How much power is available at your home?

Your home has a limited supply of electricity, and you may not have enough available power to install a high-powered dedicated circuit for the EV charger without an expensive service upgrade.

You should always have an electrician perform a load calculation of your service before purchasing your EV, so you know if you can install a home charger, and if so, what is the maximum amperage it can deliver.

What is your EV charger budget?

Besides the cost of any possible electric service upgrades, you may need to install the dedicated EV charging circuit, you also need to consider the cost of the charger. Electric vehicle charging equipment can cost as little as $200, and it can also cost up to $2,000, depending on how powerful the unit is and what features it offers.

You should decide what you can and are willing to pay for the charger and installation before searching for a charger. Talk to your electrician about the difference in cost to install the charger based on how many amps it will deliver.

Lower-powered chargers should cost less to install because the thinner wire as well as the less-powerful circuit breaker will cost less than what is required for higher-powered chargers.

Eye on the future

While you may be just getting your first electric vehicle, it surely won’t be your last. The entire industry is in the early years of transitioning to EVs while internal combustion is being phased out. Therefore, it makes sense to consider down the road when you may have two EVs in the garage.

If you have the budget to install a high-powered circuit for charging now, it’s probably the right decision, even if your current EV cannot accept all the power the circuit can deliver. In a few years, you may need to charge two EVs at once, and the single high-powered circuit can power two EV chargers, and ultimately save you the expense of installing a second, lower-powered circuit.