Is an electric car actually cheaper? A 5-year cost breakdown

You’re scrolling through a dealer’s site, and the EV is sitting a few thousand euros above the petrol car you’d otherwise pick. The mental math kicks in immediately: will I ever make that back at the pump? Is the EV really cheaper over the years I’d actually own it?

The honest answer depends on a handful of numbers that are different for everyone — the cars you’re choosing between, the kilometres you drive, what you pay for fuel and electricity, and which incentives still apply where you live. Easy to get lost in the variables. Let’s sketch it out, one piece at a time.

The upfront cost isn’t just the sticker price

The most obvious gap is at the dealer. As of early 2026, an average new car in the EU lands somewhere around €32,000, and a comparable EV is usually a few thousand more.

But the price you actually pay can be quite different. Incentives vary wildly by country — France still offers a bonus écologique of several thousand euros for qualifying EVs, Norway leans on generous tax exemptions, and Germany ended its environmental bonus back in late 2023. Some countries also reduce VAT or registration tax. It’s worth a five-minute search for what’s available where you live before you sign anything.

Here’s a simple comparison of the initial purchase. Edit the numbers to match the cars you’re looking at and any incentive you actually qualify for.

Fuel: the biggest long-term difference

This is where most of the savings live. Instead of buying litres of petrol, you’re buying kilowatt-hours of electricity. To compare them, you need four things:

1. How many kilometres you drive per year.
2. The price of petrol per litre where you live.
3. Your petrol car’s efficiency — usually given in litres per 100 km.
4. The price of electricity per kWh from your utility.

The average European driver covers roughly 12,000 km a year. As of April 2026, petrol around the EU averages about €1.70 per litre, with a big regional spread — under €1.50 in parts of Eastern Europe, over €2.00 in the Netherlands. Residential electricity is around €0.25 per kWh on average, again with significant variation between countries.

Let’s see what those numbers translate to in annual fuel costs. Change the prices and efficiency figures to match your local reality.

Maintenance, repairs, and the 5-year picture

Fuel isn’t the only running cost. Maintenance is the other place EVs tend to come out ahead. No oil changes, no spark plugs, no exhaust system, and fewer brake pad replacements thanks to regenerative braking. Industry estimates put EV maintenance roughly 30–40% lower over the life of the vehicle than a petrol equivalent.

Things still break, and out-of-warranty repairs on an EV — especially the battery — can be eye-wateringly expensive when they do. But across a typical five-year window, the routine savings are usually consistent.

Let’s pull it together. Take the initial purchase price, add five years of fuel, and five years of estimated maintenance, and you get a rough total cost of ownership. This number tells a much fuller story than the sticker price on its own.

Looking at the total over a few years tells a different story than the sticker price alone. The higher upfront cost of an EV often gets clawed back through fuel and maintenance — sometimes completely, sometimes not, depending on how much you drive and what your country offers. The break-even point is different for everyone, but once the numbers are laid out in front of you, the decision turns from a gut feeling into something you can actually defend.