Electric car sales are going up, and despite chip shortages that are slowing production and supply, the demand for electric vehicles continues, and 2022 is expected to be a major year for many drivers in the UK to make the switch.
For those who own their own home and have garage or driveway space, then it’s essential to fit a home charger to ensure the quickest and cheapest charging possible, to maximise the low-running-cost benefits of driving an EV.
In our recent guide we explained that the UK grant of £350 off the cost of a home charger will end at the end of March 2022, so if you get yours installed (or booked in) before then, you should still qualify.
With all that said, here’s our top choices of the best home chargers…
Easee One
Our top pick is the Easee One. It was developed in Norway (the leading EV-owning country in Europe), specifically for the UK, and it’s their newest domestic 7kW charger, which was released in September 2021.
It’s built to comply with all UK regulations, and comes with integrated type B RCD protection and open PEN conductor protection. This means no earthing rod is required, which makes it cheaper and quicker to fit.
It’s small and sleek, weighing only 1.5kg (and meaning it’s built using less copper and plastic). It has fully dynamic charging power 1.4–7.4 kW, with 4G internet access and an integrated eSIM with lifetime free subscription, along with Wi-Fi connection capability. Allowing you to fully control it via the Easee app or local Wi-Fi. It also automatically and wirelessly updates with new features, meaning it always stays up to date and at its best.
The charging cable can be permanently locked using the Easee App, allowing users to have both a tethered and untethered unit, which is useful.
Also, most enticingly, this EV charger allows for up to three vehicles to be charged at once, and the way it’s designed means that you don’t need to worry about overloading your system (available power is automatically split between the cars).
This makes it ideal for people with more than one electric vehicle. Or for those who might get a second electric car in the future, so that you don’t have to shell out for another installation. It even means friends or family can charge their cars when they come to visit. Which really sets this charging robot apart. You don’t need to have more than one EV, it’s just a great feature that gives a feeling of future-proofing you home charger.
We like the futuristic yet minimal design, spliced with Scandinavian ingenuity and edge. It looks great and comes in 5 colour choices, so you can suit your style (black, white, blue, red, or our favourite, anthracite grey), and the pricing is exceptionally good for such an intelligent modestly-sized machine.
Wallbox Pulsar Plus
Our next pick is the Wallbox Pulsar Plus. It’s Wallbox’s best-selling charger, and capable of charging an EV at up to 22kW. It’s an incredibly small size (10 cm wide), so it’s very discreet, but allows fast-charging for all EVs, including Teslas (using the Tesla-provided J1772 adapter).
The charger can connect to the myWallbox app through Wi-Fi or Bluetooth, and carry out smart charging functions, such as Eco-Smart, which (if you have them) lets you use the green energy generated from your solar panels to charge your electric vehicle in an efficient and sustainable way.
The myWallbox app is one of the best around. You can set up schedules through the app, monitor the charging as it happens, and even lock the charger when you’re not using it, from anywhere in the world. Another cool feature is that you can connect to the system from your smartphone using Bluetooth if you have poor Wi-Fi reception.
An earth rod also isn’t needed. Just be aware than unlike most chargers, it’s only available as tethered, with a 5m or 7m cable option. But this is perfect if you just want a tethered option, that’s small and smart, tried and tested.
Myenergi Zappi
The Zappi is very popular, and probably the best choice if you have solar panels, or plan to get any anytime soon.
It has three charging modes: Fast, Eco, and Eco+. And if you select Eco+, then instead of sending surplus solar energy back to the National Grid, the charger will automatically redirect it to your electric vehicle.
On Eco mode, the charger will adjust to the energy usage of your home. This means it won’t overload the system, or charge when your tariff would cost you the most.
And if you’re in a rush, and need to charge as fast as possible, then Fast mode is ready to get the job done.
The app is great, easily allowing you to see where the charging-energy is coming from, which is great if you want to be green, and get the best savings. And it doesn’t need an earth rod installed either.
Ohme Home
The Ohme Home can sync up with your electricity tariff, to make sure it uses energy when it’s cheapest. You just let it know how many miles you’d like to charge, and by what time, and it will do the rest.
On its website, Ohme promised that “when used with a dynamic time-of-use tariff, savings of £300 per year are readily achievable.”
Zappi has this ability, but otherwise it’s still rare to find, and very appealing. After all, we want our charging and energy bill to be as cheap as possible.
Another attractive feature is that it can use 3G or 4G instead of Wi-Fi, meaning you won’t have to worry about power cuts or your internet connection dropping off when it comes to charging your car.
It’s also absolutely tiny, with a 213cm² area, which is perfect if you want your charger to be inconspicuous.
EO Mini Pro 2
The EO Mini Pro 2 is also very small, with an area of 219cm². EO says it’s the smallest smart charger in the world, but that appears to have been overtaken by Ohme’s model above.
And like other chargers above, it doesn’t need an earth rod, and can be linked to EO’s app.
The EO Smart Home app allows you to choose when you want your vehicle to charge: a feature which allows you to lock your machine, and it won’t charge at any other time.
If you have solar panels, then you don’t have as many options as with the Zappi, but you can still use the app to make sure you’re using solar energy to charge your car.
EVBox Elvi
The Elvi is simple to use, so if you’re an electric vehicle beginner, and you can afford it, then this may be a good choice.
You can use the EVBox Connect app, or you can simply plug in and your vehicle will automatically start charging.
You can use the app to balance your car’s charging patterns with the rest of your home’s energy usage. And it can also work using 3G, which isn’t super-modern, but does give it a back-up option if your Wi-Fi network goes down.
Its modular design also makes it easy to alter, so it can charge different cars, making it future-proof. And for every charger sold Elvi plants a tree. Which is nice.
Hypervolt
A British-made tethered charger, with the longest guarantee (for a small optional fee) of five years, as well as free lifetime operating system updates and PEN fault detection built in. It only comes with a 5m cable, but longer ones all the way up to 10m are available.
In the rare instance the charger has a fault, it can be rectified remotely in 95% of cases, and you can also integrate the Hypervolt into your smart home Alexa system if you wish to.
It also comes with built-in solar PV integration, and isn’t too expensive for what it offers.
Anderson A2
The Anderson A2 is rather large (1,691cm² area, almost eight times larger than the EO Mini Pro 2), but very stylish. You can choose a stainless-steel finish in eight different colours, or go for one of four eco-friendly wood options.
It also has alluring smart capabilities. Andersen’s Konnect app allows you to create a schedule for your charger, lock it remotely, and analyse your past charging sessions.
It also has 22kW capability built-in, if your home is one of the few in the UK to have three-phase electricity supply. (If you think you do have three-phase supply, then it’s best to ask a professional to confirm it before you choose which charger to get).
The Anderson A2 is British made, offers dynamic load monitoring, and is best for those who want a stylish looking unit.
Rolec WallPod:EV HomeSmart
This home charger is good value for money, with smart capabilities that you won’t find in some more expensive chargers.
By using the highly rated ev.energy app, you can start/stop the charger from anywhere in the world, organise charging schedules, and integrate your charger with your electricity tariff, to make sure it uses your energy when it’s the cheapest time to do so.
Rolec’s machine isn’t particularly aesthetically pleasing, and it’s a relatively chunky machine 756cm², but it’s a solid mid-range product.
Rolec sells directly to electrical wholesalers, which means you can’t buy a home charger directly from them, so you’ll have to ask an approved installer to obtain and fit one (and they apply the EVHS grant, if still available).
Pod Point Solo Smart Charger
Pod Point has been making chargers for more than a decade, which means they were the pioneer in the burgeoning EV industry.
The company is also one of the biggest in the UK, owning over 13% of all public chargepoints.
Its Solo Smart Charger has some good features, like auto-power-balancing, which alters your charging speed to ensure your home isn’t overloaded.
It also receives software updates if you connect it to Wi-Fi, which means it’ll get better and better over time. And if there’s an issue, a support team can fix it remotely. And it also doesn’t need an earth rod, which again reduces the installation price.
The Pod Point Solo Smart Charger pairs with the Pod Point App, but this app isn’t as highly rated as most of the other competitor apps. It allows you to monitor your home charging, but was built with public chargepoints in mind, by the looks of things. So it’s a charger you can trust, but not as good as options above.
Budget option
There’s also Project EV EVA-07S, produced in China, and your cut-price budget option. It certainly does the job, but just the basics: you can use the app to start and stop charging remotely, check how much it has charged, and organise charging schedules to use the cheapest energy. That’s all very good. But it’s also rather large, requires earth rod installation, and isn’t overly capable when it comes to solar panels.
Final thoughts
It’s industry standard to get a three-year warranty for your charger, so make sure that your supplier follows suit.
And remember, getting a home charger could save you thousands of pounds over the lifetime of your electric car, and even more when vehicle-to-grid chargers become widely available, so we suggest fitting one that will serve you well into the future.
Find the right electric car for you
If you’re looking for a new EV, but not sure which one to go for, then we can help. Use our EV finder tool to put in how many miles you drive, the sort of journeys you do, any preferences you have, and you’ll get a bespoke list of electric car options just for you.
You can search and research all makes and models, compare choices, and book a test drive, or get a quote through us.
