EV vs Gas Cost Calculator
The real total cost of ownership — financing, charging, insurance, depreciation, your state's EV fees, and any state credits, all included and auto-tuned to your state. Pick from the 20+ best-selling EVs in the US — Tesla, Chevy, Hyundai, Kia, Ford, Rivian, and more — with sourced 2026 figures, year by year. And it tells you honestly when gas actually wins.
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⚠️ Estimates only — not financial advice. Every figure is an approximation built from assumptions and third-party averages that change often and may be out of date or wrong. Verify the numbers that matter with the manufacturer, your lender, insurer, utility, and tax authority before you decide. Use is at your own risk under our Terms.
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Tesla Model 3
Entry point to the lineup.
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Tesla Model Y
The best-selling EV in America.
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Cybertruck
The stainless one.
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EV Owner Essentials
The accessories new owners add first — curated, updated to current Amazon best-sellers.
Tesla Key Card Holder Case
$8–12
Slim case that keeps the Tesla key card from cracking or going missing. Also fits Cybertruck and Rivian cards.
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GALVANOX MagSafe Phone Mount + Charger
$30–50
N52 magnets grip any iPhone or MagSafe case to the screen edge and add wireless charging without blocking the display.
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Wigoo J1772 → Tesla Charging Adapter
$28–45
Lets a NACS-port EV (Tesla and newer Hyundai/Kia/Rivian) charge on any J1772 Level 2 station — a UL-certified 80A spare for garage or travel.
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AstroAI L7 Cordless Tire Inflator (150 PSI)
$20–30
Pocket-size cordless inflator that tops up a low tire without a trip to the gas station. The Model Y doesn't come with a spare.
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PUOENI Rear Trunk Storage Bins (2-Pack)
$60–70
Two lidded, waterproof bins shaped for the 2025–2026 Model Y rear trunk, so groceries and gear stop sliding around. (Not for the 6-seat Model YL.)
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ESR MagSafe Wallet (5-Card)
$12–16
Snaps onto the back of your iPhone and holds your Tesla key card plus up to four more, so the card is always with your phone.
Shop on Amazon →As an Amazon Associate, EVBytes earns from qualifying purchases. Prices and availability shown on Amazon.
What this EV cost-of-ownership calculator actually includes
Most "EV savings" calculators only compare fuel to electricity and stop there — which is exactly how you get a rosy number that real ownership never matches. This one models the full total cost of ownership (TCO) for an EV versus a comparable gas car, year by year, and tells you the break-even year — the point where the EV becomes the cheaper car to own once everything is counted.
Which EVs are included?
The 20+ best-selling EVs in the US, every spec sourced: Tesla's full lineup plus the Chevy Equinox EV, Blazer EV and Silverado EV, Ford Mustang Mach-E, Honda Prologue, Hyundai Ioniq 5 and 6, Kia EV6 and EV9, Rivian R1S and R1T, VW ID.4, Cadillac Lyriq, Nissan Leaf, Toyota bZ, BMW i4, and Lexus RZ. Picking a model auto-fills its EPA efficiency, verified MSRP, published insurance figure, and its closest real gas rival — then every field stays editable.
The line items competitors leave out
- The $7,500 federal EV credit is gone. It was terminated on September 30, 2025. We default it to $0 — if a calculator still auto-applies it, its numbers are out of date.
- Most states charge EVs an extra fee: a yearly registration surcharge a gas car doesn't pay — from about $50 to $200+ depending on your state (and a few, like Texas, add a one-time ~$400 fee). The calculator loads your state's automatically.
- Insurance. EVs typically cost more to insure than an equivalent gas crossover — we model the gap with published model-level figures.
- Depreciation, front-loaded. New cars lose the most value in year one (EVs especially), so we use a realistic curve, not a flat average.
- Financing. A manufacturer's promotional APR vs a typical gas-car loan rate changes the math a lot — both are editable.
- Software subscriptions. Driver-assist packages like Tesla FSD ($99/mo) are a real monthly cost. Toggle one in.
Two things this calculator does that no other one does
Real-bill charging cost. Your true cost to charge at home is the marginal rate — energy charge plus delivery charge — not a flat national average. Enter your actual rate for an honest charging number.
Time-value of maintenance. Gas cars don't just cost money to maintain — they cost hours (oil changes, inspections, waiting rooms). Turn on "value my maintenance time" to price those hours at your wage. EVs barely have any.
How break-even is calculated
We compute each vehicle's true net cost of ownership through every year: depreciation plus financing interest plus running costs (energy, maintenance, insurance, fees), minus the resale value you'd recover if you sold. The break-even year is when the EV's net cost drops at or below the gas car's. Because the EV usually costs more up front but less to run — and holds its value differently — the crossover is the number that actually matters.
Honest by design: at low mileage, with no incentives and steep first-year depreciation, a cheap efficient gas car can win — and this calculator will tell you so. See the full methodology and sources →
EV cost by state
Gas, electricity, EV fees, sales tax, and insurance vary a lot by state. Compare EV vs gas cost by state → — or jump straight to California, Florida, New York, or Washington, each with a calculator preloaded for that state.
Related guides
- EV vs Gas: The Real Cost Comparison (2026)
- EV Incentives in 2026: What's Left After the Federal Credit
- EV Depreciation: Which EVs Hold Value (2026)
- Why EV Insurance Costs More — and How to Cut It (2026)
- What Charging an EV Costs per Month (2026)
- All EV cost guides →
More EV tools
- EV lease payment estimator — current offers with an interactive down-payment estimator.
- EV charging time calculator — how long to charge at home, and what it costs.
- EV depreciation & resale estimator — what your EV may be worth down the road.
- EV cost by state — gas, electricity, fees, and incentives in all 50 states + DC.
- All EV tools →