EV charging
7kW vs faster EV chargers: what do you actually need at home?
For a house, 7.4kW is almost always the right answer: it's what a standard single-phase domestic supply provides, and it fills nearly any car overnight. Faster AC charging needs a three-phase supply that most homes don't have.
By KS Electrical, Uttoxeter · Updated 20 August 2026 · 5 min read
What the numbers mean in miles
Charging speed is easier to think about as range added per hour than as kilowatts.
- 3-pin "granny" lead, around 2.3kW, roughly 8 miles of range an hour. Fine as a backup, not as a routine.
- 7.4kW single phase, roughly 25–30 miles an hour. A typical car goes from a working-week state of charge to full overnight.
- 22kW three phase, roughly 75–90 miles an hour, if your car can take it.
- Public rapid DC, 50kW and up, a different technology entirely, for journeys rather than for home.
Ranges vary by car and by weather. They're a guide, not a specification.
Why 22kW usually isn't an option at home
22kW AC charging needs a three-phase supply. The overwhelming majority of UK houses have single phase, and getting three phase installed is a network operator job with real cost and lead time, occasionally worth it for a business, very rarely for a house.
Even where three phase exists, there's a second ceiling: your car. Every EV has an on-board charger that converts AC to DC, and that unit sets the maximum AC rate the car will accept. Many cars cap at 7.4kW; a good number at 11kW; only some accept 22kW. If your car caps at 7.4kW, a 22kW charge point gives you exactly nothing.
The question that actually matters
Not "how fast", but "is it full by morning?", and for the vast majority of drivers on 7.4kW, the answer is yes with hours to spare.
Work it out from your own driving. If you cover 40 miles on a typical day, 7.4kW replaces that in under two hours. Even a genuinely empty 60kWh battery is back to full in roughly eight hours, which is the length of a cheap overnight tariff window.
Faster charging only earns its keep if you regularly need to refill in the middle of the day, which at home is unusual.
Where speed is worth paying for
- Workplaces and commercial sites with three-phase supplies and vehicles turning over during the day.
- Households doing very high mileage with a short window to charge in.
- Sites with several vehicles sharing one point in sequence.
For everyone else, the money is better spent on a longer cable, a unit with proper solar matching, or simply on a tidier installation.
FAQs
Related questions
Will a 7kW charger damage my car's battery?
No. AC charging at home is gentle compared with public rapid DC charging, and the car's own battery management controls what it accepts. Overnight AC charging is the least stressful way to charge a battery.
Can I get 11kW at home?
Only with a three-phase supply. On single phase the practical ceiling is 7.4kW, because that's a 32A circuit at 230V.
Is it worth fitting a 22kW charger to future-proof the house?
Rarely, on single phase. It can't run at 22kW without three phase, so you'd be paying for capability you can't use. What is worth future-proofing is the cable route and a spare way in the board.