We still haven’t reached a point where you can pull off any street corner and find a charging station like you can a gas station. It’s easy to take for granted how convenient that is, without even a map, knowing you are probably close to a dozen gas stations.
The good news is that electric vehicle charging stations are getting easier to find with apps that filter for charge type, network, charge speed, and more.
More and more charge stations are being added all the time and knowing where one may pop up is a guessing game. Electric vehicles (EVs) are gaining in popularity and so are the number of charging stations.
A lot of charging happens at home of course, but for daily commuters or people planning a trip away, being able to stop and charge up is a necessity. As we know, gas stations are easy to find along most roadways. Charging stations are usually tucked away in the corner of a plaza parking area or even hidden away in parking garages. Finding them isn’t always as easy.
Luckily, there are a variety of apps you can download for your smartphone designed to help EV owners find charging stations no matter where they are. Below is a list of some of the best.
1. PlugShare
PlugShare is one of the leading apps for EV owners. PlugShare provides coverage of most populated areas in North America and Europe. It is constantly improving thanks to a large and active community where users contribute, photos and new locations of charging stations and details of those hard to find stations.
| Coverage: | Over 100,000 charging stations in the USA and Canada, with 100,000 more in other parts of the world |
| Navigation: | Provides turn-by-turn directions to your selected station and includes a built-in trip planner for trip planning. |
| Filtering: | Powerful filters allow you to only see stations that match your EV such as favourite network, and charging station types, Fast, Level 2, etc. |
| Community: | Large community offers reviews, tips, photos, and the PlugScore rating to be sure you’re finding an operating station. |
2. Open Charge Map
Open Charge Map is a nonprofit Supported by a community of businesses and charities, Open Charge Map provides public and free database of charging stations.
The app is designed to work with other charging networks maps and consolidate them for their users.
Open Charge Map is developed and run by volunteers and donors and is open source. The list of stations and locations is increasing daily based on crowd-sourced data and cooperating businesses.
| Coverage: | Midway through 2021 Open Charge Map shows over 104,000 locations and 205,000 charging stations throughout North America and Europe |
| Navigation: | Lets you select nearby locations and provides directions including distance and time to destination. |
| Filtering: | Allows you to browse based on location, charging level, connection types, private or public usage specifications, data provider, network, status, and submission status. |
| Community: | Heavily focused on community and user interaction. |
3. Chargemap
Chargemap started in Europe and has one of the largest listings of charging stations. They are heavily focused on community. As such they have grown outside of Europe and have a decent following in North America as well.
As their user base continues to grow, their station listings around the world increases as well.
| Coverage: | Map displays over 95,000 locations and 240,000 charging stations, mostly in Europe. As users contribute to station listing, newer users add new stations in different parts of the world. |
| Navigation: | Great trip planning including the shortest, most efficient route to the selected charging station. You can also plan a trip by incorporating Chargemap’s route feature with points of interest. |
| Filtering: | Allows users to simplify and narrow down desired locations on the map by using filters for charging speed, connector type and more. |
| Community: | Users are where the station information comes from, which is then verified by Chargemap’s team for accuracy and publication. |
4. ChargeHub
ChargeHub is one the largest in North America and has over 140,000 community members and staff creating the best charging experience from home to public places.
It covers 99% of North America and includes a live-updated map to provide users with information on every charging station in the United States and Canada.
ChargeHub is not limited to just one network and lets the drivers view the live-availability status of thousands of stations. Reducing wait times significantly. App users can also set notifications for when a new station appears based on location, charge type, etc.
| Coverage: | Map includes almost all charging stations in North America. |
| Navigation: | Finds nearest chargers and checks availability |
| Filtering: | Station options can be filtered by car specifications, charge type, network, power, and more. |
| Community: | A large community can add new stations, share private charging stations, post photos and comments and check-ins as well. There is also a chat feature to speak with fellow App users additional questions. |
5. Chargepoint.
One of my favourites, despite the massive loss that sits in my trading account, damn you CHPT, is Chargepoint. One of the largest charging station providers in North America. Their app is simple to use, and with the number of stations they operate, you are never far from one.
| Coverage: | Map includes Chargepoint across North America. Also able to show other network chargers |
| Navigation: | Has a trip planner for finding charge points in addition to directions that can be followed in-app or opened in Google Maps. |
| Filtering: | Shows nearest station, lowest wait times and only stations that work for your car. |
| Community: | Weak on community, but photos of charging spots are often included. |
Integrated and Vehicle Specific Apps
Tesla is the first to come to mind. An App built right into the car that will take you to the nearest supercharger, and plan all your stops along the way.
Others like FordPass as an app or part of your mapping software is also gaining a lot of popularity for Ford specific charging.
It’s also worth noting that many apps allow you to have your own “pass card” billing you for your charging time without having to pull out your credit card.
Summary
There are plenty of apps available to get you from point A to point B with a minimum of fuss. As range anxiety slowly fades from the automotive lexicon, finding a place to top up is ever approaching the old fashioned gas station.
My advice is to start with any vehicle specific app. Its integration makes life simple. Aside from that, keep another app or even two handy on your phone. If you travel often, invariably you will need to find a station outside your norm, An example is choosing the hotel that has the slow charger outside the room vs the hotel that has no chargers at all.
We all know waking up with a full charge is one the great benefits of an EV. So keep a backup or two handy and you will worry less about where you will get your next charge.