Why Octopus dominates EV charging
Octopus Energy has built the most complete EV ecosystem in the UK. They cover home tariffs, public charging via Electroverse, EV leasing with salary sacrifice, their own branded charger, and even a vehicle-to-grid (V2G) tariff. No other UK energy supplier offers anything close to this range.
The result is that most EV drivers in the UK end up on one of their tariffs. Whether that's the right call depends on your setup, your hardware and how much effort you want to put in. This guide breaks down every Octopus EV product honestly.
Intelligent Octopus Go
This is the flagship. Intelligent Octopus Go offers an off-peak rate of roughly 5.5 to 8p/kWh depending on your region. That rate was cut by around 39% in April 2026, making it one of the cheapest EV tariffs available anywhere in the UK.
The core off-peak window runs from 23:30 to 05:30, giving you six hours of guaranteed cheap electricity. On top of that, the Kraken platform (Octopus's tech backend) schedules additional smart charging slots during the day when grid demand drops. You set a "ready by" time and Kraken handles the rest.
To qualify, you need a smart meter and either a compatible charger or a compatible car. Octopus currently supports over 280 car models. If your car is on the list, you may not need a specific charger at all.
One important detail: your whole house benefits from the off-peak rate during those hours, not just the car charger. So running the dishwasher or washing machine overnight saves money too.
A new 6-hour daily charging cap started rolling out in May 2026. This limits how much of each day can be used for smart-slot charging. For most drivers doing typical daily mileage, this won't matter. But if you regularly drain a large battery from near-empty, it's worth checking whether the cap affects you.
Savings: roughly £500 to £770 per year compared to the standard variable tariff. Charging costs work out at about 1.5 to 2.3p per mile, making an EV on Intelligent Go significantly cheaper to run than any petrol car.
Octopus Go
Octopus Go is the simpler alternative. Instead of smart scheduling, you get a fixed off-peak window from 00:30 to 05:30 (five hours) at a rate of roughly 7 to 9.5p/kWh. No smart charger required. Just set a timer on your car or charger to start at 00:30 and you're done.
This is the best option if your car or charger isn't on the Intelligent Go compatibility list, or if you simply prefer to control the schedule yourself. There's no reliance on Kraken to decide when your car charges.
The savings are nearly as good as Intelligent Go. The annual difference between the two tariffs works out at only about £14 per year for a typical driver. That's not nothing, but it's not a reason to buy a new charger either.
| Feature | Octopus Go | Intelligent Go |
|---|---|---|
| Off-peak window | 00:30 to 05:30 (5 hrs) | 23:30 to 05:30 (6 hrs) + smart slots |
| Off-peak rate | ~7 to 9.5p/kWh | ~5.5 to 8p/kWh |
| Smart charger needed | No | Yes |
| Best for | Simplicity | Maximum savings |
What it actually costs to charge
Here's what you'd pay annually for 10,000 miles in a typical EV averaging around 3.5 miles per kWh, depending on how and where you charge.
| Method | Annual cost (10,000 mi) | Cost per mile |
|---|---|---|
| Intelligent Go | ~£229 | ~2.3p |
| Octopus Go | ~£243 | ~2.4p |
| Standard tariff (~25p/kWh) | ~£746 | ~7.5p |
| Public rapid (~70p/kWh) | ~£1,100+ | ~11p |
| Petrol | ~£1,400 to £1,800 | ~14 to 18p |
The gap is enormous. Switching from the standard tariff to either Octopus Go or Intelligent Go cuts your charging bill by roughly two-thirds. That's the single biggest saving most EV drivers can make.
Electroverse
Electroverse is Octopus's public charging roaming card and app. It gives you access to over 1.2 million charge points across the UK and Europe through a single account, removing the need to juggle multiple network apps and RFID cards.
It's free to sign up and there's no subscription fee. You pay per session at whatever the host network charges, minus any discounts you qualify for.
Those discounts are meaningful if you're already an Octopus customer. Octopus Go customers get 5% off all Electroverse sessions. Intelligent Go customers get 8% off. And Plunge Pricing gives 15 to 45% discounts at selected chargers when renewable generation is high, making midday charging on sunny, windy days significantly cheaper.
Compatible chargers
If you want to use Intelligent Octopus Go, you need either a compatible car or a compatible charger. The following chargers all work with the Intelligent Go smart scheduling:
- Ohme ePod and Home Pro
- Octopus Charge (their own branded charger, £1,029 to £1,129 installed)
- Zappi v2
- Hypervolt Home 3
- Easee One
- Pod Point Solo 3
- Wallbox Pulsar Max
- Andersen A3
If your car is already in the 280+ compatible vehicle list, you may not need a compatible charger at all. The smart scheduling can work directly through the car's API. Check the Octopus website for the latest compatibility list.
For a full breakdown of each charger, see our best home EV chargers guide.
EV leasing and salary sacrifice
Octopus also runs an EV leasing business. Personal lease deals start from around £250 per month. But the real draw is their salary sacrifice scheme, which can save up to 40% compared to buying or leasing privately.
Salary sacrifice works by deducting the lease cost from your gross salary (before tax and National Insurance). Combined with the current 2% benefit-in-kind rate for electric vehicles, this makes it one of the cheapest ways to get into a new EV. The packages are all-inclusive, covering insurance, servicing, tyres and breakdown cover. There's also a £400 annual charging benefit included.
This is worth exploring if your employer offers it. The savings compared to a PCP deal or outright purchase are substantial, particularly for higher-rate taxpayers.
Power Pack (V2G)
Power Pack is the UK's first vehicle-to-grid (V2G) tariff. The concept is straightforward: charge your car cheaply overnight, then export electricity back to the grid during peak hours when prices are highest.
In practice, this can mean effectively free charging. Octopus estimates savings of around £620 per year compared to the standard tariff, because you earn money from the electricity your car exports.
The catch: it's very early stage. Currently it's limited to the BYD Dolphin paired with a Zaptec Pro bidirectional charger. That's a narrow hardware requirement. But V2G is the future of home energy management, and Octopus is one of the first to make it commercially available.
Is it worth switching?
If you charge at home and you're still on a standard variable tariff, switching to any Octopus EV tariff (Go or Intelligent Go) will save you roughly £500 per year. That's the single most impactful change you can make to your EV running costs.
The difference between Go and Intelligent Go is surprisingly small, only about £14 per year for a typical driver. If you already have a compatible setup, Intelligent Go is the obvious choice. But if you'd need to buy a new charger to qualify, the payback period is long.
The real savings come from getting off the standard tariff entirely. Whether you choose Octopus, EDF, E.ON or another supplier matters far less than the simple act of switching to a dedicated EV tariff. See our full EV tariff comparison to see how Octopus stacks up against the competition.