How and where to charge your electric car for free

According to data from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) there are over 1.55 million electric cars on British roads as of June 2025 – with over 191,000 EVs added in the first half of this year alone.

While the volume of EVs hitting the roads continues to grow, the number of public EV chargers is shooting up at an even faster rate. Data from leading charging app Zap-Map reveals there are over 82,000 devices available to electric car drivers as of June 2025– a 30% increase on the same period last year.

All that is good news for local air quality and the UK’s CO2 emissions, but it might not be so great for motorists’ wallets. Using public charging networks is more expensive than ever, with the average cost per unit of electricity (kWh) at nearly three times the average cost of a standard home energy tariff (sources: RAC Charge Watch, OFGEM).

However, there are still ways to charge your electric car for free. In this guide we’ll run through how many free EV chargers there are, where most of these are located and how you can get access to them.

The latest figures from Zap-Map reveal that, of the over 82,000 public charge points in the UK, only 1,837 were marked as free to use. That’s around 2% of the available EV charging points.

You’ll need to be shrewd to track one down, then. But where do you stand the best chance of finding them?

Well, you’ll be most likely to find a free electric vehicle charger if you’re located in the South East of England, with Zap-Map listing nearly 250 free-to-use devices in the region.

But there’s a healthy spread of free-to-use charge points across the UK. We’ve broken them down into regions in the table below:

(Source: Zap-Map database, as of May 2025)

‘Slow’

Zap-Map categorises the majority of free electric vehicle charge points (around 64%) as ‘slow’. This means that their output is under 8kW – producing about the same power as the average single-phase home wall box.

1,180 of the available free EV charge points output less than 8kW via AC charging. That means waiting around for a bit to get a meaningful charge – you’ll need anything between 6-12 hours to fully charge a typical electric car, depending on the size of the battery.

‘Fast’

597 – or 32.5% - of the available free EV chargers are classified as ‘fast’ by Zap-Map. That doesn’t mean you’ll be back on the road in a few minutes – instead it means the charger can output between 8-22kW of power.

With almost all of those outputting AC power, you could fully charge a typical EV in 2-3 hours – but only if your electric car can accept 22kW AC charging. If not, it might not be much quicker than a slow charger.

Rapid

A small amount of free electric car chargers (60 to be exact) are classed as ‘Rapid’ chargers. That means much quicker DC charging, with an output of between 50-90kW.

If your electric car accepts that maximum output, you could add 80% charge in as little as 30 minutes. But free rapid chargers are few and far between and usually feature restricted access.

• Electric car charging speeds and types explained

Zap-Map makes it very easy to filter your search to free-to-use chargers in a specified area. But you’ll find that most of these come with strings attached.

For example, Zap-Map reckons most free EV chargers are located within car dealer forecourts. These will only be accessible during business hours, and while some dealers may be keen to welcome potential customers to charge and browse their stock of cars, others may insist the chargers are only for existing customers.

Other locations for free EV charging include:

• Tourist attractions: theme parks, museums, zoos or country estates can offer free electric vehicle charging in their car parks to visitors. An example is Waddesdon Manor, a National Trust house and gardens in Buckinghamshire with four EV chargers.
• Leisure centres, schools or universities: Some institutions offer free EV charging to customers, staff or students – and sometimes visitors.
• Hotels and B&Bs: many accommodation options offer free electric car charging for guests staying overnight. Advance booking may be required, however.

To access these free EV charging options you’ll often need to speak to those in charge of the site. They’ll provide you with instructions on how to connect and initiate a charge, with an RFID card often given out to activate the charger.

Most free electric vehicle charging points will be untethered, meaning they do not come with a cable to connect to your car. You’ll need to bring your own Type 2 cable to connect your car to the device.

ChargePlace Scotland has a network of around 2,600 charge points across the country. These are operated by a company called SWARCO on behalf of the Scottish government.

ChargePlace’s website states that you can “charge your EV for free at 90% of the charge points on our network”. You will need to make a one-off purchase of an RFID card to activate it, however.

Unfortunately, the networks live map reveals that the vast majority of these formerly free EV chargers are now pay-per-use. You’ll need to check this before travelling to find any that are still free.

There aren’t many free electric car chargers left in London, but some smaller-scale companies do offer limited free EV charging.

An example is Australian EV charging network JOLT. Operating a small network of around 40 chargers in London, the company offers 7kWh of daily free charging to EV drivers.

Once that 7kWh charge – around 20-30 miles of charge depending on your EV – is complete, any additional charge will be subject to per-kWh fees.

Yes, you may be able to find some free electric car chargers at supermarkets, but very few remain.

Big supermarket chains such as Sainsbury’s, Tesco, Aldi and Asda were at the forefront of offering free charging for customers during the early stages of the EV revolution.

Those chargers tended to be slow (7kW or less) units, designed to give you a small top up while you shop. Now, though, most of these units have been replaced by pay-per-use chargers, including rapids.

This table outlines the supermarkets still offering free EV charging at selected sites (as of July 2025). Bear in mind that most have parking time restrictions.

Most people will have to pay to install an electric vehicle charger at their home. Some carmakers offer a free EV charger and installation as an offer with the purchase or lease of new cars, but this is becoming increasingly rare.

The Motability Scheme will install a 7kW home chargepoint and standard installation at no extra cost as part of your lease package if you are leasing your first electric car through the scheme. To be eligible for Motability you’ll need to receive a mobility allowance benefit, such as the Higher Rate Mobility Component of the Disability Living Allowance.

Outside of that, the UK Government offers the Electric Vehicle Chargepoint Grant. This provides a grant of up to £350 (or 75% of the cost) towards the cost of installing a home chargepoint.

The Electric Vehicle Chargepoint Grant is available for flat owners or renters, or households with on-street parking.

There are further grants for landlords or housing providers to fun installations in residential car parks, and the Workplace Charging Scheme supporting businesses to install charge points for staff.