EV charger installations
We strive for simplicity, innovation, and expertise. Through customer feedback, speaking to electricians, and knowing the market, we have tried to summarize EV charger installations.
What is covered in an EV charger installation
An electrician will typically cover the following work when installing your EV charger.
- Required upgrades to the panel or circuits
- Installation of a plug or hardwiring of the charger into the electrical panel
- Mounting hardware and EV charger at the desired charging location
Some electricians will also connect the charger to WIFI/Bluetooth if available
Standard Installation v Non-Standard Installation
The below covers 90%+ of EV charging installations. An “installation” means that a new 240 V plug is needed, and a circuit needs to be installed and connected to the electrical panel. A breaker must be fitted to the panel (assuming there is an empty slot on the electrical panel).
| Features of standard installation | Features of non-standard installation |
| Location: Garage (interior or exterior) | Location: Away from the garage – this means there is a longer cable run from the electrical panel to where your car is parked |
| Location: Charger is the same side of the garage as your electrical panel | Location: Your panel is in an unusual location such as the back of the house but the car at the front |
| Position: The wall station will be located at eye or waste level. Clipped to the wall | Position: Unusual positions or angles that make hanging the wall station challenging |
| Walls: Routing of cables through one internal and one external wall | Walls: Cables routed through the interior of walls. Means extensive dry wall patching |
| Panel age: Not more than 20-30s old | Panel age: 30+ years old. Very old panels or those with no space may require a sub-panel |
| Panel space: Available blank slots on panel | Panel space: No open slots or ability to re-arrange breakers or new breakers needed |
| Electrical panel upgrade not required | Electrical panel upgrade need to accommodate ev outlet interfaces |
The typical costs for a standard installation are around $400-$600 depending on the state and distance of the EV plug from the electrical panel
What is included – Standard EV charger Installations
Generally installation includes
- Homes built after 1990 with a panel in the garage and up to 5 feet of conduit
- Electrical panel is interior or exterior to the garage
- Electrical load assessment by a licensed electrician
- Running up to 20 feet of provider-supplied surface mounted (outside of drywall) conduit and wiring from the service panel to charger/240v NEMA outlet. (NEMA 14-50, NEMA 14-30, NEMA 6-50 etc level 2 EV charger)
- Includes installation of junction box if required by local code.
- Installation of provider-supplied 2-pole 50-ampere circuit breaker
- Max 10 feet distance of plug/charger location from the electrical panel on the same side of the garage as the electrical panel
- Existing space on the electrical panel for the double pole circuit breaker
- RCBO Type A protection device in the existing utility panel box
- Wallbox installation to wall
- Electrician will confirm power supply, and EV charger is operational
Not included –
- Level 2 EV charger
- Any required local permitting. Please check with your local city
- Larger more complex projects resulting in trenching, drywall work/repair, or whole house re-wiring. This will result in additional fees and will be calculated on site with the electrician
- Higher circuit breaker above 50 ampere for EVs larger batteries
- Moving large objects or fixed structures out of the installation area
- Installations more than 10 feet from the panel box
- Any required upgrades to the service panel
- Any additional upgrades or sub panels required to power the charger
- Excludes WIFI, Bluetooth and other smart device set-up and connection
- Custom Work: Work outside of the scope of the standard installation described above will be at extra cost and sold by electrician directly to the consumer.
Is permitting required?
In most cases, you will need to get an electrical permit in order to install a new EV charger and charging circuit. We find rules differ from one city to another but there are nearly always requirements related to pulling a permit and adding wire to the home or upgrading existing electrical panels.
