A key concern for electric vehicle (EV) owners is efficient and convenient charging. This aspect of ownership can be confusing for those who are electric car shopping for the first time and are unfamiliar with recharging EV batteries.
Read on as we highlight four things to know about types of electric car charging, the different plugs used at charging stations, and address some questions related to recharging EV batteries.
Charging Types and Recharge Speed
You can charge an EV from a standard household outlet. But it will take a lot longer to recharge than using a high-powered fast charging station, and you must have the correct charging cable.
- Level 1: This charging standard uses a 120-volt alternating current (AC) standard household outlet and the EV’s onboard DC converter. Automakers and engineers call this a Level 1 charger. While it’s very slow, it’s convenient for topping off the battery overnight. When automakers advertise how fast an EV can charge, they rarely refer to how long it takes with a Level 1 charger, which replenishes roughly 2-5 miles of range per hour.
- Level 2: Many EV buyers install a Level 2 charger at their home if they own it, but renters might be unable to make those modifications. Regardless, this type of EV charging requires a 240-volt AC electrical circuit, similar to an electric clothes dryer. Level 2 charging provides about 10-30 miles of range per hour, much faster than a Level 1 charger but still slower than a car’s fastest advertised charging time. For most EV owners, that’s not a problem — we’re generally home for hours at a time (and some people work from home regularly), so it’s easy to recharge the car’s battery overnight. You can often find publicly accessible Level 2 chargers in shopping centers, hotels, workplaces, and public parking lots.
- Level 3: Some public chargers work even faster. So-called Level 3 chargers use direct current (DC) to rapidly transfer energy to EV batteries. When automakers advertise charging speeds, they usually refer to how quickly an electric vehicle recharges at a Level 3 charger. Many new EVs using a fast charger can reach 80% capacity in about 20 minutes.
Understanding electric car charging levels helps EV owners make their charging strategy based on their daily routines and travel plans.
Connectors or Types of Plugs
Four different types of connectors, or plugs, are found on electric cars in the United States. A public charging station must have a compatible connector for the EV’s charging port.
- Type 1 (SAE J1772): Widely used in North America, this standard features a single-phase AC connector for Level 1 and Level 2 charging. This is the connector plug-in hybrids use.
- CCS (Combined Charging System): Developed by major automakers, CCS plugs combine AC and DC charging in one connector. Most European- and American-made EVs have CCS charging ports, which is the standard for most Level 3 DC fast chargers.
- CHAdeMO: Some Japanese-built EVs use a plug design called CHAdeMO. These connectors are being phased out from public charging stations because all new electric cars use CCS plugs. The 2024 Nissan Leaf is the only new electric car using CHAdeMO connectors. The automaker’s other fully electric model, the Nissan Ariya, uses the CCS standard.
- NACS (North American Charging Standard): Perhaps more commonly called the Tesla charging standard, these connectors are the plugs developed by Tesla for its vast Supercharger network. Some Tesla charging locations have adapters that enable non-Tesla cars to recharge. As the company makes NACS available to other manufacturers, more EVs will feature compatible charge ports or have NACS adapters. NACS is poised to be the charging standard for all EVs.
Charging Station Availability
Most electric car owners recharge at home. However, those who use street parking and apartment dwellers need other options to recharge their cars regularly.
Nearly 62,000 public charging stations with close to 200,000 charging plugs are available for Level 2 and DC fast charging across the U.S. Some stations might have a single charger, while other locations have a dozen or more plugs for EV drivers to recharge their rides. Those figures continue to grow, but the reliability of chargers is much more important than the number of them.
Most public stations are part of third-party charging networks, such as Electrify America, EVgo, or ChargePoint. Most, or at least many, of those chargers work just fine. But enough of them are unreliable, leading to frustration for EV drivers.
EDITOR’S NOTE: Plan charging sessions carefully when traveling away from home. I encountered an offline charger during a road trip in a Nissan Leaf. Fortunately, my backup plan directed me to another CHAdeMO connector only nine miles away and within the battery’s remaining 16% capacity.
MORE: Types of Electric Vehicles: EV, BEV, HEV, PHEV
Automaker Involvement With Charging Stations
Some automakers are beginning to invest in charging, something Tesla did before introducing its much-praised Supercharger network in 2012. Many EV drivers hope manufacturers will protect their investments by keeping up with necessary maintenance to keep chargers operating.
- Volvo is installing fast chargers at some Starbucks locations, enabling EV drivers to recharge their cars while enjoying coffee inside a familiar place. (I tested a dozen of those chargers driving Volvo fully electric models 1,350 miles from Denver to Seattle. The recharging experience was far better than a typical charging station in the parking lot of a big box retailer.)
- Mercedes-Benz recently opened the first of its proposed 2,000 fast charging hubs. It features covered stalls and an indoor lounge with refreshments available from vending machines.
- GM is collaborating with Pilot and Flying J travel centers to build a coast-to-coast charging network.
- In July 2023, seven major automakers announced plans for a joint venture to create a new charging network of 30,000 chargers across the U.S. and Canada.
MORE: Electric Cars, Hybrids, and Weather: What You Need to Know
EV Charging Misconceptions
Shoppers exploring EVs for the first time have many questions and might also have misconceptions about charging electric cars.
Some people incorrectly think recharging an EV is free. Sure, some businesses provide no-fee Level 2 chargers for customer or employee use. And yes, some manufacturers offer incentives of free charging for a period after buying the car. But drivers do pay to charge EVs in most cases, even if the charging station doesn’t have a visible credit card reader.
Also worth steering back into the right lane is the false notion that you must always keep an EV battery fully charged. Researchers suggest consumers should minimize the time a battery spends at 100% because of the unnecessary stress it creates on the cells. Besides, you probably don’t need to recharge daily. Do you stop at the filling station to top off the tank of your gas-powered car after every quick errand?
