How much EV range do I actually need?
Most Australians need far less range than they think. If you charge at home every night, look for a claimed (WLTP) range of about 2.5 times your daily kilometres, a bit more if you drive mostly on the highway or live somewhere cold. Use the calculator for your exact figure and the cheapest EVs that cover it.
Your driving
Add both ways, e.g. 50 km to work + 50 km home = 100 km.
Batteries lose range in the cold, and the heater uses energy.
Refine your resultHighway speed, days a week, charging level, home charger, towing, longer trips, your state
Air resistance climbs fast with speed, so 110 km/h uses noticeably more than 100 km/h.
Used for yearly running costs only.
Most batteries last longer at 80% day to day. LFP batteries are fine at 100%. We keep 10% spare either way.
See what each option puts back overnight in the result. It only changes the range you need if it can't keep up with your driving.
A caravan, boat or trailer roughly halves an EV's range.
A trip you do now and then, like a weekend away or visiting family. One way, without stopping to charge. Leave at None if you'd happily stop at a fast charger.
The range to look for
Recommended adds about 10% for battery ageing over 8 years, plus a 20% buffer for a missed charge, a detour or a broken charger.
EVs that cover you
How we work it out
Sources: EV Central highway range estimates · Recurrent winter range study (34 EVs) · SolarQuotes: Australian real-world range tests · Gridly: range at 100–130 km/h
- Highway: 85% of claimed range at 100 km/h, 80% at 110, 70% at 130.
- Winter: −3% mild, −8% cool, −15% cold.
- Charging: only your charge level down to 10% spare counts.
- Towing: half the range.
- Shape: at highway speed sedans lose a little less, and SUVs, people movers and utes more. Each car in the list is judged for its own shape.
- Recommended: +10% for battery ageing, +20% for bad days (+10% for planned trips).
- Costs: each car's official energy use × your yearly km × your state's power price (90% home, rest public at 70c/kWh).
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Common questions
How much range do I need in an EV?
If you charge every night, about 2 to 2.5 times your daily kilometres in claimed (WLTP) range covers you, including highway driving, winter and the odd missed charge. For 100 km a day that's about 250 km; for 200 km a day of mostly highway, about 500 km.
Why not just buy the longest range?
Bigger batteries cost more, weigh more and use more energy. If you charge at home most nights, you only use a fraction of the battery each day, so paying for range you never use is money better spent elsewhere.
Should I charge to 80% or 100%?
Most EV batteries last longer if you charge to about 80% day to day and keep 10% in reserve, so only about 70% of the claimed range is your everyday range. Cars with LFP batteries are happy at 100%. If the manual says to charge to 100% at least once a week, it has an LFP battery.
Do I need an 11 kW home charger?
Usually not. A 7 kW charger puts back roughly 300–400 km overnight, more than most people drive in a day. 11 kW needs three-phase power, and many EVs can only take about 7 kW on AC anyway.
How much range do you lose on the highway?
About 15% at 100 km/h and 20% at 110 km/h, more into a headwind or up hills. The WLTP test is mostly town and suburban driving with only a short fast section, so around town many EVs match or beat their claimed range.
More guides
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How we work it out, and our sources
Weekly cost = the car's energy use × 250 km × your electricity or fuel price, with 90% of charging at home. Prices are list prices at November 2026; check with the dealer.
- Electricity: 2026–27 default rates (AER, Victorian Default Offer, state retailers). Public charging: Sydney network prices, July 2026.
- Petrol and diesel: capital-city daily averages from state government price feeds, via FuelRadar, 12 November 2026. Diesel for Hobart, Canberra and Darwin is estimated from the national fall.
- Cars: maker figures via CarExpert, Drive, CarsGuide and EV Central. Plug-in electric range is taken as 80% of the claim.
- Servicing: published capped prices; marked as an estimate where not yet published (CarExpert comparison).
- Tyres: an EV set lasts about 35,000 km, a petrol or hybrid set 50,000 km (RACV); prices from Gridly.
- Home charger: about $2,000 installed ($1,000–$3,000). Novated leases: PwC summary.
Printed from EV Pick Australia · evpick.com.au. Prices and costs are estimates; check with the dealer. © 2026 EV Pick (T. Crouch). For personal use only; not to be copied, republished or sold without permission.
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