“Make-ready” is the electrical work that gets power to the spot where a charger will stand: service capacity, panel work, conduit, cabling and mounting bases — everything up to the point where the charger itself is fitted. Quotes split it from the hardware because the two halves behave differently: the charger has a catalogue price, and the make-ready depends on the site.
Key Takeaways
- Make-ready is the work that brings power to the parking space; the charger is only the last item fitted.
- It splits into utility-side and customer-side work, which run on different schedules.
- Installation is a large, site-specific share of project cost — the half of a quote to interrogate hardest.
- Doing make-ready once, with capacity for later phases, avoids paying for the same trench twice.
What Counts as Make-Ready, and What Does Not
| Make-ready work | Charger-side work |
|---|---|
| Confirming the electrical service can carry the new load | The charger unit itself, from a catalogue |
| Panel, switchboard or subpanel work | Mounting the unit on its prepared base or wall |
| Conduit runs, trenching and cabling to each space | Connecting the unit to the prepared supply point |
| Concrete bases, bollards and bay markings | Commissioning, network setup and payment configuration |
| Utility-side upgrades, where the supply itself must grow | Signage and driver-facing finishing |
The split matters when you compare quotes. A low charger price with the site work left vague is not a cheaper project; it is the same project with the variable half unpriced. Our breakdown of what affects EV charger installation cost lists the factors that move this half of the bill.
The Two Sides of the Meter
Make-ready work falls on both sides of the utility meter, and the two sides run on different clocks.
- Utility side: if the incoming supply cannot carry the new load, the utility may need to upgrade its own equipment or service line. The site owner pays or waits according to local rules, but does not control the schedule.
- Customer side: everything from the meter to the parking space belongs to the site owner — the panel work, the runs, the trenches and the bases. This is the part an electrician quotes.
Which side a cost lands on is a local question — one reason two similar sites get very different answers.
Why Make-Ready Drives the Budget and the Schedule
U.S. DOE figures give the shape of it. Public Level 2 charging runs about $3,500 in equipment and $2,500 in installation per connector, while DC fast charging runs about $38,000–$90,000 in equipment and $20,000–$60,000 in installation. These are averages, not a quote for your site, but they show the installation side is a large share of any project. A short run from a panel with spare capacity is a small job; a long trench across a finished car park is not.
That is why experienced installers oversize the buried parts while the ground is open: conduit, trenches and bases are disruptive to redo, while chargers are easy to add or swap later. Doing the make-ready once, with room for more chargers than you are fitting today, keeps a second phase cheap. Our article on why EV charger installation is expensive follows the same logic down to the line items.
Make-Ready at Home Scale
The term belongs to commercial projects, but the idea is already in your garage. A wallbox fitted beside the panel is nearly all charger and no make-ready. A charger at the far end of a detached garage, fed by a new subpanel and a buried run, is mostly make-ready with a charger at the end of it — which is why installers ask about distance and panel space before they quote.
On the charger side of the split, sites pair the prepared spaces with units such as the EV-AC03201T dual-connector AC station, which serves two spaces from one post, or the EV-RHDC30K-L compact DC fast charger for faster turnover. Our commercial charging page sets out the range.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is make-ready covered by incentives?
Sometimes, and the rules differ by programme. Some programmes pay toward site preparation as well as hardware, and some utilities run make-ready programmes of their own. Check current listings in the DSIRE database before assuming either way, and keep make-ready invoiced separately so it can be claimed where eligible.
Can make-ready be done before choosing a charger?
Yes, and it often is. Power capacity, conduit and bases are largely charger-agnostic, so a site can prepare spaces first and select units later. Leave the final connection and commissioning until the charger is known.
Who owns the make-ready on a leased site?
Whoever the lease and the project agreement say — and it is worth settling in writing before work starts, because buried infrastructure stays with the property. Tenants usually fund it to get charging now; landlords sometimes fund it as a lasting improvement.
Related Reading
- What Affects EV Charger Installation Cost? 8 Factors to Check
- Why Is EV Charger Installation So Expensive?
- How to Get an EV Charging Station License: Permits and Approvals
