How Much Does It Cost to Install a Tesla Charger at Home?


How Much Does It Cost To Install A Tesla Charger At Home?

If you’re considering purchasing a Tesla, you are probably asking yourself a few important questions about charging your new electric car. In this article, I’ll explain what charger you will need to install in your garage, and how much it will cost. So, how much does it cost to install a Tesla charger at home?

You can use a standard 110volt wall outlet to charge your Tesla, but you will need to purchase a Mobile Connector from Tesla. It is optional to upgrade your wall outlet to 220volt to increase the charging rate, however this requires an electrician and an additional Tesla charger adapter. The optional upgraded 220volt outlet will cost around $400 to have professionally installed.

Charging your Tesla with a standard 110volt outlet and a Mobile Connector charger is the best at-home charging option, and requires no modifications to your existing wall outlets. If you’re interested in learning more, keep reading to discover the charging speeds of each at home option, and see what charging options there are for when you are away from home.

At Home Tesla Charging Options

The major convenience to owning a Tesla is that you wake up every morning with a “full tank” of range. Say goodbye to gas station stops every other week. Depending on how many miles you drive per day, there are 2 options for at home Tesla charging.

Standard 110volt Wall Outlet – The budget friendly charging option is to use the Mobile Connector charger with a pre-existing 110volt wall outlet in your garage. This option requires no modifications or installations, and is the most common at home Tesla charging option.

Upgraded 220volt Wall Outlet – For those who drive more miles per day, you can hire an electrician to add a 220volt wall outlet to your garage. Although this option will charge your Tesla much faster, the installation will cost around $400, and requires a NEMA 14-50 charging adapter (which comes with the Mobile Connector charger for free).

Both of these options are sufficient, but they have very different charging speeds. Let’s have a look at what charging speed you can expect from each option.

110volt Vs. 220volt Tesla Charging Speed

Most Tesla owners find that the standard 110volt wall outlet charges their vehicle enough to make up for their daily commute. However, those with longer daily commutes may need an upgraded 220volt wall outlet to charge more each night.

Standard 110volt Wall Outlet – A 110volt wall outlet will charge a Tesla at 3-5 miles per hour. Assuming 10 hours of charge each night, a 110volt wall outlet will charge a Tesla 30-50 miles per night.

Upgraded 220volt Wall Outlet – A 220volt wall outlet will charge a Tesla at 20-40 miles per hour. Assuming 10 hours of charge each night, a 220volt wall outlet will charge a Tesla 200-400 miles per night.

These numbers are with only 10 hours of charging per night. It’s very likely that you will be able to charge your Tesla for more hours each day, and may even have a complimentary electric vehicle charger at work. If you have a Tesla brand charger at work, you will be able to plug right in with no problems. If you have a general electric vehicle charger designed to charge all electric vehicles, then you will need a $50 Tesla charging adapter (J1772). Most electric vehicle charger you find in the public will charge at a minimum of 15 miles per hour.

Roadside Tesla Charging Options

If you find yourself on a longer than usual commute, or a road trip, and need to charge while away from home, you still have 2 main options.

Superchargers – One of the huge benefits to owning a Tesla is the Supercharger Network. Tesla has installed over 2500 superchargers worldwide (1000+ superchargers in the United States alone). These chargers are 480volt extremely fast charger, and charge a Tesla at roughly 500-1000 miles per hour. A quick 15 minutes charging can fill your range about 80%. These chargers are paid, and will charge the card on your Tesla account automatically, but they still only cost about $10 for a “full tank”.

Public Chargers – There are more and more public charger popping up that offer yet another charging option for your Tesla. Typically these chargers are generic and capable of charging all types of electric vehicles (so you can expect to need the $50 Tesla charging adapter (J1772) mentioned before. Most commonly, you will find these public chargers at parking garages, hotels, businesses, or in cities. Some of them are 100% free to use, while others charge a small fee depending on how long much charge you consume. These chargers typically are 220volt and will charge a Tesla at a minimum of 15 miles per hour.

Don’t worry, you don’t need to memorize where every charger is located so you never get stranded. If you are on the road, simply click the charger icon on your Tesla’s screen and every charger will pop up in real time.

Also, keep in mind every Tesla has a range of several hundred miles so you are not limited to just the amount of miles you can charge each night at home.

Conclusion

As you can see, there are plenty of charging options to keep your full of charge both at home and on the road.

In the worst case scenario, if you ran out of range while away from home, Tesla offers a complimentary roadside assistance service for your first 50,000 miles. Simply use the roadside service button in your Tesla app and a tow truck will be on it’s way to tow you to the nearest charger (all for free).

Hopefully this article has been helpful, and here are some great charging tips to make your Tesla battery last longer.

Tesla Discounts:

Greg

The articles here on ThatTeslaChannel.com are created by Greg, a Tesla vehicle and Tesla solar expert with nearly half a decade of hands-on experience. The information on this site is fact-checked and tested in-person to ensure the best possible level of accuracy.

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