How much does a full charge of an electric car cost?
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Short answer
For Indian cars it ranges from about Rs 136 to Rs 800 at home. A 17.3 kWh MG Comet needs about 19.4 units, roughly Rs 136 at Rs 7. A 79 kWh Mahindra BE 6 needs about 88.5 units, roughly Rs 619. Nobody should charge 0 to 100 percent daily, so your real daily number is much smaller.
Cost by pack size, at Rs 7 per unit
| Battery | Units at the meter | Cost |
|---|---|---|
| 17.3 kWh | 19.4 | about Rs 136 |
| 25 kWh | 28.0 | about Rs 196 |
| 30 kWh | 33.6 | about Rs 235 |
| 45 kWh | 50.4 | about Rs 353 |
| 79 kWh | 88.5 | about Rs 619 |
Battery sizes are approximate gross figures; confirm your variant.
Usable capacity is lower than the brochure figure
Manufacturers keep a buffer at the top and bottom of the pack, so a real 0 to 100 percent charge on the display may take slightly fewer kWh than the gross size suggests.
Using gross capacity, as the table does, gives a safe upper estimate. Your first few measured sessions will tell you the real figure for your car.
The same charge on public DC costs two to three times more
At the reported KSEB DC day rate of about Rs 19.47 per kWh, putting 32 kWh into a 30 kWh car costs roughly Rs 623, against about Rs 235 at home at Rs 7. Private operators often charge more than state utilities.
Treat public DC as a convenience price you pay on trips, not a daily running cost.
The number that actually matters is the daily top-up
Running a battery to empty is stressful for you and for the pack, and many cars slow sharply above 80 percent on DC.
A daily 30 to 80 percent top-up on a 30 kWh car is about 15 kWh x 1.12 x Rs 7, roughly Rs 118. That is the figure that shows up in your monthly spend, not the full-charge number.
The RIOD chargers this applies to
PowerPod Lite 7.4 kW
7.4 kW · 32 A · 1-phase · Type 2 · RFID
₹45,000 incl. GST · 24-month warranty
View PowerPod Lite 7.4 kWPowerPod Lite 22/11 kW
22/11 kW · 32 A/phase · 3-phase · Type 2 · RFID
₹55,000 incl. GST · 24-month warranty
View PowerPod Lite 22/11 kWPowerPod Go 7.4 kW
7.4 kW · 32 A · 1-phase · Type 2 · OCPP 1.6J · RFID · Class 1 meter · IP65
₹58,000 incl. GST · 24-month warranty
View PowerPod Go 7.4 kWFrequently asked questions
What does it cost to charge a 40 kWh EV fully?
About 44.8 units at the meter after charging losses, so roughly Rs 314 at Rs 7 per unit and about Rs 403 at Rs 9.
Is it cheaper to charge to 100 percent in one go?
No. The cost is per kWh, so splitting the same energy across sessions costs the same. Charging to 80 percent daily is generally better for the battery and avoids the slow final taper.
How much does a full charge cost at a public DC charger?
Roughly two to three times the home cost. At about Rs 19.47 per kWh, a 32 kWh DC session is around Rs 623 against about Rs 235 at home.
Keep going
Browse the full RIOD EV charger range →
EV charger price and installation cost in India →
EV charging costs in India: the full breakdown →
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Not sure which charger fits your supply?
Send us your car model, sanctioned load and the distance from your meter to the parking bay. RIOD designs and builds its chargers in Kochi and Infopark Thrissur, so you get an engineer's answer rather than a sales sheet.
Talk to RIODBattery capacities are approximate gross figures that vary by variant. Public DC rates quoted are figures reported in May 2025 and are not current quotations.