One number from the DAT Report 2026 explains German EV hesitancy better than any subsidy debate: 72% of car owners say an EV is off the table for them as long as they cannot charge at home. Home charging is not one argument among many - it is the deciding condition. And it is also the single biggest lever in the TCO calculation.
What the data shows
Only 30% of owners have ever driven an EV (new-car buyers 36%, used-car buyers 17%). Among those who chose a BEV, the most-cited reason was charging at home (45%) - ahead of interest in the technology (39%) and environmental motives (38%). The logic is simple: without your own wallbox you are left with public charging, and that is expensive.
The wallbox effect in euros
This is where the economics are decided. Here is the energy cost per 100 km at a consumption of 17 kWh:
| Charging type | Price/kWh | Cost/100 km |
|---|---|---|
| Home PV surplus | EUR 0.08 | EUR 1.36 |
| Household electricity (wallbox) | EUR 0.35 | EUR 5.95 |
| DC fast charger (on the road) | EUR 0.69 | EUR 11.73 |
| Petrol for comparison (6.5 l) | EUR 1.72/l | EUR 11.18 |
The result is unambiguous: with a home wallbox the EV costs about half of a petrol car. Charge only at public DC fast chargers and you pay more than a petrol car. So those 72% are economically correct: without home charging the EV's core TCO advantage disappears.
What BEV owners actually experience
The report also surveyed current BEV owners: 83% value the quiet ride, 79% are enthusiastic about the technology. But 74% notice weather affecting range and 67% are annoyed by opaque public charging prices. All of this points to one rule: the EV pays off when the lion's share of charging happens at home.
Bottom line
Before you think about which EV to buy, settle the charging question. Do you have a parking spot for a wallbox? Then the TCO advantage is real and often substantial. If not, an efficient hybrid or petrol car may remain the cheaper choice.
Our TCO wizard asks exactly that - wallbox, solar, charging-location mix - and shows which powertrain is genuinely cheaper over five years given your charging setup.
Sources: DAT Report 2026 (short report), model year 2025, Deutsche Automobil Treuhand / NIQ GfK (charts A2, E1, E4, E11); czympojade.pl RealTCO v4.0 - charging-cost model.
Liczby w artykule pochodzą z silnika TCO v4.0 opartego na danych TÜV/ADAC/URE, weryfikowanego na 412 testach i 644 modelach pojazdów. Masz uwagi merytoryczne?Napisz: kontakt@czympojade.pl