EV charger installation cost in the UK (2026) and the grants available
The headline numbers
| What | Typical UK cost |
|---|---|
| 7kW charge point, supplied and installed | £800, £1,200 |
| Same, with a long cable run (over 10m) | £1,000, £1,500 |
| Consumer unit upgrade if needed | £250, £600 extra |
| Groundworks or trenching | £300, £1,000+ extra |
| Untethered vs tethered unit | Untethered usually £30, £60 more |
Most straightforward installations, a wall next to the consumer unit, off-street parking, modern wiring, land between £800 and £1,000 all in.
What pushes the price up
- Cable run length. The distance from your consumer unit to where the car parks is the biggest single variable.
- Consumer unit age. A board without spare ways or without RCD protection needs upgrading first.
- Earthing arrangement. Some properties need an earth rod or a device that handles the PEN fault requirement.
- Groundworks. Running a cable under a driveway costs real money.
- Three-phase supply. Rare domestically but changes everything if present.
Grants
Grant schemes change frequently. The current landscape covers:
- Flat owners and renters with off-street parking, where the grant covers a share of the installation cost per socket.
- Landlords, with an allocation per property across a portfolio.
- Cross-pavement charging in some local authority areas, for households without a driveway.
Check gov.uk for the current scheme names, amounts and deadlines before you commit, they have been revised repeatedly, and installers must be approved to claim on your behalf.
Certification you must check
EV charge point installation is notifiable work under Part P of the Building Regulations. Your installer must be:
- Registered with a competent-person scheme (NICEIC, NAPIT, ELECSA), and
- Approved under the relevant charge point installer scheme if a grant is involved.
They must notify the DNO (your local network operator) and issue you an electrical installation certificate. No certificate, no valid installation, and it will come up when you sell the house.
Questions to ask before booking
- Is the price fixed, or is it "from"? Ask what would change it.
- What is included: the unit, the cable, the certificate, the DNO notification, making good?
- What length of cable run does the quote assume?
- What happens if my consumer unit needs upgrading, is that quoted or extra?
- What is the warranty on the unit and on the workmanship?
Choosing the unit
- Tethered (cable attached) is more convenient day to day. Untethered is more flexible if you change car.
- 7kW is right for almost every home; 22kW needs three-phase and rarely charges faster on a domestic car.
- Smart features are now mandatory for new domestic units, which means scheduling and off-peak charging are built in. Using an off-peak tariff overnight is where the real running-cost saving is.
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Prices and rules change. If something here is out of date, tell us and we will fix it. How we research and check these guides.