EV charging statistics 2026
The UK’s electric vehicle (EV) public charging infrastructure is continually growing and changing shape to meet the needs of EV drivers. It covers a broad range of use cases from high powered en-route chargers for EV drivers on longer journeys, to charge points at hotels, attractions and other destinations and low-powered chargers on street to support those who do not have access to a charge point at home. This is all in addition to more than one million charge points installed at home or work where the majority of charging still takes place.
The Zapmap Insights team analyses the comprehensive Zapmap database of charging points to track the growth and composition of the UK's charging infrastructure and provides a series of graphs, which are updated monthly. Individual charge points can be viewed on the Zapmap app.
How many public charging points are there in the UK?
At the end of January 2026, there were 88,513 electric vehicle charging points across the UK, across 45,242 charging locations, 116,729 EVSE* and 122,690 connectors.
Last month, 717 net new charging devices were added to the Zapmap database.
The four speeds or power ratings that are tracked are defined as Slow (3-7kW), Fast (8-49kW), Rapid (50-149kW) and Ultra-rapid (150kW+). These new bandings reflect those referenced in the government's new Public Charge Point Regulations.
How is the UK charging points network growing over time?
The number of public charge points in the UK has grown from 53,865 at the end of 2023 to 73,699 at the end of 2024 and more than 87,500 by the end of 2025. Since January 2025 the public network has grown by 19%.
The graph below focuses on the number of charging devices, rather than the capacity to deliver electricity. This masks the fact that devices with different power ratings provide a significant difference in capacity. For instance, while Rapid and Ultra-rapid chargers only make up around 20% of total devices, they account for around 60% of the total capacity.
How many charge points have been installed each year?
In 2025, 14,097 charge points were added to the UK public network. The power group with the most charge points added was Slow - less than 8kW - with 6,951 added over the year.
In 2024, there were 19,834 charge points added to the UK public network - 19% more than in 2023.
In 2021, there were 7,496 installed, 8,803 in 2022 and 16,602 in 2023.
The majority of charge points installed are low powered devices, mainly under 8kW which are typically found on-street, in car parks, hotels or other destinations. For the Rapid and Ultra-rapid chargers, the key trend is the shift towards higher powered 150kW+ Ultra-rapid chargers.
How many public charging points are installed each month?
In January 2026, 717 net new EV charging devices were added to the Zapmap platform.
This number takes into account that every month some devices are decommissioned by charge point operators. These net new figures reflect the number of additions to the Zapmap platform minus those devices that have been removed from the platform.
Which network has the largest number of EV chargers?
The charging network with the most charge points is Shell Recharge ubitricity, with its network of lamppost chargers. Next up is Connected Kerb, which has an extensive network of on-street chargers across the UK. In third place is Pod, a network of destination chargers found mainly in retail car parks, particularly supermarkets.
This data combines devices across all the different power ratings, and the data shows the network with the most charge points but not the highest amount of charging capacity.
Which areas have the most charge points across the UK?
The geographical area that has the most EV charging points is Greater London with 27,986, followed by the South East with 11,405 and West Midlands with 7,882.
Again, this aggregates all the different types of charge devices, so caution should be used when making comparisons.
How many electric charging points in the UK are Rapid or Ultra-rapid?
As of January 2026, there are 18,077 Rapid or Ultra-rapid charging devices, across 6,673 charging locations in the UK.
Last month, 142 net new Rapid or Ultra-rapid charging devices were added to the Zapmap platform.
The power bands used are in line with the government's new Public Charge Point Regulations. Rapid chargers are from 50kW to 149kW and Ultra-rapid charge points from 150kW+.
How is the UK rapid charging network growing over time?
The number of Rapid and Ultra-rapid chargers has grown from 10,118 at the end of 2023, to 14,471 at the end of 2024 and 17,935 by December 2025. At the end of January 2026 this has increased to 18,077.
Ultra-rapid chargers (150kW+) have grown at a particularly high rate, with 2,872 installed in 2025. There are now 40% more at the end of January 2026 than there were in January 2025.
How many Rapid or Ultra-rapid charge points have been installed each year?
In 2025, 3,464 Rapid or Ultra-rapid charge points were added to the UK public network - a 24% increase from the end of 2024. In 2024, 4,353 Rapid or Ultra-rapid charge points were added to the UK public network.
Over recent years, the number of Rapid or Ultra-rapid charge points installed has increased each year. In 2021, there were 1,261 installed, 1,620 in 2022, 3,411 in 2023.
Which network has the most Rapid and Ultra-rapid devices?
The charge point operator with the most Rapid and Ultra-rapid electric vehicle charging points is InstaVolt, who have 2,178 charge points at the end of January 2026.
After InstaVolt, Tesla operate the most Rapid and Ultra-rapid charging points in the UK with 2,167, followed by Osprey with 1,429.
What is the market share of Rapid and Ultra-rapid charging networks?
There are six networks which make up 50% market share of Rapid and Ultra-rapid devices. The networks with the highest market share are InstaVolt with just over 12%, closely followed by Tesla with 12% and Osprey with 8%.
Which areas have the most Rapid charge points across the UK?
The UK geographical area that has the most Rapid or Ultra-rapid EV charging points is the South East with 2,600, followed by the North West with 2,029 and East of England with 1,979.
The areas with the least devices over 50kW are The North East with 645 and Northern Ireland with 211 devices.
How many charging hubs are there in the UK?
At the end of January 2026 there were 765 Rapid charging hubs across the UK, which are open to all EVs. Zapmap defines a charging hub as a charging location with at least six Rapid (50kW-149kW) or Ultra-rapid (150kW+) chargers. At the end of January 2025 there were 542, so the number of charging hubs available across the UK has increased by 41% over the past year.
In addition to these open charging hubs there are 71 charging hub locations only available to Tesla drivers. Tesla has already opened up many locations to all EVs, and is expected to continue to do so over the coming months.
Other data that Zapmap makes available in the public domain and updates on a regular basis includes tracking EV registrations and growth, Zapmap Price Index or best networks for EV charging.
If you are interested in more in-depth data and analysis on the EV charging market for your business, find out more or get in touch with the Zapmap Insights team.
To align with DfT official statistics provided by Zapmap, charge points in the Isle of Man and Channel Islands were removed from the counts in August 2025 (289 charge points). The total charge points in these regions at end of 2024 was 219, and at end of 2023 was 198.
*In addition to this number, there are an estimated 526 EVSE currently being under-reported by a network. This does not impact device, location or connection counts.
Please note that third parties can use this data provided the source is clearly attributed to Zapmap, any graphs include the Zapmap logo, and a link is added back to https://www.zapmap.com in the body of the article. The data must be strictly copied and updated manually, no automated data collection can be applied in any form. The data can only published in its original state and without any modifications.
