When you’re looking to get a new car, it’s worth considering the real-world cost of owning your new choice of wheels. If you’re comparing EVs with petrol, diesel, hybrid, or other models, it’s easy to get caught up in upfront prices and fuel economy. It’s no secret that EVs are expensive to buy in the first place.
However, if you look at the cost of owning the car after you’ve purchased it, things seem to get a bit more interesting. New data from The Car Expert shows that electric vehicles are almost 30% cheaper to service over the first five years of ownership.
EVs vs. Petrol
Despite rising servicing prices across the board, EVs remain about 29% cheaper to maintain over the first five years compared to petrol models. That result is based on data from more than 600 new and nearly-new cars in the UK market.
The lower servicing cost of EVs is largely down to the difference in complexity. In very simple terms, EVs have fewer moving parts. They don’t need oil changes, spark plugs, or traditional gearboxes. Fewer parts mean fewer things to go wrong, which means fewer visits to the garage and less money being spent.
| Average Servicing Costs | Petrol / Diesel / Hybrid Cars | Electric Cars | EV Saving |
| Year 1 | £308 (+4 per cent)* | £256 (+10 per cent) | 17 per cent |
| Year 2 | £753 (+3 per cent) | £540 (+6 per cent) | 28 per cent |
| Year 3 | £1,209 (+3 per cent) | £839 (+3 per cent) | 31 per cent |
| Year 4 | £1,477 (+26 per cent) | £1,029 (+5 per cent) | 30 per cent |
| Year 5 | £1,962 (+3 per cent) | £1,318 (+3 per cent) | 33 per cent |
| Total after 5 years | £5,709 (+4 per cent) | £4,022 (+4 per cent) | 29 per cent |
* Percentages increase compared to 2024 prices
Specific Models Comparison
BMW 5 Series vs. the electric BMW i5 – the i5 is 18% cheaper to service in the first three years and 23% cheaper from year three to five.
Volvo XC40 vs the electric EX40 – the EX40 shows a 21% saving on servicing in the first three years, increasing to 30% from year three to five.
There are some models where these figures are reversed, though. For example, the Kia Niro EV vs. its hybrid counterparts. The data for this shows that the plug-in hybrid versions are 2% cheaper than the full electric in the early years, and 1% after that. While this is obviously a small difference, it does show that EVs aren’t the cheapest across the board.
Other Considerations
It’s worth keeping in mind that servicing is only one piece of the car-cost puzzle. Insurance, battery replacement, and public charging access all matter. But when you’re looking at the day-to-day, real-world cost of keeping a car running, EVs are proving to be an increasingly sensible choice.
I think that this shows the economics of electric cars are maturing fairly quickly now. We’ve left the early adopter stage and are looking at long-term value and smart ownership. If we are ever going to achieve a sustainable automotive industry, this can only be a good thing!
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