EV charger installation grants rising to £500 in UK from April 2026

The cost of installing an electric car charger is falling in the UK in 2026 for people who can claim government grants. Installation grants are rising from £350 to £500 per charge point for work completed from 1 April 2026, benefiting renters, flat owners, landlords and small businesses.

Reports that more than 500 public chargers are switching operator are not covered by the government statistics and grant documents we reviewed, so we cannot confirm that figure or say which sites are affected. What the official papers do show is where installation grants are moving and where the public network stands.

The change in plain English

The government announced on 25 February 2026 that its chargepoint grants would be extended for a final year, to March 2027, and increased. People in rented accommodation, flat owners, residential landlords, households with on-street parking and businesses can now receive up to £500 per charge point, up from £350. The Department for Transport said the uplift is over 40% and covers almost half the cost of a typical installation.

The government is also cutting the number of EV charge point grant types from 8 to 5. Schools become eligible for up to £2,000 per socket.

Aviation, Maritime and Decarbonisation Minister Keir Mather said:

“Bigger grants mean families, flat owners, renters and small businesses can now install a charger for almost half the usual cost, with home charging costing as little as 2p a mile.”

The 2p figure applies to cheaper domestic electricity rates, according to the government. It is a best case, not a guarantee for every household or tariff.

Who pays less, and what has not changed

The clearest winners are people who can install a charger where they live or work but have been put off by the upfront bill. The Workplace Charging Scheme, which covers businesses, charities, public sector bodies and small accommodation businesses, pays up to 75% of purchase and installation costs including VAT. That is capped at £500 per socket and 40 sockets per applicant. If an installation was completed before 1 April 2026, the cap stays at £350.

The sources do not give per-unit prices for public charging, so we cannot say whether the cost of using a public charger has changed. The official statistics measure how many chargers exist, not what they charge. Zapmap says drivers can pay at over 80,000 chargers across 40 networks through one app.

The public network is still growing, but more slowly than in 2024. Figures for 2023 and 2024 are industry estimates from Zapmap and fall outside official statistics.

The DfT said the first-quarter 2026 increase was similar to the same period in 2025. There were 116,052 public EV chargers on 1 January 2026 and 119,080 on 1 April 2026. Of the April total, 27,372 were rated rapid or above (50kW and over).

A worked example: a small firm and a home driver

Take a small business that installs 10 workplace sockets. If the work was finished before 1 April 2026, the most it could claim under the scheme is 10 times £350, or £3,500. If it is finished on or after that date, the ceiling is 10 times £500, or £5,000. That is up to £1,500 more, a rise of 42.9% per socket, in line with the government’s “over 40%” description.

These are maximums. The grant covers up to 75% of eligible costs under the workplace scheme, so a firm with lower bills would receive less than the cap. The 40-socket limit means the most any one applicant could claim is £20,000 at the new rate, against £14,000 at the old one.

For a household, the saving shows up in running costs. At the government’s best-case 2p per mile, 1,000 miles of home charging would cost £20. The government also says drivers can save up to £1,400 on running costs against a comparable petrol car when using cheaper domestic rates. That figure comes from the government and depends on access to those rates.

What to do now

If you rent or own a flat, start by asking your landlord, because the workplace scheme requires you to own the property or have the landlord’s consent. The National Residential Landlords Association said almost 9 in 10 landlords with a suitable property would install a charge point if a tenant asked. If you live in a home with on-street parking, ask your council about the separate £25 million scheme for cross-pavement channels. It is additional to the £500 grant, according to the government.

If you run a business, check the dates. Installation completed on or after 1 April 2026 qualifies for up to £500 per socket, and the scheme runs until 31 March 2027. You should have your site surveyed by an installer before you apply and must use an authorised installer, or the claim fails. You must also provide a Companies House reference, a VAT number or a business rate bill. The scheme’s guidance gives [email protected] for eligibility questions.

For public charging, compare tariffs in the app of the network you use before you set off. The sources do not list operator prices, so check them yourself.

Your questions answered

Are public charger prices falling?

The sources do not say. The government figures cover installation grants and the number of chargers, not what operators charge per unit of electricity. Check the price shown on the charger or in the operator’s app.

Is my local charger changing operator?

We cannot confirm that. The government statistics are compiled from data supplied by charge point operators and collated by Zapmap, but the releases we reviewed do not list operator changes. The next quarterly statistics are scheduled for August 2026.

Will the £500 grant still be there next year?

The government has described this as a final year of extension. The workplace scheme has been extended until 31 March 2027, so installations need to be planned with that date in mind.