Charging For All

Knowledge is (sustainable) power.

We truly believe EVs should be for everyone, so we set out to bust every myth, answer every question, face every fear and celebrate the inevitable, unstoppable rise of EVs.

Did you know?

Swipe to explore Volta’s Charging For All campaign.

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Did you know?

Swipe to explore Volta’s Charging For All campaign.

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How do you charge an EV?

There are three levels of EV charging power: Level 1, Level 2, and Level 3. Level 3 includes DC Fast Charging such as Volta DC Fast and Tesla Supercharging. The higher the level of charging, the faster the charging process, as more power is delivered to the vehicle. Automakers are developing EVs which are expected to accept higher charging power than today’s cars.

Level 3

Best for on-the-go

CHARGING SPEED:

180 to 240 miles

of range per hour

(50-350kW)

Level 2

(7-19kW)

Best for a few hours

CHARGING SPEED:

10-20 miles

of range per hour

Level 1

(1kW)

Best for overnight

CHARGING SPEED:

2 to 5 miles

of range per hour

Keep in Mind

The distance a vehicle can drive after a charging session depends on several factors including:

How much power (“charging speed”) the station can deliver, measured in kilowatts (kW)
How much power the vehicle can accept, measured in kW
The duration of the charging session
How much energy the vehicle’s battery can store, measured in kWh²
The efficiency of the vehicle, measured in miles/kWh

Other factors that can influence a vehicle’s charging capacity and speed are the charge state of the battery, battery temperature, and the condition of the vehicle's battery.

Which plug should I use?

Just like how the plugs of appliances differ depending on the country you're in, EV charging plugs and sockets also vary depending on the vehicle brand, charging level, and country they are manufactured in. Overall, most countries follow the below standards.

DC Fast Level 3

CCS

CHAdeMO

Tesla

Compatible with:

Combined Charging System (CCS)
The “open industry standard”. In North America, all newly manufactured passenger EVs (except Tesla) will use the CCS connector as the accepted standard.

CHAdeMO
The official standard in Japan. CHAdeMO connectors are compatible with EVs manufactured in Asia. As of June 2022, the Mitsubishi Outlander and Nissan Leaf are the only plug-in vehicles equipped with CHAdeMO for sale in North America.

Tesla
A proprietary connector found exclusively in Tesla cars. Historically, only Tesla vehicles could use their DC fast chargers, called Superchargers. Tesla has announced that it will open a portion of its networks to charge non-Tesla EVs. Tesla sells adapters (J1772, CCS, CHAdeMO) that allow Tesla drivers to charge their EVs on non-Tesla stations.

Level 2

SAE J1772

Compatible with:

SAE J1772
Every EV manufacturer in North America (except Tesla) uses the SAE J1772 connector for Level 2 charging. Tesla provides an adapter that allows their cars to use charging stations that have a J1772 connector.

Every EV sold in North America can use any charging station that comes with the standard J1772 connector. DC Fast Charging, however, is vehicle-specific and not available for all plug-in hybrids and some older electric vehicles.

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