It can. On a tiered electricity plan, your price per kilowatt-hour (kWh) rises in blocks as your monthly usage grows, and an EV adds roughly 300 kWh in a 1,000-mile month. Your home fills the cheap blocks first, so the car’s energy lands almost entirely in the most expensive block — and is often priced above your household’s average rate.
Key Takeaways
- On a tiered plan, the EV’s kWh land in your most expensive block, because the house fills the cheap blocks first.
- Your car’s real price per kWh can sit well above the 18.31-cent national average.
- Scheduling does not fix tiers; only lower totals or a different plan do.
- Session records from the charger tell you exactly how many kWh the car added.
How Tiered Pricing Works
Many US homes pay one flat rate, and others pay by time of day. A tiered plan — also called a block or baseline plan — works differently: the first block of kWh each month is cheap, the next block costs more, and anything above that costs more again. Thresholds and prices are set by your utility and vary widely. The structure below is an illustration only, not a real tariff:
| Block (illustrative) | Monthly usage | Example price |
|---|---|---|
| Block 1 — baseline | First 600 kWh | 15 cents/kWh |
| Block 2 | 601–1,000 kWh | 21 cents/kWh |
| Block 3 | Above 1,000 kWh | 28 cents/kWh |
For comparison, the U.S. Energy Information Administration puts the average US residential price at 18.31 cents/kWh. An average blends millions of bills; on a tiered plan, the kWh you use may never be priced at that blend.
Why the EV Lands in the Top Block
Your fridge, lights and water heater consume steadily from day one, so the cheap allowance is spoken for early in the month. The car’s charging — roughly 300 kWh for 1,000 miles, as the worked examples in How Much Does It Cost to Charge an Electric Car at Home? show — stacks on top.
Run the illustration through: a home using 700 kWh without a car pays for 600 kWh in block 1 and 100 in block 2. Add the car’s 300 kWh and the month reaches 1,000 kWh: the car has effectively bought its energy at the block 2 price of 21 cents — about $63, not the $55 the 18.31-cent average implies. A heavier month crossing into block 3 prices part of the car at 28 cents. The charger is not wasteful; the price is set by where the energy falls in the stack.
How to Tell If Your Plan Is Tiered
- Look for the words. “Tier 1”, “baseline” or “block” on the bill point to tiered pricing; “peak” and “off-peak” point to time-of-use.
- Compare two bills. Divide each bill’s total by its kWh: if your all-in rate climbs in high-usage months, tiers are a likely cause.
- Check the tariff sheet. Your utility’s rate schedule lists the thresholds; a smart meter or utility app usually shows your current block.
What Actually Lowers the Car’s Block Price
Scheduling does not help here. On a time-of-use plan, charging at night moves energy to cheaper hours (see smart charging and time-of-use tariffs). Tiers ignore the clock: only the monthly total matters. What does help:
- Cut total household kWh. Every kWh saved elsewhere frees cheap-block space the car then occupies.
- Ask about an EV or time-of-use plan. Many utilities offer one; the DSIRE database lists programmes by state.
- Waste less energy. ENERGY STAR notes Level 2 charging is on average about 10% more efficient than Level 1, so a proper Level 2 setup trims the kWh the car needs from the wall.
Chargers That Make the kWh Visible
You cannot manage a block you cannot see. The EVDANCE EV-ACT5006T is a 48 A Level 2 wall charger (hard-wired or NEMA 14-50P, NACS, IP65/IP66, ETL/FCC/CE) whose app records session energy, and the portable EV-ACS3210T adjusts from 10 to 32 A in six steps. Neither changes your tariff — but their session records show exactly how many kWh the car added, which is the figure your tier prices.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does charging at night avoid the higher tier?
No. Tiers count the month’s total kWh whenever they were used; night charging only saves on a time-of-use plan, where the price changes by the hour.
Can a plan be both tiered and time-of-use?
Yes — some utilities combine both, with blocks setting the base price and peak hours adjusting it. Check the tariff sheet or ask the utility which structure your account uses.
Will a bigger charger push me into the next tier faster?
No. A bigger charger changes how quickly energy arrives, not the month’s total. The tier depends on total kWh, set by how far you drive.
Related Reading
- How Much Does It Cost to Charge an Electric Car at Home?
- Smart Charging and Time-of-Use Tariffs: How Scheduling Cuts EV Charging Costs
- Do You Need a Smart Meter for an EV Charger?
- Will EV Charging Prices Come Down?
