Best DCFC charger networks

Maybe "best" for reliability or availability. Depending on your car it may not be the best in terms of speed.

what car are you driving and where? Only asking because charging speeds may matter a bit depending on the vehicle. Otherwise Tesla and Ionna are probably the best in the U.S. If you have a 800V vehicle sprinkling in EA,EVgo, Mercedes, Pilot J is probably a pretty good bet to take advantage of the faster charging. Can't speak to other countries though

Have you ever tried the Mercedes Benz network? It’s incredible.

Agreed. Swipe credit card and move on. No app needed.

I agree with this. Also throw away the idea of price shopping if you're not local! I cheaped out, went to flying j instead of Rivian to save a few bucks on the way back at one potential charge stop region, ended up waiting over an hour due to the line and chargers being slower and load splitting, as opposed to the Rivian station with 8+. (And also a nicer restaurant to stop at)

And check plugshare and the rating for the station you are considering.

My current ranking for DCFC is Ionna --> Rivian --> Walmart --> Tesla -------------------> EA/EVGo/Chargepoint I appreciate EA/EVGo/Chargepoint for bringing DCFC to the masses but the newer chargers available make them the last choice for me on road trips

It really depends on the chargers installed. The newer EVgo and EA chargers are excellent. The old ones are unreliable, slow garbage.

Lots of good advice here. So I’ll just add that I would suggest that when you are planning only route to charge stations that have 4+ chargers. There are lots of bad actors that don’t charge and move their vehicles. And there is still a risk of getting ICEd or have broken chargers. Stations with more chargers mitigate against things you can’t control.

We have many newer EVgo/GM near use and the new ones are very good. All 350-400kw, and they have both CCS and NACS adapters.

Whichever one is along your route. Preferably high power and lots of chargers. ABRP takes that all into account.

I do a 300 mile road trip to see a friend up in Idaho. I have stopped at the Flying J and both Walmarts in Pocatello and Idaho falls and have had zero issues. Walmart is EA. Expensive, but again no issues. Flying J is GM Energy. Again no issues. None of them were cheap, though.

The absolute best network is IONNA. If they’re not available, Tesla is great but expensive if you don’t have the subscription or a Tesla car

I just finished a 2000 mile road trip with out Mach-E and used a variety of networks. 2 stops at Ionna locations were great- plug and charge AND relatively low price. Just need more of those! I knew we'd need to use multiple Tesla locations so I paid for a membership for lower prices. Worked fine but the short cables at V3 locations is a pain. MB was fine but very expensive. EA and EVgo were similarly pricey. Looking forward to move Ionna and also Walmart locations. Competition is a very good thing!

I have become a big fan of ionna. they're always fast and oftentimes the cheapest around. they offer both types of charger so no adapter is needed they're also usually located in a good spot such as next to a restaurant or convenience store and all the ones I've been to have awnings. little things like that make a big difference especially in bad weather.

As an owner of an 800V vehicle (Electrify America), I consider IONNA to be the best network. Their charging locations are large enough that I never have to wait to charge. I get the maximum speed offered by my vehicle as they have 400kw Alpitronic HYC400 chargers that are reliable, offer great cable management, and support up to 1000V output. They typically have the lowest rates, at 39-42 cents/kwh. They also have locations that are convenient for long drives to NYC and Philadelphia from DC. Finally, you can simply tap your credit card to pay. No app needed! I would also consider Walmart's charging network but they don't have any chargers in the locations I want to charge. Prior to using IONNA, I used Electrify America, but their charging locations tend to be crowded due to the number of stations with only 4 chargers, not all of the chargers are 350kW capable, and they charge around 60 cents/kWh. I also dislike having to use their app to charge.

i fast charge about 60% of the time so i can provide some insight. FIRST, if you have Ionna or AppleGreen chargers in your path, absolutely go with these. they are usually under $0.40 per kwh and very fast. but these are growing. i’ve found that the best network for road trips is Electrify America. they’re usually placed just off exits and just frequent enough for every 30-70 miles. They also have plenty of new ones that have 8-10 stalls which is nice. i rarely have to wait and there’s never usually an issue. with that being said, they also seem to be on the pricier side for sure. most are $0.48-$0.70 per kwh. EVgo is usually a miss for me. they are typically mapped out well and they have more in cities, but i find the tech to often be outdated, chargers always busy, and many are slow. the price is also going to be high, about $0.55 per kwh on average plus start up fees. outside of that, Chargepoint fast chargers are rare but well priced. SWTCH energy is also very affordable but usually not on interstate routes.

I use Ionna, Tesla and Electrify America, in that order. I pays one month membership fee for Tesla and EA when roadtripping to get the discount.

If your car is able to charge at the Tesla supercharging stations. This is the best charger network and second EVGo and Iona

I’d say more important than network is to check out reviews on apps like PlugShare. It also helps to make sure there’s a backup nearby in case your preferred station doesn’t work.

Mercedes (especially at Buc Ees)

Use PlugShare or ABRP to look at the networks along your route.

My list of companies I would use - Tesla including Supercharger for business, Ionna, Walmart EV Charging, Mercedes Charging, Rivian Adventure Network (Top Tier) - Pilot/Flying-J, ChargePoint, EV-Go, Francis Energy (SK Signet) (Second tier, probably fine but either not as reliable as the top tier or a little expensive for what they are)

Ionna, BP Pulse, MB, SuperchargerNetwork (depends on the car) EA has also made significant reliability improvements in the last year

Tesla unfortunately.