How much does it cost to charge an EV overnight in the UK?
On a smart EV tariff like Octopus Energy Intelligent Octopus Go, an overnight 20% → 80% charge typically costs £2 to £4 depending on battery size. A full empty-to-full session is roughly £3 to £7. Off-peak rates of 7.0p/kWh are around 10× cheaper than public rapid charging.
Cost by car
Octopus Energy Intelligent Octopus Go at 7.0p/kWh (Off-peak).
| Car | Battery | 20–80% | Full charge |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fiat 500e | 37.3kWh | £1.57 | £2.61 |
| Vauxhall Mokka Electric | 46kWh | £1.93 | £3.22 |
| Peugeot e-208 | 46.3kWh | £1.95 | £3.24 |
| Mini Cooper Electric | 49.2kWh | £2.07 | £3.44 |
| Nissan Leaf | 56kWh | £2.35 | £3.92 |
| Renault Megane E-Tech | 60kWh | £2.52 | £4.20 |
| MG 4 | 61.7kWh | £2.59 | £4.32 |
| Toyota bZ4X | 64kWh | £2.69 | £4.48 |
| Volvo EX30 | 64kWh | £2.69 | £4.48 |
| BMW iX1 | 64.7kWh | £2.72 | £4.53 |
| Hyundai Kona Electric | 64.8kWh | £2.72 | £4.54 |
| Mercedes-Benz EQA | 66.5kWh | £2.79 | £4.66 |
| Hyundai Ioniq 5 | 74kWh | £3.11 | £5.18 |
| Kia EV6 | 74kWh | £3.11 | £5.18 |
| Tesla Model 3 | 75kWh | £3.15 | £5.25 |
| Tesla Model Y | 75kWh | £3.15 | £5.25 |
| Audi Q4 e-tron | 77kWh | £3.23 | £5.39 |
| Cupra Born | 77kWh | £3.23 | £5.39 |
| Skoda Enyaq | 77kWh | £3.23 | £5.39 |
| Volkswagen ID.3 | 77kWh | £3.23 | £5.39 |
| Volkswagen ID.4 | 77kWh | £3.23 | £5.39 |
| Polestar 2 | 79kWh | £3.32 | £5.53 |
| BMW i4 | 80.7kWh | £3.39 | £5.65 |
| Ford Mustang Mach-E | 88kWh | £3.70 | £6.16 |
| Porsche Taycan | 89kWh | £3.74 | £6.23 |
How smart tariffs work
Smart EV tariffs give you a daily window of very cheap electricity, typically between 23:30 and 05:30. The provider either lets you schedule charging through your car or charger app, or controls the charger directly to fit the cheapest part of the grid.
Most tariffs require a compatible smart charger or eligible EV. Octopus's Intelligent Octopus Go is the most flexible — it manages the charge for you and can sometimes use cheap green slots outside the headline window.
What about the standing charge?
The figures above ignore the standing charge because you'd pay that whether you owned an EV or not. If you're choosing between tariffs, look at the standing charge plus your typical daytime usage — the savings on EV charging won't always outweigh a higher daytime rate.