Analysis: driving an EV in the UK is now nine times cheaper than petrol or diesel

The latest jump in fossil-fuel prices has made electric cars up to nine times cheaper to drive than petrol or diesel vehicles in the UK, according to an analysis by Carbon Brief.

Diesel heads past a record £2 a litre

Since February, when the US first attacked Iran, the average price of diesel in the UK has risen 38% to £1.96 a litre, Carbon Brief's analysis of government figures shows. Petrol has climbed 31% over the same period to £1.72, with some locations close to £2 a litre.

After the 20 September attack on Russia's Kapotnya oil refinery and amid growing Middle East tensions, diesel is expected to pass a record £2 a litre. Russia was the world's second-largest diesel exporter, yet its refineries were struck on average once every three days in the first half of 2026.

2.3p a mile on off-peak power, 21p on diesel

Carbon Brief estimates that a diesel car now costs about 21p per mile to run and a petrol car 20.1p. An electric vehicle charged on an off-peak tariff costs 2.3p per mile.

Even charging at the domestic price cap costs about 7p per mile, three times cheaper than petrol or diesel.

Household savings, and a fleet still led by petrol

Charging at home saves a driver about £80 compared with filling a petrol car at the pump.

A separate Carbon Brief analysis in June put the annual fuel saving for UK EV drivers at £1,100. After the latest price rises, the figure is closer to £1,200.

Against petrol at £1.72 and diesel at £1.96 a litre, an equivalent amount of off-peak electricity costs as little as 20p, around nine times less. Even at the household price cap the equivalent comes to about 60p a litre.

Public charging and the 2028 per-mile tax

Public charging points remain considerably more expensive than domestic rates, though the government estimates that about 90% of charging happens at home. From April 2028 the government plans a pay-per-mile tax on EVs, adding 3p per mile. Fuel costs are low enough that electric cars would still be far cheaper to run.

Petrol still dominates UK roads. Of roughly 35m cars, 55% run on petrol, only 6% are battery EVs and 3% are plug-in hybrids. Sales are shifting: about 30% of new cars sold in August were battery electric, up from 26.5% in August 2025, according to the Society of Motor Manufacturers & Traders.