Is an EV Cheaper Than Gas in California? (2026)
Yes. An EV is roughly 2.4× cheaper per mile than a comparable gas car in California.
Annual fuel cost at 12,000 mi/year
| EV (charging at home) | $1,063 |
| Gas car (28 mpg sedan) | $2,507 |
| EV savings | $1,444/yr |
Over 5 years that's $7,221 in fuel savings — before factoring in oil changes, brake wear, or EV tax credits.
How we calculated this
We use California's average residential electricity rate of 31.0¢/kWh (averaged across major utility EV plans) and the current statewide average gas price of $5.85/gallon from the U.S. Energy Information Administration's PADD data.
The reference EV gets 3.5 mi/kWh — typical for a Tesla Model 3, Hyundai Ioniq 6, or Chevy Equinox EV. The reference gas car gets 28 mpg combined — typical for a Toyota Camry, Honda CR-V, or Ford Escape.
Charging at public DC fast chargers costs 2–4× more than charging at home. If you can't charge at home in California, the math changes — see our home vs public charging guide for the breakdown.
Run the math for your car
Plug in your actual vehicle, electricity rate, and gas price to get a personalized number.
Other states
- EV vs gas in Alaska
- EV vs gas in Alabama
- EV vs gas in Arkansas
- EV vs gas in Arizona
- EV vs gas in Colorado
- EV vs gas in Connecticut
- EV vs gas in District of Columbia
- EV vs gas in Delaware
- EV vs gas in Florida
- EV vs gas in Georgia
- EV vs gas in Hawaii
- EV vs gas in Iowa