EV charging cost vs refuelling in Poland (2026)

Prices used in the comparison (as of 26 September 2026)

Fuel and energy prices change quickly — in September 2026, petrol and diesel became noticeably more expensive after the end of the CPN package and the return of 23% VAT on fuel in Poland. That is why we give exact prices and the date they come from:

• Pb95 petrol: 7.99 zł/l, diesel: 8.99 zł/l, LPG: 3.14 zł/l — average prices at filling stations according to the e-petrol listing of 23 September 2026.
• Charging at home or in an apartment block: approx. 1.10 zł/kWh — energy including distribution on the G11 tariff for 2026 (usually 0.96–1.10 zł/kWh gross, depending on the operator).
• Public AC charger: 1.95 zł/kWh — Orlen Charge and GreenWay (Standard plan).
• Public DC charger: 2.69 zł/kWh at Orlen Charge and 2.99 zł/kWh at GreenWay (Standard plan, no subscription).

Assumptions: energy and fuel consumption

• Electric car: 18 kWh per 100 km (on average, including charging losses).
• Petrol car: 7 l per 100 km.
• Diesel car: 6 l per 100 km.
• LPG car: 9 l of gas per 100 km.
• Annual mileage: 15,000 km.

Cost of driving 100 km

At the assumed prices and consumption, the cost of driving 100 km is as follows — from cheapest:

• Electric car charged at home or in an apartment block: approx. 19.80 zł.
• LPG car: approx. 28.26 zł.
• Electric car at a public AC charger: approx. 35.10 zł.
• Electric car at a DC charger (Orlen Charge): approx. 48.42 zł.
• Electric car at a DC charger (GreenWay Standard): approx. 53.82 zł.
• Diesel car: approx. 53.94 zł.
• Pb95 petrol car: approx. 55.93 zł.

What it adds up to over a year

With an annual mileage of 15,000 km, an electric car charged at home or in an apartment block costs approx. 2,970 zł in energy. The same distance on petrol costs approx. 8,390 zł, on diesel approx. 8,090 zł and on LPG approx. 4,240 zł. The difference compared with petrol is approx. 5,400 zł a year.

In practice, few people charge in just one place. If you take 80% of your energy at home or in an apartment block and 20% at fast DC chargers on the road, the cost is approx. 25.50 zł per 100 km, or approx. 3,830 zł a year — still less than half the cost of petrol.

Illustrative calculations based on prices from 23–26 September 2026. The actual cost depends on the car model, driving style, temperature, energy tariff and charging network promotions. The comparison does not include purchase, servicing or insurance costs.

Charging is cheapest where the car is parked

The comparison shows one thing: where you charge determines whether an electric car pays off. Energy from a public DC charger costs 2.5–3 times more than at home, and at expensive rates an electric car stops being cheaper than a diesel.

That is why a charger where the car is parked the longest is so important — in the apartment block garage, the office car park or at the hotel. In a housing community using the Domena Power system, residents pay a rate that matches the association’s actual energy cost, with no per-kWh commission and no public network margin.

What else affects the cost of charging

• Energy tariff: on a two-zone (day/night) tariff, charging at night can be noticeably cheaper.
• Solar PV: energy from your own PV installation used for charging costs less than energy bought from the grid.
• Public network subscriptions: plans with a monthly fee lower the price per kWh at DC chargers.
• Idle fees: some networks and sites charge for every minute after charging has finished.
• Season: in winter, energy consumption can rise by several tens of per cent.