BEV
Battery-electric
Highest purchase price of the three, cheapest to run per kilometre if you can charge at home, and the powertrain whose total-cost case is most sensitive to how many kilometres you drive and where you plug in.
Electric, hybrid, petrol or diesel: what each costs to own
The question is rarely which brand; it is petrol or electric, and the honest answer moves with mileage, charging access and the tax rules where you live. Every page here is that answer for one case.
PHEV
Plug-in hybrid
Two powertrains in one car: cheap to run on the days it is charged and driven short, a heavy petrol car on the days it is not.
HEV
Conventional hybrid
A petrol car that recovers energy it would otherwise waste.
ICE
Petrol
The lowest purchase price and the best-understood residuals, paid for at the pump every week.
Diesel
Diesel
The traditional high-mileage choice, still efficient on the motorway, and the powertrain with the most policy risk attached: urban access restrictions and tax treatment have moved against it across Europe.
Head to head
BEV vs PHEV
Where battery-electric and plug-in hybrid part company, line by line.
Head to head
BEV vs HEV
Where battery-electric and conventional hybrid part company, line by line.
Head to head
BEV vs ICE
Where battery-electric and petrol part company, line by line.
Head to head
BEV vs Diesel
Where battery-electric and diesel part company, line by line.
Head to head
PHEV vs HEV
Where plug-in hybrid and conventional hybrid part company, line by line.
Head to head
PHEV vs ICE
Where plug-in hybrid and petrol part company, line by line.
Head to head
PHEV vs Diesel
Where plug-in hybrid and diesel part company, line by line.
Head to head
HEV vs ICE
Where conventional hybrid and petrol part company, line by line.
Head to head
HEV vs Diesel
Where conventional hybrid and diesel part company, line by line.
Head to head
ICE vs Diesel
Where petrol and diesel part company, line by line.
Related reading
EV Ground Truth
Electric cars reviewed on real range, charging behaviour and life-cycle emissions.
Travel Health Evidence
Jet lag, travellers' diarrhoea, food safety and eating with an allergy abroad.
Carbon Evidence
Personal carbon footprints, life-cycle assessment, and which changes actually move the number.
The EV Route
Planning an electric road trip around real range, real charge curves and where the chargers actually are.