The most problem-free EV charging networks in the U.S. right now are the ones built by Tesla and Rivian, according to a new survey from Consumer Reports.
The publication surveyed 1,230 owners on their EV charging experiences between March 2024 and February 2024, and just 4% of the respondents said they experienced problems at Tesla’s Supercharger network. Only 5% said they experienced problems using Rivian’s Adventure Network chargers.
Owners had the worst experience with Shell’s Recharge network, having reported a problem 48% of the time. EVgo and Blink chargers were similarly troublesome, with owners experiencing problems 43% and 41% of the time, respectively. Other well-known networks didn’t perform too well, either, with owners logging problems at Electrify America 35% of the time and at ChargePoint chargers 24% of the time. Rivian and Tesla were the only networks in single digits.
EVs made up more than 8% of vehicle sales in the U.S. last year, according to Cox Automotive, and while sales growth has cooled, overall volume is still growing. People are increasingly embracing electric vehicles, but it’s clear from Consumer Reports’ survey that many of the charging networks meant to support that adoption are lagging way behind. Representatives for Shell, EVgo, Blink, Electrify America, and ChargePoint didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment.
Consumer Reports said that the most common reported problems across all networks had to do with making payments and with the charging station hardware itself — especially with the screens.
“By calling out broken screens, payment issues, and slow charging power, community members are crowdsourcing data that will hold charging networks accountable and improve drivers’ experience with public charging,” Consumer Reports’ campaign manager Drew Toher said in a statement.
Tesla has been building out its Supercharger network for over a decade now, so it’s not surprising that it has hammered out a lot of the issues that still plague many of these other companies. And that’s great news for non-Tesla EV owners or prospective buyers, since the company has opened up the Supercharger network to essentially all other electric vehicles.
What is a bit surprising is that Rivian is apparently matching Tesla when it comes to reliability, at least based on these respondents’ experiences. That means it’s off to a great start with its first 100 stations. But it will be up to Rivian to maintain that quality as it attempts to build the other 500 stations it has planned for North America.
