EV vs Gas Cost Per Mile in North Carolina
At North Carolina's average prices, a Tesla Model 3 RWD costs an estimated $0.037 a mile to charge at home and a 30 mpg gas car $0.100 a mile in fuel: $751.50 a year apart over 12,000 miles. Per mile, the EV spends about 37% of what the gas car does.
State data
What North Carolina pays
- Home electricity
- 14.9¢/kWhEIA Electric Power Monthly, table 5.6.A · EIA, August 2026 (data as of 2026-10-25)
- Gasoline
- $3.00/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 14.9¢/kWh, charging at home in North Carolina costs $0.037 a mile for a Model 3 RWD, against $0.045 at the US-average rate. North Carolina's pump price of $3.00/gal is the 34th-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
Where North Carolina stands on EVs
- Light-duty EVs registered
- 121,000 all-electric · 35,500 plug-in hybridDOE AFDC, registrations on Dec 31, 2025
- EV share of light-duty vehicles
- 1.4% all-electric · 1.8% with a plugDOE AFDC, registrations on Dec 31, 2025 · 8,510,900 vehicles
- EVs per 100 homes
- 3.0AFDC registrations ÷ RECS 2020 housing units (4.01 million)
- Public charging
- 1,926 locations · 5,936 ports (4,008 Level 2 · 1,919 DC fast)DOE AFDC station counts, 2026-10-27
- EVs per public port
- 20.4AFDC registrations ÷ AFDC public ports
North Carolina has a lot of electric cars in absolute terms and a middling share of its fleet. The 2025 registrations list 121,000 all-electric vehicles, the 12th-highest count in the country, and 35,500 plug-in hybrids. Spread across 8,510,900 light-duty vehicles, though, the all-electric share is 1.4%, the 23rd-highest of 51 and below the national 2.1%. Per household the state has 3.0 EVs for every hundred homes, against 4.6 for the US. Ordinary hybrids, 406,100 of them, still far outnumber everything with a plug, 156,500.
The charging network is one of the bigger ones, 5,936 public ports at 1,926 locations, the 11th-highest total, including 1,919 DC fast ports and 4,008 at Level 2. Fast charging is 32% of ports, near the US mix of 30%. Relative to the fleet it is a little roomier than the national picture: 20.4 EVs per port where the US has 21.7, and 63 per fast port against 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 North Carolina. Use the rate on your bill if you know it.
Rate used: 14.9¢/kWh · North Carolina · EIA, August 2026 · gasoline $3.00/gal (2025–26 ref.) (data as of 2026-10-25) ·
Estimated savings per year (12,000 miles)
EV $0.037 a mile vs gas $0.100 a mile, home charging.
- EV cost per mile (EPA kWh/100 mi, at the wall)
- $0.037
- Gas cost per mile
- $0.100
- EV, 12,000 miles a year
- $448.50
- Gas car, 12,000 miles a year
- $1,200.00
- Savings per year
- $751.50
- Prices used
- electricity 14.9¢/kWh · gasoline $3.00/gal (North Carolina)
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 North Carolina
At 14.9¢/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 $0.037. A 30 mpg car at $3.00/gal spends $0.100 a mile. Over 12,000 miles: $448.50 for the EV, $1,200.00 for gasoline, a difference of $751.50 a year (fuel only). That difference is the 18th-highest of the 51 on this site.
What the numbers say
Charging versus gasoline in North Carolina
Both fuels are cheaper than the national average here. Home electricity costs 14.9¢/kWh, 18% below the US average of 18.2¢/kWh, and gasoline $3.00/gal, 6% below the US average of $3.20/gal. The EV keeps a solid lead anyway: its cost per mile is 37% of the gas car's, and the yearly difference for the example ranks the 18th-highest among the states, a middle-of-the-table result rather than an extreme one.
The break-even points sit well away from today's prices. Charging would have to cost 40.0¢/kWh for the gas car to tie, set against the average of 14.9¢/kWh; on the other side, the gas car would need 80 mpg. So public charging rarely erases the saving on its own, though a high fast-charging price narrows it. Enter what a charger on your route posts per kilowatt-hour in the electricity field above to see the trip's cost per mile.
The bigger variable for most households is the tariff. If your utility offers a time-of-use or whole-home EV rate, the overnight price is the figure to use instead of 14.9¢/kWh; at half the average, 7.5¢/kWh, the Tesla Model 3 RWD would cost $0.019 a mile. A larger vehicle moves the other way: the Ford F-150 Lightning at the average rate runs $0.072 a mile.
Winters are mild, 3,400 heating degree-days or 24% fewer than the US average of 4,500, so cold-weather range loss matters less here than in colder states, though it is not zero; the cold-weather range page estimates it. For charging at home, the charge time page compares Level 1 with Level 2. And if your house already runs on a heat pump, the North Carolina heating page shows what the same electric rate means for winter heat.
Questions
FAQ
Is charging an EV cheaper than gas in North Carolina?
At North Carolina's average prices, yes for the page's example: $0.037 a mile for a Model 3 RWD at home against $0.100 for a 30 mpg car, $751.50 a year over 12,000 miles. The EV would lose its fuel-cost edge only above about 40.0¢/kWh, or against a gas car rated above 80 mpg. Both prices are editable above.
What about public fast charging in North Carolina?
Fast chargers usually charge more per kWh than a home rate. This page uses North Carolina's home average, 14.9¢/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 $3.00/gal.
How do time-of-use rates change this in North Carolina?
The EV's cost per mile moves in direct proportion to the rate you charge at. If an overnight rate were half of 14.9¢/kWh (7.5¢/kWh), the Model 3 RWD would cost $0.019 a mile instead of $0.037. Check your utility's tariff for the real overnight rate and type it in.
What does it cost to charge an EV at home in North Carolina?
At the average residential rate of 14.9¢/kWh, the Tesla Model 3 RWD costs $0.037 a mile, or $448.50 over 12,000 miles a year. A pickup uses more: the Ford F-150 Lightning comes to $0.072 a mile on the same rate. Check your bill for the actual price per kilowatt-hour, and for an off-peak price if your plan has one.
Is there enough fast charging in North Carolina?
The state has 1,919 DC fast ports, the 11th-highest count among the states, shared by 63 EVs each on average, against 72 nationally. That count does not show where the ports are, so check coverage along your usual long routes. Fast charging usually costs more than the home rate; enter the posted price above to see the cost per mile.
Bordering states
Nearby states
Same two cars, each state's own prices:
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