EV vs Gas Cost Per Mile in Massachusetts
At Massachusetts's average prices, a Tesla Model 3 RWD costs an estimated $0.076 a mile to charge at home and a 30 mpg gas car $0.107 a mile in fuel: $365.60 a year apart over 12,000 miles. The gap is narrow here: at 30.5¢/kWh, charging costs about 71% of what the gas car spends per mile.
State data
What Massachusetts pays
- Home electricity
- 30.5¢/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)
Massachusetts has the 3rd-highest electricity rate of the 51 on this site: 30.5¢/kWh. Massachusetts'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
Electric vehicles in Massachusetts
- Light-duty EVs registered
- 113,900 all-electric · 60,000 plug-in hybridDOE AFDC, registrations on Dec 31, 2025
- EV share of light-duty vehicles
- 2.2% all-electric · 3.3% with a plugDOE AFDC, registrations on Dec 31, 2025 · 5,266,900 vehicles
- EVs per 100 homes
- 4.2AFDC registrations ÷ RECS 2020 housing units (2.71 million)
- Public charging
- 4,615 locations · 11,836 ports (9,843 Level 2 · 1,987 DC fast)DOE AFDC station counts, 2026-10-27
- EVs per public port
- 9.6AFDC registrations ÷ AFDC public ports
Massachusetts sits near the national average on EV ownership and well above it on public charging. At the end of 2025 the state had 113,900 all-electric cars and light trucks and 60,000 plug-in hybrids registered. All-electric models are 2.2% of its 5,266,900 light-duty vehicles, against 2.1% nationally, and there are 4.2 per hundred homes, against 4.6 for the US. Conventional hybrids, at 361,800, outnumber plug-ins on the road.
The charging network is where Massachusetts stands out. It counts 11,836 public ports at 4,615 locations, the 5th-highest total in the country, and with 9.6 EVs per port, against 21.7 nationally, it has the 7th-lowest ratio of any state. The mix leans heavily to Level 2: 9,843 of the ports, with 1,987 DC fast, so fast ports are 17% of the total against 30% for the US. Even so, each fast port serves 57 EVs, fewer than the US figure of 72.
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 Massachusetts. Use the rate on your bill if you know it.
Rate used: 30.5¢/kWh · Massachusetts · EIA, August 2026 · gasoline $3.20/gal (2025–26 ref.) (data as of 2026-10-25) ·
Estimated savings per year (12,000 miles)
EV $0.076 a mile vs gas $0.107 a mile, home charging.
- EV cost per mile (EPA kWh/100 mi, at the wall)
- $0.076
- Gas cost per mile
- $0.107
- EV, 12,000 miles a year
- $914.40
- Gas car, 12,000 miles a year
- $1,280.00
- Savings per year
- $365.60
- Prices used
- electricity 30.5¢/kWh · gasoline $3.20/gal (Massachusetts)
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 Massachusetts
At 30.5¢/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 $0.076. A 30 mpg car at $3.20/gal spends $0.107 a mile. Over 12,000 miles: $914.40 for the EV, $1,280.00 for gasoline, a difference of $365.60 a year (fuel only). The EV would lose its per-mile edge at a rate above 42.7¢/kWh.
What the numbers say
What the numbers say in Massachusetts
The EV still costs less per mile in Massachusetts, but the gap is among the narrowest in the country: the 2nd-lowest of any state at average prices. The reason is the pairing of prices. Home electricity is 30.5¢/kWh, 68% above the US average of 18.2¢/kWh and the 3rd-highest rate, while gasoline, at $3.20/gal, is in line with the US average of $3.20/gal. Expensive power against ordinary gas is the combination that shrinks the EV's lead.
That leaves less headroom than in most states. The EV and a 30 mpg car cost the same per mile at an electricity rate of 42.7¢/kWh, against a state average of 30.5¢/kWh, and a gas car rated at 42 mpg would tie with the EV at the average rate. With hybrids this common on Massachusetts roads, that second figure is the one to check: if the car you would replace is an efficient hybrid, put its rating in the mpg field above before drawing a conclusion.
Where you charge matters more here than the model you drive. Public Level 2 ports are plentiful, but a session priced well above the home rate can close much of the distance to 42.7¢/kWh, and DC fast charging priced per kilowatt-hour can pass it. If your utility offers a time-of-use plan, the overnight rate replaces 30.5¢/kWh in the field above and the cost per mile falls in proportion; at a rate of 15.2¢/kWh, half the state average, the Tesla Model 3 RWD would cost $0.038 a mile.
The comparison also leaves out the car and the charger. The plug-in hybrid vs EV vs gas page sets a hybrid or plug-in hybrid beside the EV, and the Level 2 installation cost page prices a home charger. With 5,800 heating degree-days, winter range is part of the picture too; the cold-weather range page shows how much.
Questions
FAQ
Is charging an EV cheaper than gas in Massachusetts?
At Massachusetts's average prices, yes for the page's example: $0.076 a mile for a Model 3 RWD at home against $0.107 for a 30 mpg car, $365.60 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 42 mpg. Both prices are editable above.
What about public fast charging in Massachusetts?
Fast chargers usually charge more per kWh than a home rate. This page uses Massachusetts's home average, 30.5¢/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 Massachusetts?
The EV's cost per mile moves in direct proportion to the rate you charge at. If an overnight rate were half of 30.5¢/kWh (15.2¢/kWh), the Model 3 RWD would cost $0.038 a mile instead of $0.076. Check your utility's tariff for the real overnight rate and type it in.
Does an EV save money in Massachusetts with electricity this expensive?
On fuel, yes, but less than in most states. At 30.5¢/kWh the Tesla Model 3 RWD costs $0.076 a mile against $0.107 for a 30 mpg car, 71% of the gas cost per mile. The saving disappears at an electricity rate of 42.7¢/kWh, or against a gas car that reaches 42 mpg. Check your own rate, and any time-of-use option, on your bill.
Is public charging easy to find in Massachusetts?
By the numbers, easier than in most states: 9.6 EVs per public port, the 7th-lowest ratio in the country, against 21.7 nationally. Most of those ports are Level 2; the state has 1,987 DC fast ports. Public prices per kilowatt-hour are usually above the home rate of 30.5¢/kWh, so a car charged mostly in public keeps less of its advantage.
Bordering states
Nearby states
Same two cars, each state's own prices:
Related