EV charger and connector types in the UK

Charger types by speed

Speed is the main difference between charger types, and your car and your electricity supply set the ceiling. The miles-an-hour figures below are our arithmetic at 3.32 miles per kWh, ignoring charging losses.

The 3-pin row needs a warning. The RAC says most manufacturers limit current from a domestic socket to 10A, which is 2.3kW, and the IET calls Mode 2 charging the minimal solution for single-phase domestic sockets. Mode 3 means a fixed charger on its own dedicated circuit. Our 3-pin charging guide and portable charger guide cover the safety limits of the cheap option.

Most UK homes are single-phase, and Which? says that caps home charging at 7kW. A three-phase upgrade is priced by your network operator: SP Electricity North West publishes an average of £5,370, and our cost data runs from £1,500 to £5,370. Our 7kW versus 22kW guide explains why most households stay at 7kW.

Tethered or untethered

A tethered charger has a fixed cable. An untethered one has a socket and needs your own lead. The price gap for the same model is £30 to £100, and the untethered price excludes the cable, which is why Type 2 charging cables matter. Our tethered versus untethered guide covers when each is the better choice.

Smart, solar and V2G chargers

Smart chargers. Since 30 June 2022 the Smart Charge Points Regulations have required private chargers sold in Great Britain to be smart. In practice that means a scheduling app, default charging hours outside the weekday peaks (8am to 11am and 4pm to 10pm), a randomised delay of up to 600 seconds that you can cancel, and the ability to keep charging if the connection drops. The rules do not cover Northern Ireland, public chargers or second-hand sales between individuals, so a basic charger now means an old or second-hand one. Our smart charge point regulations guide has the detail.

Solar-diverting chargers. These use a CT clamp (a sensor that reads current) at your meter to steer surplus solar into the car. The myenergi zappi offers Eco, Eco+ (surplus only) and Fast modes. Ohme’s Solar Only starts at 1.44kW of surplus and Solar Boost at 0.72kW topped up from the grid, though Ohme says it needs a charger installed from January 2023 and a working clamp. The Tesla Wall Connector advertises no solar mode. We explain the sensor in our CT clamp and load balancing guide, and charging with solar panels covers the rest.

Bidirectional (V2G) chargers. These can send power from the car back to the home or grid. They are early. Octopus calls its Power Pack the UK’s first V2G offer, and the only combination it lists is a V2G-enabled BYD Dolphin with a V2G-enabled Zaptec Pro. It needs permission to export (a G99 certificate, which can take 10 to 45 working days) and is not described as generally available. The Zaptec Go 2 has V2G-ready hardware that awaits software, the Indra Smart PRO is one-way only, and Hypervolt says it is building V2G technology. Do not pay extra for it today.

Connector types

Home chargers usually have a Type 2 inlet and some have Type 1, according to Zapmap. Hypervolt offers a Type 1 option on its tethered charger, and the Ohme ePod’s socket suits both types. If your car is a Type 1 model, an untethered charger and a Type 1 to Type 2 cable is the simplest route.