The sticker price tells you what a car costs to buy — not what it costs to drive. Plug in your real miles, your real gas and electricity prices, and find out which one actually wins over the next few years.

What this gas vs electric car calculator does

This gas vs electric car calculator compares what you’ll actually spend driving a gasoline car against an electric vehicle (EV) over 1, 3, 5, or 10 years. It covers the two costs that change most between the two: fuel versus charging, and ongoing maintenance. If you enter how much more the EV costs to buy, it also tells you how many years it takes for the running-cost savings to pay back that price difference — the break-even point most car ads quietly skip.

The reason it matters: EVs almost always lose the sticker-price fight and almost always win the cost-per-mile fight. Whether the second number outweighs the first depends entirely on your electricity rate, your mileage, and your gas price — not the national averages a dealership quotes you.

How the math works

The calculator runs the same equation twice, once per car:

• Gas car yearly fuel cost = (miles ÷ MPG) × price per gallon
• EV yearly charging cost = (miles ÷ miles-per-kWh) × blended price per kWh

The “blended” kWh price is the weighted average of your home rate and public fast-charging rate, based on how much of your charging you do at home. Most EV owners charge at home around 80–90% of the time, which is why home rate dominates the result.

Maintenance is added as cost-per-mile: about 10¢ per mile for gas cars and 7¢ per mile for EVs, based on AAA and Consumer Reports figures. EVs are cheaper here because they have no oil changes, no spark plugs, no transmission fluid, and less brake wear thanks to regenerative braking.

A worked example

Driver covers 12,000 miles a year. Comparing a 28-MPG compact SUV at $3.12/gallon against an EV doing 3.5 mi/kWh at 17.7¢/kWh home electricity, 90% home charging:

• Gas: 12,000 ÷ 28 = 429 gallons × $3.12 = $1,338 a year in fuel
• EV: 12,000 ÷ 3.5 = 3,429 kWh × ~$0.19 blended = $651 a year in charging
• Add maintenance: gas $1,200/yr, EV $840/yr
• Yearly total: gas $2,538, EV $1,491 → savings of $1,047 a year, or $5,235 over 5 years

If the EV costs $4,000 more to buy after incentives, the break-even arrives in about 3.8 years.

Common mistakes people make

Comparing sticker prices instead of total cost. A $5,000 cheaper gas car can easily become $5,000 more expensive once you’ve driven it 60,000 miles. Running costs are where the comparison lives.

Using only public charging rates. DC fast chargers can run 40–60¢ per kWh — three times the home rate. Plug that number into the whole calculation and EVs look terrible. They aren’t; you just modeled the worst-case scenario.

Ignoring maintenance. Fuel is the headline, but the maintenance gap quietly adds $300–$500 per year of savings to the EV side over a typical ownership period.

FAQ

Is it cheaper to drive an electric car than a gas car?
For most U.S. drivers charging primarily at home, yes — usually by 50–70% on fuel alone. The result flips only with very low gas prices, very high electricity rates (some parts of California, Hawaii), or heavy reliance on public fast charging.

What is the cost per mile of an EV vs a gas car?
On U.S. averages: roughly 5¢ per mile to charge an EV at home, versus 11¢ per mile to fuel a 28-MPG gas car. Your calculator result shows your exact numbers.

How long does it take an EV to pay for itself?
When EVs cost more upfront, break-even typically lands at 3–6 years for average drivers. Higher mileage shortens it; expensive electricity lengthens it.

Does this include the cost of installing a home charger?
No. A Level 2 home charger plus installation runs $800–$2,000 one-time. Add it to the “How much more does the EV cost to buy?” field to factor it into break-even.

Are these numbers accurate for my state?
Defaults are U.S. national averages. Electricity rates vary widely by state — replace the home rate with your actual rate from a recent utility bill for the most accurate result.