Best EV Chargers in 2024
Original Post Date: August 21, 2024
Source: CarTalk
Read the full article here
As electric vehicles become more and more popular, Americans are starting to install them in ever-greater numbers in their homes. Experts on the Car Talk team test and review electric vehicles nearly every week. If we’ve learned one thing from living with EVs, it’s that a home EV charger is essential for a happy electric vehicle ownership experience.
Our list of the Best Chargers For 2024 is still valid. The chargers on that list are all outstanding choices. For this article, we took a slightly different approach for Best Overall EV Chargers. We looked at what chargers and charging companies were creating the biggest buzz in social media clubs and set out to test the popular models ourselves to see if they lived up to their reputations. For 2024, the chargers we offer as best picks are all affordable, easy to install, widely available, and simple to use. We’ve used them ourselves with many different EVs, and they were trouble-free.
Despite high inflation, the cost of home electric vehicle chargers has been dropping over the past year. The entry point for a quality high-power 48/40 amp charger with good features from a reputable company is now around $400. That’s almost 50% less than most of the chargers on our original list from 2023.
Car Talk's Recommended Best EV Chargers
- Best EV Charger: Emporia 48 Amp EV Charger»
- Best EV Charger: Lectron V-Box EV Charger»
- Best EV Charger: EVIQO Level 2 Home Charger»
- Best EV Charger: ShockFlo S1 48 Amp Level 2 EV Charger»
- Best EV Charger: Enphase IQ50 40-Amp EV Charger»
- Best EV Charger: Lectron Portable 40 Amp EV Charger»
Overview of EV Chargers
Home EV chargers are referred to as Level 2 chargers. They operate on 240 volts, not the 120 your typical household plugs use. When installed properly, they have a dedicated 50 or 60-amp circuit and breaker. We suggest always asking your electrician to hard-wire your wall-mounted home charger. It’s safer, you can operate it at a slightly higher power level, and you are less likely to have any false ground-fault breaker resets to deal with.
The first step in setting up your home EV charger is to contact a licensed electrician. Pick one with good reviews and a lot of experience installing EV chargers. Your electrician can visit and evaluate whether your home electric service panel can accommodate a new circuit. If so, you move on to pulling a permit from your local municipality, and the electrician will add the new circuit and then set up and install the charger you choose.
Some older homes require some service upgrades before you can install your charger. Don't be surprised if this is the case. Your author has upgraded the panels in three homes to accommodate new circuits. Speak to your electrician about the details.
What to Consider About Home EV Chargers
Home chargers that mount on the wall of your garage or outside your home on a post or a wall come in two basic varieties. Those that you simply plug into the car, and those that offer an app with features such as a timer so you can charge at night to perhaps enjoy a discounted electricity cost. There is very little difference in price between these two options.
The standard in the industry has become a 48/40 amp charger served by a 50 or 60-amp circuit. This setup will add roughly 20 to 35 miles of range to your vehicle per hour it is plugged in. Temperature, state of charge, your vehicle’s efficiency, and your particular vehicle’s onboard charger capacity determine the exact rate at which charge is input. I write “48/40 amp” because chargers are rated a bit higher if you hard-wire them versus using a plug-and-socket arrangement.
Cord length is a feature to look for. We suggest 20 feet or more. This is common. Less than 20 feet makes it tricky to charge if the vehicle’s charge port is in the farthest position from the charger.
One thing to be aware of is that pricey charger brands don't charge “faster” than other brands. Chargers with the same specs will charge the same whether you pay $400 or $750. Think of chargers as fancy extension cords.
How We Score EV Chargers
Home EV chargers operated in a garage or outside in temperate climates all perform very similarly. The quality, safety, ease of use, and features are what set them apart from one another. We take all of these into account, plus two other metrics. We consider Amazon scores from owners and the score earned in testing by one of our colleagues, Tom Moloughney, on his review page, State of Charge, if the charger has been tested. Tom goes deep on all aspects of ownership, including drop-testing and extreme cold weather testing.
List of Best EV Chargers for 2024
#1. Emporia 48 Amp EV Charger
About Emporia 48 Amp EV Charger
Emporia has been our top pick since this story was first published, and our testing of additional chargers hasn't changed our opinion. Emporia’s unit remains very competitive and has recently been introduced with an NACS charging handle. As our readers may know, the industry is moving away from the J-Plug that most non-Tesla EVs have been using to the Tesla standard. We tested the new NACS version of the Emporia charger on a borrowed Tesla Model 3, and it performed very well. It can even automatically open the Tesla charge door bay, just like Tesla-branded chargers can.
Emporia is a company that specializes in home energy management solutions. The company offers circuit energy monitoring, solar and storage products, and a novel way to avoid having to upgrade your panel (in some homes).
We found the Emporia 48 amp EV charger to offer a lot of features, UL listing, plus an app at a very attractive price point. We also like how this company seems laser-focused on home energy management. With its Load Manager system, owners who have a maxed-out panel may find that they can avoid costly upgrades.
The Emporia charger comes with a handle hook and cable hook built into the front of the unit. This will work best inside since the hook leaves the handle’s opening pointing upwards. The unit also has an easy-to-view LED status light bar. The app that comes with the Emporia unit loaded easily, was easy to set up, and is easy to understand. We opted for white, and the Emporia unit looks modern and neat in our garage. It is also available in black.
The Emporia’s price of $399 is one of the best deals in EV chargers today.
- UL Listed - Yes
- Cord Length = 24 feet
- App - Yes
- Amazon Review Score - 4.7 (1300 reviews) out of 5
- State Of Charge Review Score 4.6 stars out of 5
- Warranty Period = 3 Years
- Price range: $399
#2. Lectron V-Box EV Charger
About Lectron V-Box EV Charger
The Lectron V-Box series of chargers is our second choice. If you want something simple, the Lectron V-Box EV Charger is the way to go. There is no app. The operation is basically plug in and charge. Mounting is simple, and the charger just works right out of the box. You don’t have to do any app setup because there is no app. New for 2024 is a wifi-enabled version of this charger called the V-Box Pro that does have an app. Lectron has also added an NACS-compatible V-Box Pro to its portfolio.
We have tested and owned multiple chargers from Lectron over the past five years. They offer simplicity, reliability, and the J-hook and handle retainer accessories are so good we use them when we test other chargers! Of all the chargers we have tested, the V-Box’s large, lit, and clear front display makes the most sense to us. It tells you how much charge is going in and how much you have input during your charging period. What else do you really need to know? Well, temperature is handy, and the V-Box displays that as well.
The cable is 20 feet long. There is a dip-switch setting on the unit that allows you to de-power it if your home circuit is less than 50 amps. Overall, the V-Box gives you everything you want in a simple plug-and-play charger and nothing you don't want to bother with.
- Cord Length - 20 feet
- App - Available with or without an app
- Amazon Review Score = 4.3 (113 reviews) out of 5
- State Of Charge Review Score 4.2 out of 5 stars
- Warranty Period = 1 Year
- Price range: $415-$472
#3. EVIQO Level 2 Home Charger
About EVIQO Level 2 EV Charger
The EVIQO Level 2 home wall mount charger is an interesting unit for several reasons. First, it is the smallest charger of its type we’ve seen. Second, it uses some novel anti-theft hardware to ensure that it is not removed from your exterior wall. Third, its 25-foot charging cord was among the longest we’ve tested, reaching end to end in our garage.
This Level 2 charger has an easy-to-download and easy-to-use app. Its price is also very competitive, tied with the lowest-cost chargers we’ve tested of this style. Finally, this charger was selected as State of Charge’s top pick for 2024.
- Cord Length - 25 feet
- App - Yes
- Amazon Review Score = 4.9 (391 reviews) out of 5
- State Of Charge Review Score 98/100
- Warranty Period = 3 Years
- Price range: $450-$479
#4. ShockFlo S1 48 Amp Level 2 EV Charger
About ShockFlo S1 48 Amp Level 2 EV Charger
The ShockFlo S1 48 Amp Level 2 EV Charger is a smart charger with an app and many features we liked. One that sets it apart from many other chargers is a big red emergency stop button on the side. This just seems like a smart idea to us.
The app is very good, and it loaded on our phone in minutes. You can do your scheduling and also set your electricity cost per kWh to see what your charges are costing you.
The wall-board anchors were a little complicated, so we used our own plywood backing and simply screwed it to the backboard. The 17-foot cord length is a bit short for our tastes. When we charged a full-size Mercedes SUV, we needed to orient the vehicle in one specific way to allow for the cord to reach.
The S1 is higher in price than some of its peers. Its cord length and price are why it is lower on our list of the best wall-mount chargers of 2024.
- Cord Length = 17 feet
- App - Yes
- Amazon Review Score - 4.5 (67 reviews) out of 5
- State Of Charge Review Score - Not yet tested.
- Warranty Period = 3 Years
- Price range:$599
#5. Enphase IQ50 40-Amp EV Charger
About Enphase IQ50 40 Amp EV Charger
Enphase purchased ClipperCreek, and its line of chargers are now branded as Enphase IQ-series products. We tested the Enphase IQ50 40 Amp EV wall-mounted charger with a J-plug handle rated at 40 amps of current delivery.
We liked the charger’s flexible and lightweight power cord most. Its holster for the J-plug charging handle is also quite good. The app was easy to load and use. This charger is priced higher than many of its peers.
- Cord Length = 25 feet
- App - Yes
- Amazon Review Score - 4.5 (2 reviews) out of 5
- State Of Charge Review Score - 90/100
- Warranty Period = 5 Years
- Price range: $688
#6. Lectron Portable 40 Amp EV Charger
About Lectron Portable 40 Amp EV Charger
Although wall-mounted chargers are generally the most powerful, Lectron makes a Portable 40 Amp EV Charger you can coil up and take with you. If you have an EV as a second car and a vacation home, this is one way to power your vehicle anyplace you have a NEMA 14-50 outlet.The price point is also very attractive. It’s half the cost of most 40 amp chargers that are wall-mounted.
Now, although we call this a portable charger, you can certainly hang it on the wall of your garage or cabin and leave it there. We used a portable charger this way for years when we first started to test EVs.
If you're looking for utter simplicity, portability, and a very low cost, the Lectron 40 amp portable EV charger is hard to top.
- Cord Length = 16 feet
- App - No
- Amazon Review Score 4.3 (16 reviews) out of 5 stars
- State Of Charge Review Score - Not yet tested
- Warranty = 1 Year
- Pricr range: $260-$290
Home EV Charger Cost Chart
How to Decide on the Best EV Charger for You
There are a few main factors to consider when shopping for a home EV charger:
Factor 1: Are you going to use your phone to turn on and off your charger, set up a charging schedule, or keep track of your energy inputs? If so, buy a charger with a phone app. There is really no downside to opting for a charger that offers this feature. They don’t cost meaningfully more, and all the ones on our list work just fine if you totally ignore the app after the initial setup.
Factor 2: Do you want the charger to stay on your wall, or do you want a home charger that is portable? Mobile chargers are available that offer a high rate of charge but that can be plugged in and taken with you where you go. We used a charger of this type for many years, and they work just fine as home chargers as long as you want simple plug-and-play operation. If you are a heavy user, this is not the right choice. Go for a fixed unit instead.
Factor 3: Features, appearance, and style are all variables you can choose. This device may be in your home for a decade or more. Do you like black, white, or silver? Is an LED display on the front important to you? The look of a charger may not seem important, but you do have choices.
Factor 4: Accessories can make your life easier. Some chargers allow the handle to be plugged into the main body when not in use. Others have a hook or a small cap you screw into the wall close by. If you are thinking about an outside installation, we’d favor one in which the handle is protected. The ShockFlo S1 has that type of design. The cord is a bit of a chore to put away. Think ahead to how you will coil it up when it is not in use. Some chargers are designed so the cord wraps around the body. Others have a hook that you use to coil them over.
Factor 5: We left the “amps, watts, volts” for last. Nearly all home chargers are connected to a 50-amp circuit. Don't go crazy trying to do upside-down algebra to figure out any of these ratings. You need a charger that can deliver either 48 or 40 amps that works on a 240-volt circuit with a 50-amp capacity. Done.
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