Both hybrid and electric vehicle booms are here to stay. Many people are now choosing an EV instead of a regular car. In this sense, several governments around the world continue to encourage the deployment of more charging points, which is why many companies have also created their own charging station app.
Maybe not all EV drivers make long trips aboard their vehicles. But even if they only use it to pick up the kids from school or to commute to and from work, everyone wants to be sure that they have a place to charge their electric car. Since every driver needs to find EV chargers, companies invented charging station apps for them to use.
So, do EV charging apps let me find car charging stations near me?
Every driver wants to be sure to find places to charge his or her car. Whether it’s filling the tank with gas or, in the case of EVs, recharging their batteries, it’s crucial to find the nearest place to do so. A charging station app makes that task much easier.
Finding EV chargers near your location is not always that easy. Guessing where they might be doesn’t always work and ends up being a waste of time and of precious battery life.
In case you forgot to recharge your EV battery overnight and you have to use the car to go to work, your solution may be to find a DC fast charger near your workplace. That way, you can plug the car in during your lunch break, for example.
The best way to find it would be to use an EV charger app. Most of them have a map that displays the nearby stations. Other apps allow you to search by address to find them.
Before choosing one of the electric vehicle charging apps that we will discuss below, remember to check what model of vehicle you have and what type of connector it comes with. That is the best way to pick the charging station closest to your vehicle’s needs.
The top 5 EV charger apps
Let’s review the EV charger finding apps most recommended by users recently.
PlugShare
- Suitable for all operating systems.
- It is free.
- Has a database with more than 140,000 EV charging points in the United States and Canada.
- Can be used to make payments using a charging station.
- Users can leave reviews of charging stations.
EVCS
- It’s a free and user-friendly app.
- It supports all operating systems.
- Features a map and a charging station locator. Users can search by address, zip code or state.
- The map can also be used through the web.
- Allows multiple payment methods and remembers them for next time.
- Notifies users when charging is complete.
- It features a pay-as-you-charge option, but also offers a monthly subscription that, for less than $50 per month, allows recharging as many times as needed.
EVHotels
- This app isn’t available for free. It costs $2.99.
- It’s compatible with all OS.
- In addition to finding EV chargers, it also allows searching for nearby hotels, making it easy to plan a road trip.
EVgo
- EVgo is not a free app but offers three different plans adapted to the needs of each user.
- It allows booking chargers in advance.
- Displays all nearby DC fast chargers throughout the US.
- Available for iOS and Android.
ChargHub
- ChargeHub is a free app for any OS.
- It allows locating charging points from within the mobile app, as well as from the web.
- Users can leave reviews, and see available stations in real-time.
Note: all the prices correspond to the time this note was published.
Now you know the top 5 EV charging stations apps and why they are useful. Try the one you liked the most!
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While there are many other apps on the market, these are the five most widely used by electric vehicle users.
Any of them aims to simplify the finding of charging stations, making users feel more confident to drive their vehicles. Knowing that they will always be able to easily find where to recharge, makes them feel much more secure.
