By Danny Morgan
28th Aug 2019
Last updated: 18th Jan 2022

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How do you charge an electric car at home? This simple guide explains what your options are for charging a car at home and how you can save money on EV charging costs.

Driving and charging an electric car is easy - trust us. But, anything new can seem daunting especially when you're used to filling up at a petrol station. So let's explore the basics of electric car charging at home. 

How do you charge your electric car at home?

Charging an electric car at home is not that different to charging your phone. You need a power supply and something to connect it to - in this case, you'll connect one end of the charging cable into the socket on your vehicle and the other into the power supply.

There are essentially two main ways to charge your electric vehicle at home:

1. A conventional three-pin plug and socket

Your car should come with a cable and adapter so you can plug into a conventional three-pin socket at home. However, this method is slow only adding around 10 miles of range per hour.

2. A dedicated home charging point

A dedicated home car charge point (sometimes called a "wallbox") are much faster and safer for long-term use. They are mounted to the external wall of your home and should be in a convenient location for the charging cable to reach your vehicle.

Electric car chargers, such as the ones we sell and install, can drastically reduce the charging time for your EV typically adding around 30 miles of range per hour.

You'll need a qualified electrician/installer such as Smart Home Charge to complete the EV charger installation for you.

How much does it cost to install a home car charging point?

The cost of a home EV charger installation varies, depending on the charge point you choose and also the complexity of the work involved. 

Prices for EV charger installation start from around £949 including installation with Smart Home Charge, but we will assess the job and provide you a quote for the work before you pay so you can make an informed decision.

You can also learn more about what's involved in our guide to home car charger installation.

What are the other benefits of a "smart" home car charger?

All the electric car charging points we sell are "smart". This means they connect to your home internet via WiFi or 4G to offer some additional features and functions.

The main benefit is this allows you to remotely control your car's charging schedule. For example, if you want your electric car to charge overnight, or when your electricity prices might be cheaper, then the smart charger's accompanying smartphone app will allow you to do this.

Smart chargers also allow you to see data on previous charging sessions, such as how much energy was used and an estimated cost. 

Some chargers also include other smart features such as the remote locking feature found in the Easee One and Wallbox Pulsar Plus - handy if you want to prevent unwanted use of your charger.

How do I know which charger I should choose?

Different chargers will suit different needs and budgets. If you're not sure where to start, we have a number of guides and tools to help you:

1. Read our guide on how to choose an EV charger
2. Use our Compare EV Chargers Tool to compare features side by side
3. Or use our Charger Selector Tool to help you get started

How much does it cost to charge an electric car at home?

Ultimately, the cost of charging your car depends on its battery size and the cost of your home electricity. We recommend using our Home Car Charging Cost tool to get an idea of electric car charging costs for different EVs and using different energy suppliers.

You can even calculate the cost using a simple sum. You will need to know the battery size of your electric vehicle or the one you are considering buying/leasing, plus the price per kilowatt hour for your electricity – this should be on your energy bill. For example, 14p per kWh.