Is an EV Worth It for You?
6 questions. Personalized Yes/No with exact numbers. Share your result.
How many miles do you drive per year?
Your savings breakdown
Cumulative savings over 8 years
Net position after deducting the upfront premium.
| Year | Annual Savings | Cumulative | Net Position |
|---|
What actually determines whether an EV is worth it
Miles driven is the single biggest variable
A driver doing 18,000 miles/year saves roughly 50% more on fuel than one doing 12,000 miles/year — and that gap compounds over every year of ownership. At 22,000 miles/year in a state with $4.50 gas and cheap electricity, annual fuel savings alone can hit $2,500+. The EV pays for any reasonable price premium well within 4 years. At 6,000 miles/year, those savings drop to $600–$800 and the math requires a very low price premium to work.
Replacing a truck is a different conversation than replacing a Prius
The worse your current car’s fuel economy, the stronger the EV case. An F-150 driver paying $3,000+/year in fuel and replacing it with a Rivian R1T saves roughly $2,000/year in gas alone — the truck-to-EV switch has the fastest payback math. A Prius driver switching to a Tesla Model 3 saves much less on fuel (both are already efficient), so the financial justification depends more on price premium and driving patterns than fuel savings.
Charging access matters more than people realize — but less than they fear
Home charging at $0.10–$0.16/kWh is where the fuel savings are largest. Public Level 2 at $0.25–$0.35/kWh cuts savings by about 40%. Public DC fast charging at $0.40–$0.50/kWh shrinks savings to near-zero for some drivers. But most EV owners charge at home 85%+ of the time — and workplace charging (often free or subsidized) has expanded significantly. Apartment dwellers without home charging face a real disadvantage that the calculator above accounts for.
The maintenance savings number is real, but front-loaded
The $600/year maintenance savings in this quiz is conservative — real savings average closer to $700–$900 for drivers who owned a truck or performance car previously. Oil changes, transmission service, spark plugs, belts, and exhaust repairs are gone entirely. Brake pad life extends significantly through regenerative braking. The catch: if the EV battery degrades significantly after year 7–8, replacement costs can be significant. Most owners sell before that becomes a factor.