Guide

EV Home Chargers in New Zealand

Is it worth getting a wall-mounted charger for your EV?

EVs can be charged using a plug-in trickle charger or wall-mounted charger.

Wall-mounted chargers are the fastest way to charge: supplying 35-50 km of range per hour in a typical single-phase house.

Compare EV wall-mounted chargers

What does it all mean?

Power

kilowatts (kW)

How fast electricity flows into your car. Higher wattage means more range added per hour of charging. Most NZ homes are limited to 7.4 kW (unless three-phase power is available at the property).

Cable

metres (m)

The physical reach from the wall unit to your car's charge port. Longer is more forgiving if your port is on the far side of the car. 5 m covers most driveways; 8 m handles trickier layouts.

Overload

Yes / No

Monitors home energy use and reduces charging speed to prevent using more than your capacity. Prevents tripped circuits. Uses CT clamp on install.

Solar

Yes / No

The charger watches your solar export in real time and adjusts charging speed to consume your surplus generation rather than grid electricity. Uses CT clamp on install.

Phase

Single / Three

Single-phase is what most NZ homes have, supporting up to 7.4 kW. Three-phase allows speeds up to 22 kW but requires a specialist install. Check with your electrician before purchasing a three-phase model.

Cable Config

Tethered / Socketed

Tethered chargers have a cable permanently attached. Socketed means you supply your own cable ($200-$250); useful if you have a cable for public AC chargers or have EVs with different connectors (e.g. Nissan Leaf etc).

Connection Type

Type 1 / Type 2

The physical plug on the cable. Around 72% of full EVs in NZ have Type 2 (CCS). Vehicles with Type 1 (J1772) are generally: Nissan Leaf and other used import EVs (from Japan). Some Plug-in Hybrids (Mitsubishi).

Type 1

Type 2

RFID

Yes / No

Lets you restrict the charger to authorised users with a tap card or fob. Useful for shared driveways, rental properties, or businesses - so nobody else can charge on your electricity.

IP Rating

Ingress Protection

Rates how well the unit is sealed against dust and water. IP54 handles splashing; IP65 withstands jets.

Connectivity

Wi-Fi

How the charger connects to the internet for app control, firmware updates, and other smart features.

Which to choose: trickle or wall-mounted?

When buying an EV always check if a trickle charger is included.

These are portable and can be taken with you on trips. While most sellers and dealers will supply a charger, some new vehicles do not come with one.

You'll either need to buy one separately or get a wall-mounted charger installed before you take delivery of the vehicle.

In NZ, there are effectively three possibilities for home charging.

Slowest

3-pin charging cable

8 to 10 A (amps) providing 1.8 to 2.3 kW (kilowatts) charging from a standard power outlet. Provides around 6-16 km of range per hour, no electrical work required, portable. Priced from $300-$450.

6-16 km/hour

Faster

Caravan-plug charging cable

16 A (3.6 kW) charging from a 'caravan' socket. Sometimes called commando or camping plugs, a socket can be installed (both indoor and outdoor) by an electrician for a moderate cost.

18-25 km/hour

Fastest

Wall-mount charger

32 A (7.4 kW) charging from a dedicated wall-mount socket. Requires professional installation, but provides the fastest home charging option.

35-50 km/hour

Many trickle chargers allow you to lower the amperage. This can be useful if you (for example) were happy with a slow charge, and didn't want to overload your system. Or perhaps you have solar and want to keep your charging well below your solar generation.

How much does it cost to install a wall-mounted EV charger?

Chargers are typically priced by the unit and require you to pay an electrician to install them. Any electrician should be able to handle the installation.

Expect to pay $700-$1200 depending on your setup. Typically, the further the charger is from your switchboard, the higher the cost.

Some charger providers offer installation as a package deal (which removes the hassle and uncertainty around total cost).

What is a smart charger?

Honestly? Depends who you ask.

A ‘smart’ charger typically means one with extra features (such as solar matching, load management, or overload protection).

It can also mean the charger interacts with the Internet to allow app-based control (such as monitoring and scheduling). In NZ, EECA provide further information on smart chargers.

Are these really chargers? Or EVSEs?

Technically, what we refer to as "chargers" are actually EVSEs (Electric Vehicle Supply Equipment). The EVSE controls the power delivery to the EV, while the EV has an onboard AC charger.

What we call a trickle charging cable (or even 'granny' charger) is also an EVSE. It's a special cable with an In-Cable Control and Protection Device (IC-CPD) - that's the control box that's part of the cable.

Can all EVs charge at 7.4 kW?

No. There's a small number of EVs that peak at 6.6 kW. Many Japanese import Nissan Leafs charge at 3.3 kW (see more).

The majority of EVs in New Zealand can handle three-phase charging (11 kW), but few households have three-phase power (an expensive upgrade - potentially over $5000).

Find the exact time to charge for any EV using the EVDB calculator.

What is OCPP?

OCPP (Open Charge Point Protocol) is an open communication standard that enables interoperability between EV charging stations and other systems (for monitoring, billing, or home automation).

Note that not all chargers allow their charging points to be accessed by other systems (see this explanation from Evnex).

What is solar matching?

Solar matching adjusts your charging speed to match solar generation.

Some chargers allow a threshold (e.g., when more than 1.5 kW is generated, the charger starts). This leads to significant savings and avoids any grid power altogether.

What is overload protection?

The charger will monitor the household load and adjust charging accordingly.

Sometimes called Dynamic Load Balancing (DLB).

Can you set a charging limit (like 80%) on a home charger?

AC chargers do not know the car's state of charge.

It's the car's software that can stop charging at a predefined limit (unlike DC charging which has far more sophisticated communication protocols).

Most EVs have this setting in the dashboard (with a few notable exceptions, such as 2016+ Nissan Leafs). Some EVs with a connected app can also set this remotely.

Should I get a wall-mount charger from overseas?

It's not advisable to buy a charger from online stores overseas. A wall-mount charger is permanently installed into your house's wiring.

It may not be built to NZ electrical standard (NZS). The supplier should provide evidence of compliance.
The Consumer Guarantees Act may not cover it.
You may not get after-sales support.
If it is substandard and causes an electrical fault (or something worse), this may void insurance.
You carry liability if the product is not compliant (see more at WorkSafe).

Residual Current Devices

What does an RCD do?

An RCD, or Residual Current Device, is a safety tool used in electrical systems. It constantly checks to ensure the same amount of electricity that goes into an appliance (like a toaster) comes back out.

If the RCD notices a problem, it quickly stops the electricity.