The fastest charging electric cars in the UK

Charging times – alongside range anxiety perhaps – has long been a concern for drivers thinking of going electric. But the good news is that as new and improved electric cars are capable of charging at ever-faster speeds.

Yes, the holy grail of a five-minute charge are still some way off, but there are a raft of future battery technologies in development that will help close the gap. 

What’s more, the UK is rapidly improving its charging station infrastructure; growing by an estimated 14,000 new stalls each year, with many of those being fast and ultra-rapid chargers. Combined with the general advancements manufacturers are making with their batteries, the average 10-80% charging time for an EV at a public charger is currently hovering around the 30-minute mark. 

That’s a huge difference from, say, the start of the 2010s, when the first-generation Nissan Leaf would’ve taken around three to four hours to reach 80%. 

So, to help you decide whether electric motoring is for you – and if it is, which model suits your lifestyle – below we list all the electric cars we’ve driven, from small cars to SUVs, and rank them in order of maximum charging speed rating in kilowatts (kW). 

If a model has different charging rates across the range, we've given the quickest (you can find out more by clicking the link through to our new-car review). We've also given an estimate of how many miles of range you'll be able to add by plugging it into a rapid charger for a 10-minute "pitstop" top-up.

Read more: Electric cars with the longest ranges

Electric cars with charging rates from 250kW to 350kW

Depending on how efficiently a car uses its charge, a 10-minute battery top-up at 270kW should add around 120 miles of range.

XPeng G6 – 451kW

Lotus Emeya – 420kW

BMW iX3 – 400kW

MG IM5 – 396kW

MG IM6 – 396kW

Porsche Cayenne Electric – 390kW

Volvo EX60 – 370kW

Hyundai Ioniq 6 – 350kW

Lotus Eletre – 350kW

Polestar 3 – 350kW

Volvo EX90 – 350kW

Audi e-tron GT – 320kW

Porsche Taycan – 320kW

Porsche Taycan Cross Turismo – 320kW

Porsche Taycan Sport Turismo – 320kW

Audi A6 Avant e-tron – 270kW

Audi A6 Sportback e-tron – 270kW

Audi S6 e-tron – 270kW

Audi Q6 e-tron – 270kW

Audi Q6 e-tron Sportback – 270kW

Maserati GranTurismo Folgore – 270kW

Porsche Macan Electric – 270kW

Hyundai Ioniq 5 – 260kW

Kia EV6 – 260kW

Hyundai Ioniq 9 – 250kW

Tesla Model 3 – 250kW

Tesla Model Y – 250kW

Electric cars with charging rates from 200kW to 249kW

At 200kW, a 10-minute battery top-up should add around 90 miles of range.

Genesis Electrified GV70 – 240kW

Genesis GV60 – 240kW

Hyundai Ioniq 5 N – 240kW

Kia EV6 GT – 238kW

BYD Sealion 7 – 230kW

BYD Atto 3 Evo – 220kW

Kia EV9 – 220kW

BMW i5 – 205kW

Polestar 2 – 205kW

Volvo EC40 – 205kW

Volvo EX40 – 205kW

BMW i4 – 200kW

BMW i7 – 200kW

Mercedes EQS – 200kW

Mercedes EQS SUV – 200kW

Mercedes G580 (electric G-Class) – 200kW

Volkswagen ID 7 – 200kW

Volkswagen ID 7 Tourer – 200kW

Volkswagen ID Buzz LWB – 200kW

Electric cars with charging rates from 150kW to 199kW

At 150kW, a 10-minute battery top-up should add around 50 miles of range.

BMW iX – 195kW

Rolls-Royce Spectre – 195kW

Alpine A390 – 190kW

Genesis Electrified G80 – 187kW

Cupra Born – 185kW

Ford Capri – 185kW

Ford Explorer – 185kW

Skoda Enyaq vRS – 185kW

Volkswagen ID Buzz SWB – 185kW

Audi Q4 e-tron – 175kW

Audi Q4 Sportback e-tron – 175kW

Skoda Elroq – 175kW

Skoda Enyaq – 175kW

Skoda Enyaq Coupé – 175kW

Volkswagen ID 3 – 175kW

Volkswagen ID 4 – 175kW

Volkswagen ID 5 – 175kW

Volvo EX30 – 175kW

Audi Q8 e-tron – 170kW

Audi Q8 Sportback e-tron – 170kW

Mercedes EQE – 170kW

Mercedes EQE SUV – 170kW

Mazda 6e – 165kW

Citroen e-C5 Aircross - 160kW

DS No 8 – 160kW

Jeep Compass Electric – 160kW

Peugeot e-5008 – 160kW

MG4 EV – 154kW

BYD Seal – 150kW

Ford Mustang Mach-E – 150kW

Lexus RZ – 150kW

Nissan Leaf – 150kW

Renault Scenic E-Tech – 150kW

Smart #1 – 150kW

Smart #3 – 150kW

Subaru Solterra – 150kW

Toyota bZ4X – 150kW

Electric cars with charging rates from 100kW to 149kW

At 100kW, a 10-minute battery top-up should add around 40 miles of range.

KGM Torres EVX – 145kW

MG Cyberster – 144kW

Cupra Tavascan – 135kW

Kia EV3 – 135kW

BMW iX1 – 130kW

BMW iX2 – 130kW

Mini Countryman Electric – 130kW

Nissan Ariya – 130kW

Omoda E5 – 130kW

Renault Megane E-Tech – 130kW

Cupra Raval – 125kW

DS No 4 E-Tense – 120kW

Maxus Mifa 9 – 114kW

Mercedes EQA – 112kW

Mercedes EQB – 112kW

Mercedes EQC – 112kW

Hyundai Kona Electric – 102kW

Citroën ë-C4 – 101kW

Citroën ë-C4 X – 101kW

Peugeot e-208 – 101kW

Vauxhall Mokka Electric – 101kW

Abarth 600e – 100kW

Alpine A290 – 100kW

Alfa Romeo Junior Elettrica – 100kW

Citroën ë-C3 Aircross – 100kW

DS 3 E-Tense – 100kW

Fiat 600e – 100kW

Ford Puma Gen-E – 100kW

Jeep Avenger – 100kW

Peugeot e-308 – 100kW

Peugeot e-308 SW – 100kW

Peugeot e-2008 – 100kW

Renault 5 – 100kW

Vauxhall Astra Electric – 100kW

Vauxhall Combo Life Electric – 100kW

Vauxhall Corsa Electric – 100kW

Vauxhall Frontera Electric – 100kW

Electric cars with charging rates from 50kW to 99kW

At 50kW, a 10-minute battery top-up should add around 20 miles of range.

Mini Aceman – 95kW

Mini Cooper Electric – 95kW

MG ZS EV – 94kW

BYD Atto 3 – 89kW

BYD Dolphin – 88kW

MG5 EV – 87kW

Abarth 500e – 85kW

BYD Dolphin Surf – 85kW

Fiat 500e – 85kW

Hyundai Inster – 85kW

Leapmotor C10 – 83kW

Skywell BE11 – 80kW

Honda e:Ny1 – 78kW

Kia Soul EV – 77kW

Kia Niro EV – 72kW

Suzuki eVitara – 70kW

Toyota Urban Cruiser – 67kW

BYD Atto 2 – 65kW

GWM Ora 3 (Funky Cat) – 64kW

Lexus UX 300e – 50kW

Electric cars with charging rates up to 49kW

At 49kW and below, a 10-minute battery top-up is unlikely to add more than 10-15 miles of range.

Leapmotor T03 – 48kW

Dacia Spring – 40kW

Citroën Ami – 3.6kW

How we compiled our fastest charging EVs list

This information has been gathered from a selection of sources – including manufacturer websites, press-release information and the EV Database.

We've quoted the maximum charging speed that should be achievable by the quickest-charging versions of each model. Not every version of each car will be able to charge at the speed listed – often the fastest charging capability is reserved for the model with the biggest battery capacity.

You can read more about how speeds vary across the range by following the link from each model's name to our full new-car review.

Note that electric cars vary the rate of charge to protect the battery, so the charging rate usually slows down as it gets close to capacity.

Read more: The best electric cars in the UK

Read more: The best electric SUVs in the UK

Read more: How long does it take to charge an electric car?

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