Efficiency Analyzed: 7 Electric Cars That Will Save You The Most Money

Regardless of what you might pay for a new EV, let's look at savings on "fueling up."

By: Steven Loveday

Oct 29, 2019 at 8:17am ET

Comment

While electric vehicles haven't yet reached price parity with their gas-powered cousins, they are typically less expensive to "fuel" and maintain. However, some EVs are much more energy-efficient than others. For example, the Audi e-tron uses nearly twice as much energy as vehicles like the Tesla Model 3 and Hyundai Kona Electric. According to the EPA, even compared to a much larger vehicle like the Tesla Model X, the e-tron will cost you about $200 more per year to "fuel."

Diving into the math is not as simple as some may think. Electricity rates vary widely by area, many cars sell for less than MSRP, and some people can take advantage of federal, state, and local EV tax credits on some vehicles. Even when factoring in cheap electricity, deep discounts, and the tax credit, some people still argue that you can't prove with 100-percent certainty that buying an EV can / will save you money over a gas car. Nonetheless, if you know which EVs provide the best efficiency, you can rest assured that you're saving the most money possible.

The EPA provides this data in kWh/100 miles. This is an indication of how much energy the battery will use to travel 100 miles.

Click through the following slides to learn more about today's most energy-efficient EVs.