Tesla is officially raising the prices for owners to use its Superchargers in California. The change happened on Wednesday, September 28 and saw the all-electric brand raise charging rates and change its schedule for off-peak hours.
Electrek found an email that Tesla sent to customers on Reddit, which reads: “Starting Wednesday, September 28, charging rates and off-peak hours will change at select Superchargers. Avoid the rush and save on charging costs when you begin your charging session during off-peak hours. Tap the Supercharger map pins on your in-vehicle touch screen to view rates.”
The automaker didn’t provide official figures for how high prices would be after the increase, but the outlet claims that Tesla owners can expect to spend around $0.50 per kWh to charge their electric vehicle. That means charging up to 60 kWh would result in a bill of $30, while charging a 100-kWh pack would cost $50. Consumers can expect to get between 250 to 300 miles when spending between $30 to $50.
While Electrek claims that charging a Tesla at $0.50 per kWh is still cheaper than driving a gas-powered car around, that’s not necessarily true. It really depends on what kind of car you’re driving.
Using the EPA's annual fuel calculator with a $0.50 per kWh price and the national average of $3.78 for a gallon of regular gasoline, the Hyundai Ioniq Blue is actually more affordable to drive. The website claims that the Ioniq Blue costs $1.60 to drive 25 miles. A Tesla Model S with 405 miles of range costs $3.52 to drive 25 miles, while a Model 3 Long Range with 358 miles of range costs $3.23 to drive 25 miles.
Of course, you can always charge at off-peak hours to save money, but off-peak hours vary depending on charging stations. Still, its worth knowing when your local Supercharger has off-peak hours, because the outlet claims that prices can be between 30% to 40% cheaper than they are during peak hours. Clearly, Tesla wants consumers to charge during off-peak hours.
The price of electricity across the country and globally has skyrocketed over the past few months. According to Bloomberg, the price of electricity for U.S. consumers jumped 15.8% in August compared to the same period last year. The outlet cites the high prices of natural gas and coal as the main reason for the increased cost of electricity. Its not just the U.S., as Europe is currently in the middle of an energy crisis because of the war in Ukraine.
This isn’t the first time Tesla has raised its prices to use its Superchargers and we don’t think it will be its last. As Electrek points out, there used to be a time when Tesla owners would be able to get a full charge at a Supercharger for $5 to $10. Those days are long gone and with the current situation in Europe, they might not return for a few years.