How Much Money Can You Save with an EV vs. a Gas Car? We Did the Math

While the $7,500 EV tax credit is no longer available for electric vehicles , many consumers are wondering whether it's actually worth it to buy an EV car . We decided to sit down and do the math to figure it out. We looked at the total cost of ownership when buying a vehicle, which includes the outright cost of the car, plus maintenance, depreciation and fuel costs. After running the numbers, EVs are still a more cost-effective option than cars that use plain gasoline. According to auto experts, when you take the full picture into account, electric vehicles are usually the cheaper option in the long run. We'll show you exactly how the costs break down so you can make a smart comparison before your next big purchase. Don't miss any of our unbiased tech content and lab-based reviews. Add CNET as a preferred Google source on Chrome. Comparing the upfront costs of an EV, hybrid and gasoline car The sticker price is what most people think about when they compare the prices of different cars. From that perspective, the disappearance of the $7,500 federal EV tax credit puts EVs at a significant disadvantage on upfront costs when compared to gasoline or passive-hybrid cars. When it comes to upfront costs, we've mapped out the winner, loser and runner-up. Traditional gasoline cars usually have the lowest sticker price compared to their electrified counterparts. These types of vehicles have long-established supply chains and economies of scale that make them cheaper to manufacture, according to Electric cars are typically at the top end for sticker price. "The battery is going to be the biggest reason that EVs are more expensive," Goodwin says. EVs also don't benefit as much from economies of scale. Plus, consumers are still subsidizing the research and development that legacy automakers are doing to design electric cars, according to Amelia Dalgaard, an automotive expert known online as Comparing fuel and charging costs You can't control gas prices, but you can control how much you spend to fuel up. This is where you start to see some of the biggest savings between EVs and gasoline-powered vehicles. Here's how the costs shake out: Winner 🏆 Electric vehicles The cost of charging an EV depends a lot on your local electricity rates, and on where you charge your vehicle. Charging at home with a Level 2 charger is usually the cheapest way to fuel your EV, while public Level 3 fast-chargers are usually the most expensive. Generally speaking, charging an EV at home is cheaper than fueling a comparable car with gasoline, according to Goodwin and Dalgaard. For that average 11,000 miles per year, at the national average electricity rate, you'd spend $550 on charging. Runner-up 🥈 Hybrid vehicles The fuel costs for passive hybrids are usually lower than regular gas cars because they get better overall gas mileage. Some models, Loser 💸 Internal combustion engine vehicles Gasoline is usually the more expensive way to fuel a car when compared to an...

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