Greener Living

Everything You Need to Know About Charging an Electric Car

The most common EV-charging questions answered, from where to charge to how much it costs and how long it takes to top up.

A curbside PlugNYC electric vehicle (EV) charger near West 84th Street in New York.

Photographer: Jeenah Moon/Bloomberg
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Most EV owners talk about a moment of zen — a point, typically a few weeks after buying their car, at which all the anxiety about charging and range just disappears. They’ve figured out the new technology and realized it wasn’t so hard after all.

But for new owners, or the EV-curious, charging can be intimidating. How does it work? How long does it take? What is a kilowatt-hour, anyway?