and Greece, they are very scarce.
Online, thankfully, you can find many maps showing the locations of charging stations. We find that Chargemap is the most user-friendly. You can immediately see which type of plug the charging point supports, its capacity, and which payment cards are accepted. In addition to the international overview map, the site also features a handy route planner. And, the application is also available as a mobile app!
Types of charging passes
Although you can charge for free here and there, most charging stations are not free. At a rare charging station, you can pay via text message. However, the vast majority operate with payment cards. Choosing a charging card and comparing the different options can be quite an undertaking. Depending on the issuer, you pay a one-time connection fee (from 0 to more than 10 euros), a fixed fee per month (from 0 to more than 5 euros) and/or a fixed cost per charging session (from 0 to more than 1 euro). In addition, you also pay a price per kWh. This electricity price is the biggest expense and depends on the type of charging station (power and speed) and the operator of the charging station.
In Belgium, the average cost for electric charging ranges between 0.2 and 0.3 euros per kWh. Abroad, this average is often lower. If you calculate a consumption of 20 kWh per 100 kilometers, then it costs you about 5 euros to fill up, plus the additional fixed or subscription costs. A considerable amount cheaper than refueling with gasoline or diesel.
