How to charge for charging—5 EV charging models for your hotel or store

If your location has a parking lot, odds are you’ll need to install some EV charging stations soon. The population of EV drivers is growing every day, and they strongly prefer doing business places where they can charge up. If you hope to capture and retain this valuable, ever-expanding demographic, charging stations are a must.

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One thing you’ll need to consider, however, is exactly how you want to manage your charging stations. There are a few different methodologies and no “one-size-fits-all” solution for station management—it really depends on what you want to get out of your set up.

So let’s take a look at the primary ways various retail location configure their charging stations.

  Note: Get creative! The perfect solution for your location might never have been done before.  

1) Charging by kWh

You pay for the energy your charging stations consume—why not get a little help from the EV driver? Setting up a billing structure based on kilowatt hours (kWh) used is a simple and effective way to help offset the cost of operating your stations. Here's how it works:

Example:

 Set price—$0.30/kWh 
 30kWh x $0.30/kWh = $9.00 

 Configurations this works with:

- Networked stations (e.g., Greenlots, EV Connect, Everon)

2) Charging by time

EV chargers provide the most value while in use. If someone is camped out in a spot after their car is charged up, they’re costing you money. So why not charge them for it? Setting up a billing structure where cars pay based on the amount of time they’ve been plugged in is a great way to incentivize people to free up charging spots once their car is full up.

Example:

 Set price— $2.25/hour 
 30kWh charge (at 7.4kW output) = ~4 hours 
 4 hours x $2.25/hour = $9.00 

Configurations this works with:

- Networked stations (e.g., Greenlots, EV Connect, Everon)

3) Charging combo! (kWh + time)

In locations where you can bill by kWh, but still want to deter people from taking up charging spots once their full, here is one solution—a billing structure where the driver pays for the energy used AND the time spent plugged in.

Example:

 Set price— $0.15/kWh & $1.15/hour 
 (30kWh x $0.15/kWh) + (4 hours x $1.15/hour) = $9.10 

 Configurations this works with:

- Networked stations (e.g., Greenlots, EV Connect, Everon)

4) Flat rate

The simplest method for collecting revenue from your charging stations—one fee, same for everyone. With this type of billing, you can even get creative with it and collect the money yourself (i.e., a fee upon entry or a fee to use the access card). This way, you can get generate a little extra revenue while keeping your stations network-ready.

Example:

Set price—$9.00 per charge
No math! It’s always $9.00

Configuration works with:

- Networked stations (e.g., Greenlots, EV Connect, Everon)
- RFID-only (network-ready with access cards)
- Plug ‘n Charge (network-ready with no access cards)

5) Free charging

For a site host that is looking to give customers convenience without asking anything in return, free service is a simple, no-nonsense solution. This option works with every configuration and is a great way to start attracting EV drivers to your location—because who doesn’t love free stuff?

Example:

 Set price—FREE! 
 No math—it’s free!! 

Configurations this works with:
- Networked stations (e.g., Greenlots, EV Connect, Everon)
- RFID-only (network-ready with access cards)
- Plug ‘n Charge (network-ready with no access cards) 

Still not sure what you want to do? Check out our EVBox hospitality bundle and learn more about how you can get the most out of your new charging stations! Are you ready to join the rEVolution?