EV vs Gas Cost Per Mile in North Dakota
At North Dakota's average prices, a Tesla Model 3 RWD costs an estimated $0.033 a mile to charge at home and a 30 mpg gas car $0.100 a mile in fuel: $800.70 a year apart over 12,000 miles. Charging here costs about a third or less of gasoline per mile: 33%.
State data
What North Dakota pays
- Home electricity
- 13.3¢/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)
With electricity under 15¢/kWh (13.3¢/kWh), even a 48 kWh/100 mi F-150 Lightning costs $0.064 a mile to charge in North Dakota. Gasoline in North Dakota averages $3.00/gal, 6% below 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
A small EV fleet with a fast-charging network in North Dakota
- Light-duty EVs registered
- 1,900 all-electric · 1,100 plug-in hybridDOE AFDC, registrations on Dec 31, 2025
- EV share of light-duty vehicles
- 0.3% all-electric · 0.4% with a plugDOE AFDC, registrations on Dec 31, 2025 · 701,000 vehicles
- EVs per 100 homes
- 0.6AFDC registrations ÷ RECS 2020 housing units (0.32 million)
- Public charging
- 108 locations · 283 ports (137 Level 2 · 145 DC fast)DOE AFDC station counts, 2026-10-27
- EVs per public port
- 6.7AFDC registrations ÷ AFDC public ports
Electric cars are rarer in North Dakota than anywhere else in the country. The 2025 registrations count 1,900 battery-electric cars and light trucks and 1,100 plug-in hybrids among 701,000 light-duty vehicles. The all-electric share, 0.3%, is the lowest of any state, compared with 2.1% nationally, and the count per hundred homes, 0.6, also sits at the bottom of the list against 4.6 for the US. Conventional hybrids, at 18,000, far outnumber the 3,000 vehicles with a plug.
The public network tells a different story from the fleet. The state lists 283 ports at 108 locations, the 2nd-lowest port count among the states, but its mix leans toward speed: 145 are DC fast and 137 are Level 2. Fast ports make up 51% of the total, well above the national 30%. Spread over so few cars, each public port has 6.7 EVs to serve, the 2nd-lowest ratio in the country next to a US figure of 21.7, and each fast port 13, against 72 nationally.
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 Dakota. Use the rate on your bill if you know it.
Rate used: 13.3¢/kWh · North Dakota · EIA, August 2026 · gasoline $3.00/gal (2025–26 ref.) (data as of 2026-10-25) ·
Estimated savings per year (12,000 miles)
EV $0.033 a mile vs gas $0.100 a mile, home charging.
- EV cost per mile (EPA kWh/100 mi, at the wall)
- $0.033
- Gas cost per mile
- $0.100
- EV, 12,000 miles a year
- $399.30
- Gas car, 12,000 miles a year
- $1,200.00
- Savings per year
- $800.70
- Prices used
- electricity 13.3¢/kWh · gasoline $3.00/gal (North Dakota)
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 Dakota
At 13.3¢/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 $0.033. A 30 mpg car at $3.00/gal spends $0.100 a mile. Over 12,000 miles: $399.30 for the EV, $1,200.00 for gasoline, a difference of $800.70 a year (fuel only). A gas car would need about 90 mpg to match the EV's cost per mile in North Dakota.
What the numbers say
Cost per mile on North Dakota electricity
The case for driving electric here rests on the power price, not the pump. Gasoline costs $3.00/gal, 6% below the US average of $3.20/gal, so fuel is not unusually expensive; the residential rate of 13.3¢/kWh is what stands out, the 3rd-lowest in the country. At that rate the Tesla Model 3 RWD spends 33% of what the 30 mpg gas car spends per mile, and the estimate puts the yearly difference at $800.70, the 11th-highest among the states.
The tie point is far off. The EV would cost as much per mile as the gas car only if electricity reached 40.0¢/kWh, against today's average of 13.3¢/kWh, or if the gas car managed 90 mpg. That cushion matters in a state where a public stop is more often a DC fast charger than a Level 2 post, because fast charging is priced well above the home rate. Enter the per-kilowatt-hour price shown on a charger in the electricity field above and check that the road-trip cost per mile still sits under the gas car's $0.100.
Winter is the factor the averages leave out. North Dakota has the 2nd-highest heating-degree-day total among the states, 9,000, and cold weather shortens range and raises the energy used per mile. The cold-weather range page estimates the loss, worth knowing before you plan a trip around the state's 108 public charging locations.
At home, check whether your utility offers a time-of-use or EV rate. If it is half the average, 6.7¢/kWh, the cost per mile falls to $0.017. A Level 1 wall outlet charges slowly; the charge time page shows how slowly, and the Level 2 installation cost page prices the faster option. Heating a North Dakota home is a separate decision, covered on the gas vs electric heat page for North Dakota.
Questions
FAQ
Is charging an EV cheaper than gas in North Dakota?
At North Dakota's average prices, yes for the page's example: $0.033 a mile for a Model 3 RWD at home against $0.100 for a 30 mpg car, $800.70 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 90 mpg. Both prices are editable above.
What about public fast charging in North Dakota?
Fast chargers usually charge more per kWh than a home rate. This page uses North Dakota's home average, 13.3¢/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 Dakota?
The EV's cost per mile moves in direct proportion to the rate you charge at. If an overnight rate were half of 13.3¢/kWh (6.7¢/kWh), the Model 3 RWD would cost $0.017 a mile instead of $0.033. Check your utility's tariff for the real overnight rate and type it in.
Does North Dakota have enough chargers for its EVs?
Measured per car, it is one of the best-supplied states: 6.7 EVs per public port against 21.7 nationally, and 13 per fast port against 72. The ratio looks good mostly because the fleet is small. What it does not show is distance; 108 locations cover the whole state, so on a long drive the spacing between fast chargers, not the queue, is the thing to plan.
What does charging a Ford F-150 Lightning cost in North Dakota?
At the average rate of 13.3¢/kWh, the estimate is $0.064 a mile for the Ford F-150 Lightning, against $0.033 for the Tesla Model 3 RWD. A pickup is not competing with a 30 mpg car, though; to compare it with a gas truck, type that truck's mpg into the calculator above in place of the default, along with your own electricity rate.
Bordering states
Nearby states
Same two cars, each state's own prices:
Related