Choose a charging solution: subscription, buy or rent a charger?

What matters is the total payment over the period you expect to use the solution. Electricity, installation, fixed fees and terms at termination must be included. In the charging solution calculator you can set up several options with the same consumption and see which items create the difference.

How much electricity will the car use?

Find your expected number of kilometres a year and a realistic consumption for the car. If you already have the car, the consumption from comparable driving is a good starting point. If you do not have the car yet, you can try several consumption figures instead of basing everything on one catalogue figure.

At 15,000 km and 16 kWh per 100 km, the car uses 2,400 kWh at the battery a year. The energy drawn from the grid is higher because of charging losses. It is important to know the measuring point: a consumption figure from the car’s display and one from the electricity meter can describe different parts of the process.

Charging losses must be calculated on a clear basis

If the loss is stated as a share of the energy from the grid, the battery need is divided by the remaining efficiency. With a 10 per cent loss, 2,400 kWh at the battery require about 2,667 kWh from the grid. A model that instead adds 10 per cent to the battery need uses a different definition. The calculator must say which one is chosen.

Cold, battery heating, power and charging pattern can affect the actual difference. Use a scenario that is reasonable for your car and installation, and examine what a higher loss means for the economics.

Split charging between home and other places

An average energy need does not tell you what you have to pay. You also need to know where the energy comes from. Split the charging between home, the workplace and public chargers according to your everyday life.

A family can charge cheaply at home most of the year and still have a few long holiday trips with other prices. A driver without their own parking space may depend on public chargers almost every week. The two situations should not be calculated with the same mixed price.

Feel free to enter a normal month and a month with more public charging in the comparison. This makes it easier to see whether a solution is only attractive under one narrow assumption.

What does it mean to buy a charger?

When you buy, you typically pay for the charger and the necessary installation. There may still be regular payments for service, connection or other services. Ownership therefore does not automatically mean that all fixed costs disappear.

On the other hand, a larger upfront payment can be spread over several years of use. If you want to keep the installation for a long time, look into both the running costs and the option of using the charger with another solution later. Check the actual product’s terms, connection requirements and support rather than assuming that any charger can be moved freely between providers.

Compare the total installation price

An offer with standard installation can have limits on cable length and the scope of the work. Location, fuse board, cable routing and other conditions can change the price. Ask what is included and what triggers a surcharge before you compare with another offer.

The final installation must be assessed on site. A price calculator can organise the amounts you enter, but it cannot see the fuse board or determine the installation’s technical needs from the car’s name alone.

What does it mean to rent a charger?

Renting can reduce the payment at the start, while part of the cost is moved to monthly payments. This can be relevant if you want less capital tied up in the installation or expect a shorter period. It does not make renting the cheapest option in itself.

Read what happens when the agreement ends. Must the charger be returned, may it stay, and is removal included? Can you move the agreement to a new address, and what does it cost? The answers affect the economics, especially if you might move before the expected period has passed.

Service and responsibility for faults can also differ between renting and buying. Only include an economic advantage when you know which service actually comes with it.

A charging subscription requires a careful reading of the terms

The word subscription can cover different products. Some agreements include access to a service, others a certain amount of energy or a more comprehensive charging solution. You cannot compare them correctly on the advertised monthly price alone.

Check which chargers are covered, whether there is an energy mark-up and how home charging is settled. Any refunds or reimbursement schemes must be current and apply to your situation. An old rate from an earlier article is not a suitable basis for a new choice.

Included charging must not be paid for a second time in the calculation. Conversely, electricity on a charging network outside the agreement must not be treated as free. Let the calculator show the scope of the agreement with the result.

A worked example with two simple solutions

Imagine two constructed options over three years. Solution A costs 8,000 DKK at the start and 50 DKK a month. Solution B costs 2,000 DKK at the start and 250 DKK a month. In this example, both starting prices contain the same installation work, and electricity is paid for separately in the same way.

Solution A costs 8,000 + 36 × 50 = 9,800 DKK before electricity. Solution B costs 2,000 + 36 × 250 = 11,000 DKK before electricity. A is therefore 1,200 DKK cheaper over three years under these assumptions.

After only one year the picture is different: A costs 8,600 DKK and B costs 5,000 DKK. This shows why your expected period of use matters. The example says nothing about a particular product or about who offers the best service.

Find the point where the difference turns

In the example the difference at the start is 6,000 DKK, while the monthly difference is 200 DKK. The simple break-even point comes after 30 months. Other electricity prices, termination fees or differences in coverage can move it.

It is often more useful to know this break-even point than to get one green result for a preselected period. You can weigh it against the likelihood of keeping the car and the home for that long.

The price of home electricity must be the right one

When the car charges at home, it is the relevant total electricity price in the charging period that affects the cost. A spot price without grid charges and other items can be a useful market measure, but it is not automatically your price at the charger.

At the same time, fixed payments must be treated correctly. If you already have an electricity subscription, it may not disappear by choosing a different charger. If a charging solution requires a specific electricity agreement, the extra cost or benefit of that agreement must be examined for the whole household, not just the car’s kWh.

Use the comparison of electricity agreements when an offer links charging and electricity supplier. This makes it easier to see whether a cheap charger comes with other payments.

Cheap periods only help if the charging can be completed

If you have a variable price, the time of charging can be important. A plan must, however, take into account the energy need, the charging power and the departure time. A low price after you leave does not help with the trip you have to make.

In the cheapest electricity period calculator you can choose the earliest start and a deadline. Interruptible charging can be spread over suitable periods when the chosen solution supports it. A continuous task, on the other hand, must be completed in one go.

Tomorrow’s prices can only be included once they are available. A plan based on known prices should not appear as a certain calculation of the rest of a week that is still unknown.

Automatic control is a separate function

A calculator tells you when it is advantageous to charge. Automatic control requires a connection to the car or the charging equipment and correct handling of charging limits and other settings. Check what the chosen service actually supports.

If the car’s own limit is set lower than the target in a service, do not assume that the service can exceed the limit. Settings, schedules and the car’s current state must work together before you can rely on the desired charge being ready when you leave.

Check the choice against a slightly different everyday life

Try several annual mileages, a larger share of public charging and a shorter period of ownership. Also look at what a higher energy price or a different installation price does to the result. If a small change reverses the choice, the difference should not be presented as clear-cut.

It can be reasonable to pay more for a solution if availability, help with faults or simple operation has value for you. Just keep this assessment separate from the calculation’s price ranking. A more expensive product does not become mathematically cheaper by having a feature you prefer.

What if the household gets two electric cars?

Two cars do not necessarily mean double consumption or a need for two identical agreements. Start with the kilometres and the home share for each car. Then check whether the agreement applies to one car, several cars or a specific charger. An included service for one car must not automatically be transferred to the other in the calculation.

Also look at the time window at the charger. If both cars need electricity the same night, the available power and the distribution between the cars are part of the plan. An economically attractive agreement only helps if the practical solution can deliver the energy before departure. Ask the installer to assess the installation and the options for relevant control when expanding.

Use a comparable offer as the next step

Collect the details that are missing before you order: total starting price, regular payment, included energy, any mark-ups, service, commitment period and terms at termination. Give the offers the same period and the same consumption basis in the charging solution calculator.

You can also see FDM’s overview of charging solution calculation as additional help in examining your need. The actual contracts and product prices must still be checked with the provider. Once the figures are in place, the calculation shows what the solutions cost in your situation and which assumptions you should pay most attention to.