EV vs Gas Cost Per Mile in Montana
At Montana's average prices, a Tesla Model 3 RWD costs an estimated $0.039 a mile to charge at home and a 30 mpg gas car $0.107 a mile in fuel: $812.90 a year apart over 12,000 miles. At these prices, home charging costs half or less of gasoline per mile in Montana.
State data
What Montana pays
- Home electricity
- 15.6¢/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)
Montana's rate of 15.6¢/kWh is the 33rd-highest of the 51, between 15¢ and 20¢/kWh. Gasoline in Montana averages $3.20/gal, in line with the US average of $3.20/gal.
Statewide averages. Put your own rate and pump price in the calculator above.
EVs on the road here
EVs on Montana roads
- Light-duty EVs registered
- 6,900 all-electric · 4,200 plug-in hybridDOE AFDC, registrations on Dec 31, 2025
- EV share of light-duty vehicles
- 0.7% all-electric · 1.2% with a plugDOE AFDC, registrations on Dec 31, 2025 · 920,400 vehicles
- EVs per 100 homes
- 1.6AFDC registrations ÷ RECS 2020 housing units (0.43 million)
- Public charging
- 158 locations · 481 ports (219 Level 2 · 262 DC fast)DOE AFDC station counts, 2026-10-27
- EVs per public port
- 14.3AFDC registrations ÷ AFDC public ports
Battery cars are still uncommon in Montana. When the 2025 registrations were counted, the state had 6,900 all-electric vehicles and 4,200 plug-in hybrids out of 920,400 light-duty vehicles. The all-electric share of 0.7% is the 39th-highest of the 51 and trails the national 2.1%; per household there are 1.6 EVs for every hundred homes, against 4.6 across the US. Conventional hybrids are much more common, at 39,200, than vehicles with a plug, at 11,100.
The public network is small, 481 ports at 158 locations, the 5th-lowest port count among the states, but its make-up is unusual. DC fast ports number 262 against 219 at Level 2, so fast charging is 54% of the ports where the national mix is 30%. With so few EVs on the road, each public port serves 14.3 of them and each fast port 26, against 21.7 and 72 for the country.
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 Montana. Use the rate on your bill if you know it.
Rate used: 15.6¢/kWh · Montana · EIA, August 2026 · gasoline $3.20/gal (2025–26 ref.) (data as of 2026-10-25) ·
Estimated savings per year (12,000 miles)
EV $0.039 a mile vs gas $0.107 a mile, home charging.
- EV cost per mile (EPA kWh/100 mi, at the wall)
- $0.039
- Gas cost per mile
- $0.107
- EV, 12,000 miles a year
- $467.10
- Gas car, 12,000 miles a year
- $1,280.00
- Savings per year
- $812.90
- Prices used
- electricity 15.6¢/kWh · gasoline $3.20/gal (Montana)
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 Montana
At 15.6¢/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 $0.039. A 30 mpg car at $3.20/gal spends $0.107 a mile. Over 12,000 miles: $467.10 for the EV, $1,280.00 for gasoline, a difference of $812.90 a year (fuel only). A gas car would need about 82 mpg to match it.
What the numbers say
What driving electric costs in Montana
Neither fuel is priced at an extreme here. Gasoline sells for $3.20/gal, in line with the US average of $3.20/gal, and home electricity for 15.6¢/kWh, 14% below the US average of 18.2¢/kWh. Moderate prices on both sides still produce a clear win for charging at home: the yearly fuel gap for the page's example is the 9th-highest among the states, and the EV's fuel bill comes to 36% of the gas car's.
There is a lot of room before that changes. The electric side would only catch up at 42.7¢/kWh, with the state average at 15.6¢/kWh, or against a gas car that managed 82 mpg. That margin matters on a road trip, because the network here leans toward fast chargers, and fast charging is usually priced well above a home tariff. Type the price shown at the charger into the electricity field above; the cost per mile moves with it, and you can see how close a trip gets to the gas car.
Winter is the other Montana variable. The calculator uses a rated consumption, and cold weather raises it: the cold-weather range page estimates how much range and efficiency drop at low temperatures, which feeds straight back into the cost per mile. A larger vehicle also changes the picture: the Ford F-150 Lightning at the same home rate costs $0.075 a mile.
At home, the rate on your bill is the number to use. If your utility has a time-of-use plan, its overnight price replaces 15.6¢/kWh in the field above. Charging overnight on a regular outlet is slow; the charge time page compares Level 1 and Level 2, and the Level 2 installation cost page prices the second.
Questions
FAQ
Is charging an EV cheaper than gas in Montana?
At Montana's average prices, yes for the page's example: $0.039 a mile for a Model 3 RWD at home against $0.107 for a 30 mpg car, $812.90 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 82 mpg. Both prices are editable above.
What about public fast charging in Montana?
Fast chargers usually charge more per kWh than a home rate. This page uses Montana's home average, 15.6¢/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 Montana?
The EV's cost per mile moves in direct proportion to the rate you charge at. If an overnight rate were half of 15.6¢/kWh (7.8¢/kWh), the Model 3 RWD would cost $0.019 a mile instead of $0.039. Check your utility's tariff for the real overnight rate and type it in.
Are there enough chargers in Montana for long drives?
The state lists 262 DC fast ports, the 43rd-highest count among the states, and fast ports make up 54% of its public network. They are shared among few cars, 26 EVs per fast port. What this page cannot show is the spacing between them along a route; plan stops with a route planner, and expect winter to shorten the distance you can cover between them.
How much does home charging cost for a pickup in Montana?
At the average residential rate of 15.6¢/kWh, the Ford F-150 Lightning comes to $0.075 a mile, against $0.039 for the Tesla Model 3 RWD the page is built on. Your own tariff decides the real figure; if you can charge overnight on a time-of-use rate, use that price in the electricity field above.
Bordering states
Nearby states
Same two cars, each state's own prices:
Related