Having an electric car means getting used to a totally different way of keeping it running, which can be a challenge after years of driving internal combustion-powered cars. Instead of pulling up at a petrol station pump and spending a few minutes filling up the fuel tank, there’s a battery to charge. But how long does it take to charge an electric car?

Does it mean spending hours at a charging point before you can carry on with your journey? In this blog, we’ll answer these key questions because we know that it’s something people worry about when it comes to switching to driving an electric car.

How long does it take to charge an electric car at a charging station?

There are two main ways to charge an electric car - at home with a charging point attached to your house, or out in public. These public charging stations can be found at petrol stations, motorway services, supermarkets, town centres and even at some workplaces.

So, how long does it take to charge a car battery at a public station? It depends on the type of output available there with many having 7kW chargers which generally offer around 20-30 miles of charge per hour.

The electric car charging time can be cut with a 22kW charging point, so if you were charging a Tesla with a 75kW battery, that would take around 12 hours on 7kW but less than 6 hours on a 22kW charger.

The fastest charging electric car points you’ll tend to find in public currently are the 50kW to 350kW rapid chargers these are often found at motorway service stations. Only certain types of batteries can be used for these, and they are better for only charging up to 80% but this can be done as quickly as 22 minutes.

When it comes to how long do electric car batteries last after being charged, that depends on the individual range of each car. Some, like the Mercedes EQS, can drive on a full charge for up to 485 miles, while the Tesla Model S goes up to 405 miles, but many offer a much shorter driving range before you need to charge again.

How much does it cost to charge an electric car at a public charging station?

‘How long does it take to recharge an electric car?’ may have been your first question about charging, but there’s also the issue of how much does it cost at a public charging station. As with the amount of time it takes, the cost depends on what kind of charging point you’re using. Rapid chargers can cost £6 for around 30 minutes of charge, but this can rise to around £28 per charge for a Tesla Model S on its Supercharger network.

How much does it cost to recharge an electric car?

The cost of fully recharging an electric car depends on the size of the battery, which varies from model to model, as well as the speed and pricing of the charging point.

The cheapest option for recharging your car may well be to install a charging point at your home and charging your car overnight when off-peak rates come into effect, which can cost as little as £4.

So now you know everything there is to know about charging your EV, you may want to know about insuring it. Get in touch with us today for a quote.