EV vs Gas Cost Per Mile in Indiana
At Indiana's average prices, a Tesla Model 3 RWD costs an estimated $0.043 a mile to charge at home and a 30 mpg gas car $0.107 a mile in fuel: $769.40 a year apart over 12,000 miles. Per mile, the EV spends about 40% of what the gas car does.
State data
What Indiana pays
- Home electricity
- 17.0¢/kWhEIA Electric Power Monthly, table 5.6.A · EIA, August 2026 (data as of 2026-10-25)
- Gasoline
- $3.20/galEIA weekly regional / AAA state averages, 2025–26 reference
- EV used for the page
- Tesla Model 3 RWD, 25 kWh/100 miEPA, fueleconomy.gov (combined)
At 17.0¢/kWh, a Model 3 RWD costs $0.043 a mile to charge at home in Indiana. Indiana's pump price of $3.20/gal is the 16th-highest of the 51 on this site.
Statewide averages. Put your own rate and pump price in the calculator above.
EVs on the road here
Plug-in cars on Indiana roads
- Light-duty EVs registered
- 47,200 all-electric · 19,400 plug-in hybridDOE AFDC, registrations on Dec 31, 2025
- EV share of light-duty vehicles
- 0.8% all-electric · 1.2% with a plugDOE AFDC, registrations on Dec 31, 2025 · 5,671,600 vehicles
- EVs per 100 homes
- 1.8AFDC registrations ÷ RECS 2020 housing units (2.60 million)
- Public charging
- 729 locations · 2,238 ports (1,182 Level 2 · 1,056 DC fast)DOE AFDC station counts, 2026-10-27
- EVs per public port
- 21.1AFDC registrations ÷ AFDC public ports
Battery-electric cars remain a sliver of Indiana traffic. The 2025 registration count finds 47,200 of them, plus 19,400 plug-in hybrids, in a light-duty fleet of 5,671,600. That puts all-electric models at 0.8%, the 33rd-highest share of 51 states, while the national figure is 2.1%, and at 1.8 per hundred households, next to 4.6 for the US. Ordinary hybrids that never plug in number 210,700, against 66,600 plug-ins of both kinds.
Where Indiana stands apart is the type of public plug. Of 2,238 ports at 729 sites, 1,056 are DC fast and 1,182 are Level 2, so fast charging is 47% of the network, where the national share is 30%. Each public port serves 21.1 EVs, near the US 21.7; each fast port serves 45, against 72 nationwide. For a fleet this small, quick chargers are relatively plentiful.
Registrations: DOE AFDC, registrations on Dec 31, 2025, light-duty vehicles, rounded to the nearest hundred by AFDC. Charging: DOE AFDC station counts, 2026-10-27, public stations only.
EV vs gas cost per mile
F01Scenario A
Sets the electricity rate. Pick US average if you're not sure.
From EIA for Indiana. Use the rate on your bill if you know it.
Rate used: 17.0¢/kWh · Indiana · EIA, August 2026 · gasoline $3.20/gal (2025–26 ref.) (data as of 2026-10-25) ·
Estimated savings per year (12,000 miles)
EV $0.043 a mile vs gas $0.107 a mile, home charging.
- EV cost per mile (EPA kWh/100 mi, at the wall)
- $0.043
- Gas cost per mile
- $0.107
- EV, 12,000 miles a year
- $510.60
- Gas car, 12,000 miles a year
- $1,280.00
- Savings per year
- $769.40
- Prices used
- electricity 17.0¢/kWh · gasoline $3.20/gal (Indiana)
Estimate. Formula and sources are under “How it works”. Change any input; the result updates as you type.
Worked example
Worked example: Model 3 RWD vs a 30 mpg car in Indiana
At 17.0¢/kWh, a Model 3 RWD (25 kWh per 100 miles, EPA) draws 25 kWh from the wall for every 100 miles (the EPA measures it at the wall), so each mile costs $0.043. A 30 mpg car at $3.20/gal spends $0.107 a mile. Over 12,000 miles: $510.60 for the EV, $1,280.00 for gasoline, a difference of $769.40 a year (fuel only). That difference is the 16th-highest of the 51 on this site.
What the numbers say
What the numbers say in Indiana
Gasoline here costs $3.20/gal, in line with the US average of $3.20/gal, and residential power 17.0¢/kWh, 6% below the US average of 18.2¢/kWh. Put together, the example EV pays $0.043 for each mile, the US figure being $0.045, or 40% of the 30 mpg gas car's cost per mile. The annual difference across 12,000 miles ranks the 16th-highest nationally.
That result has wide margins. Home electricity would have to reach 42.7¢/kWh, with 17.0¢/kWh the current state average, before the two cars cost the same to fuel, or the gas car would need 75 mpg. Because fast ports make up 47% of public charging, a stop away from home is likely to be a fast one, typically billed above the home rate. Try the station's per-kWh price in the rate box above to see whether a trip still undercuts gasoline.
Most charging happens in the driveway, and the estimate assumes it does. Look through your utility's plans: an overnight time-of-use price, if offered, goes into the rate box in place of 17.0¢/kWh, and cost per mile scales with it. Before you buy, Level 2 installation cost estimates the home charger, and charge time tells you whether a plain Level 1 outlet would cover your daily driving.
Cold weather adds to this. 5,500 heating degree-days, 22% more than the US average of 4,500, mean winter driving uses more energy than the rated figure here; cold-weather range puts a number on it. A bigger vehicle uses more all year: at the same rate, the Ford F-150 Lightning runs $0.082 per mile.
Since conventional hybrids are so common here, a buyer may get more from plug-in hybrid vs EV vs gas, which also counts the purchase price. Heating the house is a separate question, answered on the Indiana heating comparison.
Questions
FAQ
Is charging an EV cheaper than gas in Indiana?
At Indiana's average prices, yes for the page's example: $0.043 a mile for a Model 3 RWD at home against $0.107 for a 30 mpg car, $769.40 a year over 12,000 miles. The EV would lose its fuel-cost edge only above about 42.7¢/kWh, or against a gas car rated above 75 mpg. Both prices are editable above.
What about public fast charging in Indiana?
Fast chargers usually charge more per kWh than a home rate. This page uses Indiana's home average, 17.0¢/kWh. To see the cost per mile on the road, type the charger's price per kWh into the electricity rate field; the gas side stays at $3.20/gal.
How do time-of-use rates change this in Indiana?
The EV's cost per mile moves in direct proportion to the rate you charge at. If an overnight rate were half of 17.0¢/kWh (8.5¢/kWh), the Model 3 RWD would cost $0.021 a mile instead of $0.043. Check your utility's tariff for the real overnight rate and type it in.
Can I rely on public fast chargers in Indiana with so few EVs around?
Against the size of the fleet, fast ports are not scarce: the state has 1,056 of them, one for every 45 EVs, against 72 nationwide. The network as a whole is small, though, at 729 sites, so placement along your routes counts for more than any ratio. Look at a station map before relying on it, and price a session by entering the charger's rate in the box above.
Is Level 1 charging from a wall outlet enough in Indiana?
That comes down to daily mileage. The energy costs the same home rate, 17.0¢/kWh, so the EV still runs $0.043 per mile. The difference is time: Level 1 refills slowly, and winter raises the energy each mile needs. Charge time gives miles of range per hour of charging for your car; Level 2 installation cost prices the faster setup.
Bordering states
Nearby states
Same two cars, each state's own prices:
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