How Do I Find an Electric Car Charging Station?
You’ve chosen an electric car and you’ve integrated it into your daily life. Mostly, this means charging at home overnight. But on a longer drive, you may need to seek out somewhere to charge as your car uses up its battery power.
The fear of being stranded during a long road trip is known as range anxiety. However, many private and public efforts are underway to add charging stations across the country – and the numbers grow daily. Private companies such as Electrify America, EVgo and ChargePoint continue to expand their charger networks.
According to the U.S. Department of Energy, there are now over 56,000 charging stations with over 160,000 individual charging outlets across the United States – and that is growing every day.
There are many ways to locate EV charging stations near you, whether you’re driving across country or taking a casual Sunday drive. Let’s explore some ways to find an electric car charging station.
Your Car’s Navigation System
Probably the easiest way for you to find a charging station is to use the navigation system built into your electric car. The vast majority of EVs have a live connection that provides real-time information including traffic, road construction, and more. Your car’s navigation system will also let you find the nearest charging station.
Some of the more sophisticated navigation systems will even be able to show you which charging stations are Level 2 (AC) chargers and which ones are Level 3 (DC) fast chargers.
Don’t forget dealerships! If you bought your electric car from a franchised dealership, it likely has equipment that can charge your vehicle as well. You can use your navigation system to locate the closest one to you.
GreenCars Charging Network
The GreenCars Charging network is an index of hundreds of locations and charging stations across the U.S. with no strings attached – just cables.
Show up at any GreenCars Network location, highlighted on our easily accessible map in green and yellow, to get Level 1, 2 or 3 charging. Other nationwide charging stations are also listed and highlighted in grey. We’ve got everything you need to get charged up and on your way!
You can find our Green partners in Alaska, California, Florida, Hawaii, Iowa, Idaho, Montana, New Jersey, Nevada, New York, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Texas, Vermont, Washington and West Virginia, with more coming soon.
PlugShare
PlugShare is a website and app that provides EV charging station information across North America, Asia and Europe. It has information regarding EV charging networks, locations, charging fees, payment methods, real-time information on usage and more. It provides information about all types of charging stations.
What is unique about PlugShare is that it is user-sourced, meaning there is a community of active members who contribute and update the database. In addition to public stations, they also show residential charging stations shared within neighborhoods.
ChargeHub
ChargeHub provides information similar to PlugShare with an app and a community. One unique feature is that it lets you send a message to other users through the app. This allows users to coordinate charging station time – and provides a way to share resources, if needed.
Alternative Fuels Data Center (AFDC)
The Alternative Fuels Data Center (AFDC) is a U.S. Department of Energy database that shows public charging stations nationwide from Level 1 through Level 3. They also provide similar information that lets you filter by charger types, EVSE networks and connectors using zip codes.
