Is the UK ready for electric cars? Where its public EV chargers are
The UK had 121,171 public EV chargers on 1 July 2026, up 10% in a year. London has 345.1 per 100,000 people and Northern Ireland 60.0.
EV
121,171
public EV chargers in the UK, up 10% in a year
- 121,171 public EV chargers in the UK on 1 July 2026
- +10.0% more than a year earlier
- 28,887 rapid or faster chargers (50kW and above)
- 8.1% of licensed UK cars are plug-ins
Public charging is one of the first things people ask about before going electric. We looked at how many public EV chargers the UK has, how quickly the number is growing, and how unevenly they are spread across nations and council areas.
Charger counts are the Department for Transport’s figures for 1 July 2026, based on Zapmap data. Car numbers are for licensed vehicles at the end of March 2026.
How many public EV chargers are there in the UK?
There were 121,171 public EV chargers in the UK on 1 July 2026, or 174.9 for every 100,000 people. That is 11,039 more than a year earlier, a rise of 10.0%.
The network, quarter by quarter
| Date | Public EV chargers | Rapid or faster (50kW+) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 July 2025 | 110,132 | 24,813 |
| 1 October 2025 | 114,486 | 25,590 |
| 1 January 2026 | 116,052 | 26,378 |
| 1 April 2026 | 119,080 | 27,372 |
| 1 July 2026 | 121,171 | 28,887 |
| Change in a year | +10.0% | +16.4% |
Since January 2026, DfT has counted individual EV chargers rather than charging devices. By the older measure it counted 97,266 charging devices on the same date, so the two figures can’t be compared directly.
The full figures are in DfT’s public EV charging statistics for 1 July 2026. DfT describes them as official statistics in development.
Why the latest quarter looks slow
The network grew by 2,091 chargers between April and July 2026. That was held back because one operator removed about 1,270 chargers from its data in June 2026.
DfT says these were private chargers wrongly listed as public. It doesn’t mean chargers were taken out of service.
How many rapid chargers are there?
28,887 public chargers were rated 50kW or more on 1 July 2026, 41.7 per 100,000 people. Of those, 13,996 were ultra-rapid chargers of 150kW and above.
Chargers by power
| Power band | Chargers | Share of all chargers |
|---|---|---|
| Standard | 59,587 | 49.2% |
| Standard plus | 32,697 | 27.0% |
| Rapid (50kW to under 150kW) | 14,891 | 12.3% |
| Ultra-rapid (150kW and above) | 13,996 | 11.6% |
| All public chargers | 121,171 | 100% |
Chargers of 50kW and above rose 16.4% in a year, faster than the network as a whole. Ultra-rapid chargers grew from 11,927 on 1 January 2026 to 13,996 on 1 July, a rise of 17.3% in six months.
Where rapid charging is most common
Scotland has the most chargers of 50kW or more per person, 59.1 per 100,000, and Northern Ireland the fewest at 19.3. Among councils, Bromsgrove leads with 155 such chargers, or 152.4 per 100,000 people.
Which parts of the UK have the most chargers per person?
London has 345.1 public chargers per 100,000 people, about 5.75 times Northern Ireland’s 60.0. Scotland (231.6) and Wales (185.5) are also above the UK average of 174.9.
Chargers by nation and region
| Area | Chargers | Per 100,000 people | 50kW+ per 100,000 | Plug-in share of cars |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| United Kingdom | 121,171 | 174.9 | 41.7 | 8.1% |
| London | 31,371 | 345.1 | 27.9 | 10.5% |
| Scotland | 12,847 | 231.6 | 59.1 | 6.5% |
| Wales | 5,910 | 185.5 | 42.8 | 4.2% |
| England | 101,258 | 172.7 | 40.7 | 8.7% |
| West Midlands | 10,143 | 163.9 | 45.7 | 5.4% |
| South East | 15,373 | 159.4 | 39.7 | 12.5% |
| South West | 9,232 | 156.7 | 49.5 | 7.2% |
| East of England | 9,880 | 150.2 | 48.8 | 8.3% |
| North East | 4,147 | 150.2 | 37.1 | 4.8% |
| East Midlands | 6,153 | 121.5 | 46.7 | 6.1% |
| North West | 8,678 | 112.2 | 40.0 | 9.6% |
| Yorkshire and the Humber | 6,281 | 110.7 | 36.6 | 7.7% |
| Northern Ireland | 1,156 | 60.0 | 19.3 | 4.3% |
Scotland’s charging network and Wales both beat the UK average per person. Yorkshire and the Humber (110.7) and the North West (112.2) have the fewest of the English regions.
London’s lead is in slower chargers
London has only 27.9 chargers of 50kW or more per 100,000 people, fewer than any English region. Just 2,533 of its 31,371 chargers are that fast, 8.1%, against 23.8% across the UK.
Northern Ireland is lowest on both measures. It has 1,156 public chargers, 60.0 per 100,000 people.
Related: EV chargers in London
Which council areas have the most and fewest chargers?
Hammersmith and Fulham has 1,379.5 public chargers per 100,000 people and North East Derbyshire has 37.5. That is a 36.8-fold gap between councils.
The top and bottom councils
| Council | Chargers | Per 100,000 people | 50kW+ chargers | Private plug-in cars per charger |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hammersmith and Fulham | 2,603 | 1,379.5 | 90 | 1.4 |
| Westminster | 2,893 | 1,377.6 | 92 | 1.7 |
| Tower Hamlets | 2,574 | 775.6 | 82 | 1.6 |
| Coventry | 2,644 | 716.5 | 129 | 1.7 |
| Waltham Forest | 1,855 | 663.1 | 64 | 2.1 |
| Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon | 103 | 46.3 | 29 | 20.9 |
| Derry City and Strabane | 67 | 44.0 | 16 | 17.2 |
| Castle Point | 38 | 42.0 | 26 | 49.8 |
| North East Derbyshire | 40 | 37.5 | 7 | 63.7 |
Hammersmith and Fulham and Westminster are almost level per person, and Westminster has the most public chargers of any council, 2,893. Coventry is the only council outside London in the top five.
North East Derbyshire has 40 public chargers, 7 of them 50kW or more. We leave out the Isles of Scilly, where 16 chargers for 2,366 people give an unrepresentative rate.
Plug-in cars per public charger
Across the UK there are 11.9 privately kept plug-in cars for every public charger. That ranges from 1.4 in Hammersmith and Fulham to 63.7 in North East Derbyshire.
DfT uses a different measure, battery electric vehicles per public charger, and counted 1 charger for every 17 on 1 April 2026 in its EV charging data tables. Council charger figures only start in January 2026, so we can’t yet show which councils grew fastest.
Are chargers keeping up with electric cars?
Not quite. Battery electric cars grew 32.9% in the year to March 2026, while public chargers grew 10.0% in the year to July 2026.
Plug-in cars on the road
Plug-in cars, battery electric and plug-in hybrid together, were 8.1% of the 34.6 million licensed cars in the UK at the end of March 2026. Fully battery electric cars were 5.4%.
| Licensed UK cars | End of March 2025 | End of March 2026 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Battery electric | 1,402,636 | 1,864,018 | +32.9% |
| All plug-in cars | 2,138,080 | 2,820,008 | +31.9% |
The two periods aren’t identical, but the gap is wide. In percentage terms, battery electric cars grew more than three times as fast as public chargers.
Why local shares can mislead
Cars are counted at the registered keeper’s address, so company and lease fleets inflate the figures in some areas. Westminster’s battery electric share is 55.1%, but among privately kept cars it is 7.6%.
That is why we compare public chargers with privately kept plug-in cars. The methodology explains how we count both.
What does this mean if you’re thinking of going electric?
Look at the chargers near your home and on the routes you drive, not national totals. The gap between areas is large, from 1,379.5 chargers per 100,000 people in one London borough to 37.5 in North East Derbyshire.
Find chargers near you
Our EV charger finder shows public chargers near a postcode or town, with connector types and charging speeds. It draws on open charger listings, so use DfT’s figures in this article for totals.
For council-by-council figures on chargers and electric car ownership, see electric car ownership and public chargers.
Home charging and longer trips
If you can’t charge at home, the number of public chargers near where you live matters most. For longer trips, rapid and ultra-rapid chargers are the ones to look for, and they are growing faster than the network as a whole.
The government’s EV charging statistics collection is updated every quarter. Policy on charging is led by the Office for Zero Emission Vehicles.
FAQs
How many public EV chargers are there in the UK?
There were 121,171 public EV chargers on 1 July 2026, according to the Department for Transport. That is 174.9 for every 100,000 people.
How many are rapid chargers?
28,887 public chargers were rated 50kW or more, including 13,996 ultra-rapid chargers of 150kW and above.
Is the charging network growing?
Yes. It grew 10.0% in the year to 1 July 2026, and chargers of 50kW and above grew faster, by 16.4%.
Which part of the UK has the most chargers per person?
London, with 345.1 per 100,000 people. Most of them are slower chargers, and London has fewer rapid chargers per person than any English region.
Where are public chargers hardest to find?
Northern Ireland has the fewest per person, 60.0 per 100,000. Among councils, North East Derbyshire has the fewest, 37.5 per 100,000.
Where are rapid chargers most common?
Scotland has 59.1 chargers of 50kW or more per 100,000 people, against 27.9 in London and 19.3 in Northern Ireland.
What share of cars are electric?
At the end of March 2026, 8.1% of licensed UK cars were plug-ins and 5.4% were fully battery electric.
Are chargers keeping up with electric cars?
Not quite. Battery electric cars grew 32.9% in the year to March 2026, while public chargers grew 10.0% in the year to July 2026. DfT counted one public charger for every 17 battery electric vehicles at 1 April 2026.
About the author
The UK Motoring editorial team analyses official motoring data and checks every figure against its source before it is published.
