BC EV Costs
EV vs gas cost in BC: how much do you really save?
In BC, switching from gas to electric typically saves $2,000–$2,500 a year in fuel alone. The gap is large because BC has cheap hydroelectric power and expensive gasoline. Here's the honest comparison for 2026.
The short answer
- Gas at ~$1.95/L costs about $18.50 per 100 km for a typical car.
- An EV on home off-peak power costs about $2 per 100 km.
- That's roughly $2,400/year saved at 15,000 km — about $12,000 over 5 years.
- Savings shrink if you drive little or rely heavily on public fast charging.
Why the gap is so big in BC specifically
Two things make BC almost the best-case province for EV economics. First, electricity is cheap and mostly hydroelectric — about 13.1¢/kWh in 2026, dropping to ~8¢ overnight on the Time-of-Day plan. Second, gasoline in BC is among the most expensive in Canada. So you're swapping a pricey fuel for a cheap one. The result is a per-kilometre cost difference of nearly 10×.
Cost per 100 km, side by side
| Vehicle | Cost / 100 km | Per year (15,000 km) |
|---|---|---|
| Gas car — 9.5 L/100 km @ $1.95/L | $18.52 | $2,779 |
| EV — 18.3 kWh/100 km, mostly off-peak | $2.05 | $307 |
| You save | $16.47 | ~$2,472 |
Over time that compounds: roughly $2,500 in year one, $7,400 over three years, and $12,400 over five years — and that's just fuel, before any maintenance savings.
How the math works
The comparison is simpler than it looks:
- Gas cost per 100 km = litres per 100 km × price per litre
- EV cost per 100 km = kWh per 100 km × your electricity rate
- Annual saving = (annual km ÷ 100) × (gas cost/100 − EV cost/100)
The two variables that move the result most are your annual distance (more driving = bigger savings) and your charging mix (home off-peak is cheapest; public fast charging narrows the gap). See the full breakdown of EV charging cost in BC for the electricity side.
When the savings are smaller
- Low mileage. If you only drive 6,000 km/year, your fuel savings are proportionally smaller — though still real.
- Mostly public charging. No home charging and heavy DC fast-charger use can push your effective rate to 30¢+/kWh, shrinking the advantage (but rarely erasing it).
- Very efficient gas car. A hybrid sipping 5 L/100 km closes the gap compared with a truck at 12 L/100 km.
What about the upfront price?
EVs can cost more to buy, but the fuel savings chip away at that premium every year — and BC offers purchase incentives and home-charger rebates that reduce the gap further. Whether the total cost of ownership pencils out depends on the specific cars you're comparing and how long you keep them.
Bottom line
For the average BC driver, going electric saves on the order of $2,400 a year in fuel, and more if you drive a lot or charge mostly at home overnight. Plug your own numbers into the free calculator to see your personal savings over one, three, and five years.