EV Charge card comparison – which has the best value?

Q: Get a free charge card with Tap

Check how much you’ll pay on top of your session costs Typically, when you use a charge card without a subscription, you need to pay a starting cost per session on top of your session costs. You may also pay a fee of up to €5 to receive your charge card.This is best for drivers who:Charge a few times a monthSpend less than €50 per month€50 is roughly the cost of one full charge of a Tesla Model 3 at Fastned, or a couple of full charges at an on-street charger.Prefer to use a charge card to start and stop their sessionsIf the above sounds like you, Tap Light could be a good subscription option. It’s free to sign up and you get a free Tapkey charge card, with a low 5% transaction fee on the operator cost.

Q: I want the cheapest charge card with a subscription

Check out Tap Roamer From our comparison set, Tap Roamer is the cheapest charge card with a subscription What do you get with Tap Roamer? Only pay the operator cost – even on fast chargers Free Tapkey charge card Pay session costs monthly Receive a monthly invoice of all your charge sessions Flexibility to downgrade to our free plan or cancel anytime Access to the largest public charger networks including Equans, TotalEnergies, Vattenfall, Allego, Shell, Fastned and Ionity.

January 26, 2024

Dana Nicolae

Our experts compare charge cards to help you decide which is the best value for you to use across the public network.

Need help on which charge card is right for you? Select a provider you’d like to compare.

	Select card Special Offer	Select card Special Offer	Select card Special Offer	Select card Special Offer
Type of charge card
Cost
Monthly cost
One-time charge card cost (may be a setup or shipping cost)
Cost to charge - only applies to public chargers not owned or operated by the provider (roaming)
AC charger - under 22 kW
DC charger - over 50 kW
Session costs
Blocking cost
App
App store rating
Play store rating

Pro tip: Compare charger prices often

Our analysis shows there’s an significant average price difference between equivalent normal chargers within walking distance of each other. Yep, you’re getting the same power, but could be paying more than you need to.

Why do you need a charge card for public charging?

You don’t always need a charge card to use a public charger, however many chargers don’t have payment terminals and very few providers offer charge session starts via an app without having a charge card. A charge card lets you use and pay for chargers across many public networks.

Tap gives you two easy ways to charge: tap your charge card on the RFID reader on the charger or start a session through our app. You do not need a charge card to start your first charge session with Tap.

Want to charge without a charge card?

Need to charge right now? No need to wait for a charge card to arrive, charge via the Tap app.

How do you use a charge card?

To charge your car, simply hold your charge card against the RFID reader on the charger. This starts and stops your charge session.

Want to keep an eye on things? The Tap app lets you monitor your live charge session. We show you the cost, energy consumption, and how long you’ve been charging. You can even stop the session remotely through the app, even if you started it with your card (and vice versa).

Why is it important to compare charge cards?

The price you pay changes depending on where the charger is, who operates the charger and what charge card you use. Comparing charge cards makes sure you get the best charge card for your charging needs.

How to compare charge cards?

Charging needs:

How often do you charge per month? How much do you pay for chargers you use regularly?

Charging network coverage:

Does the provider have chargers where you usually charge?

Charging costs:

How do charger prices change depending on the provider you use?

Can you get the same value for less with another provider?

App experience:

Which app features are most important to you and who does it best? Many apps provide real-time information on charger pricing which can help you save more.

If you’re new to driving an EV, and don’t have charge session history yet – Tap can help! With our map in the Tap app, you can analyse any area to find the average cost to charge, which charger operator is the cheapest and how many chargers there are. This can give you an idea on how much it costs to charge at home, near work or driving across the country.

What to look out for when choosing a charge card?

Many EV drivers in the Netherlands use popular providers for public charging like ANWB charge card, E-flux charge card, Vattenfall charge card, Eneco charge card and Tap charge card.

Type of charge card

Charge card with subscription

Some providers offer subscriptions, where you pay a monthly fee so you can get benefits like:

Reduced charger prices
Free charge cards
Discounts on other services

A charge card with a subscription can be cost-effective if you charge frequently every month on public chargers, especially at fast chargers.

Tap Roamer is the cheapest charge card with subscription in NL

With Tap Roamer, you only pay the price set by the operator – even on fast chargers for only €2,50/month.

Charge card without subscription

Many charging providers let you use their charger network without a subscription. This means you have no monthly fee.

On this type of card you may pay:

A higher charger price than if you had a subscription with the same provider
Transaction fees for each charging session
One-time fee for issuing the card

A charge card without a subscription provides flexibility if you only charge occasionally on public chargers. Paying a higher price may still offset paying a monthly subscription fee depending on how often you charge and how much you typically pay per session.

Want a charge card with flexibility?

With Tap Light, you get a free charge card and the flexibility to upgrade or cancel anytime. Plus, you get cheaper prices than if you were to pay-as-you-go.

Monthly subscription costs

If you decide to sign up for a charge card with a subscription, compare monthly costs and the benefits to make sure you’re getting the best value.
The most expensive charge card does not always mean the best value – some can cost you up to €7 per month.

Why not start your comparison with Tap?

We have the cheapest charge cards in the Netherlands.

How much can charger costs change depending on the charge card you use?

With Price Intel in the Tap app, you can see which charge card has the best price on many chargers in the Netherlands like Equans, Fastned and TotalEnergies – more coming soon.

Pricing with the Tap Roamer subscription is usually the cheapest option, and we’re upfront when it’s not – that’s how transparency works!

We sampled 2 random chargers from live data in the Tap app in the Netherlands on 15 October 2024 to see how much you could save by choosing the cheapest charge card.

Charger 1

Expected energy:

22 kWh

Expected power:

11 kW

Location:

Passeerdersgracht 20, Amsteram

Operator:

Equans

Charger ID:

EVB-P1552426-1 AMS-4356-1

Pricing information:

€0,279/kWh

Power:

11 kW

Best price: Tap Roamer

€6,12 + €2,50 monthly subscription

The difference in charging session cost between the most expensive and cheapest charge card is €6,33.

Charge card

Estimated charging session cost + monthly subscription

€6,12
+ €2,50/month

€6,12
+ €3,23/month

€6,12
+ €3,99/month

€6,43

€6,44

€6,46

€6,47

€6,56
+ €3,50/month

€6,92

€11,83
+ €3,00/month

€12,45

Charger 2

Expected energy:

42 kWh

Expected power:

150 kW

Location:

De Mieden A31, De Mieden

Operator:

Fastned

Charger ID:

3108803

Pricing information:

€0,690/kWh

Power:

150kW

Best price: Tap Roamer

€28,98 + €2,50 monthly subscription

The difference in charging session cost between the most expensive and cheapest charge card is €3,29.

Charge card

Estimated charging session cost + monthly subscription

€28,98
+ €2,50/month

€28,98
+ €3,23/month

€28,98
+ €3,99/month

€29,30

€29,32

€29,33

€29,59
+ €3,00/month

€29,82
+ €3,50/month

€30,18

€30,43

€32,27

What matters to you in a EV charge card?

Get a free charge card with Tap

Check how much you’ll pay on top of your session costs

Typically, when you use a charge card without a subscription, you need to pay a starting cost per session on top of your session costs. You may also pay a fee of up to €5 to receive your charge card.

This is best for drivers who:

Charge a few times a month
Spend less than €50 per month
- €50 is roughly the cost of one full charge of a Tesla Model 3 at Fastned, or a couple of full charges at an on-street charger.
Prefer to use a charge card to start and stop their sessions

If the above sounds like you, Tap Light could be a good subscription option. It’s free to sign up and you get a free Tapkey charge card, with a low 5% transaction fee on the operator cost.

I want a charge card with subscription - I charge often

Check first if you benefit from operator pricing or a fixed pricing scheme – this helps you narrow down which charge cards to compare.

On average, it’s cheaper to pay the operator price than a fixed pricing scheme. This is because there are many charger networks in the same region that compete on price. By using a charge card subscription based on operator pricing, you can save money by using a cheaper charger nearby. With a fixed price, you’ll not be able to benefit from a cheaper charger.

This is best for drivers who:

Charge often every month
Charge more than €50 per month
Prefer to use a charge card to start and stop their sessions

Tap Roamer is the cheapest subscription plan in the Netherlands at €2,50/month. You only pay the operator cost – even on fast chargers.

I want the cheapest charge card with a subscription

Check out Tap Roamer

From our comparison set, Tap Roamer is the cheapest charge card with a subscription

What do you get with Tap Roamer?

Only pay the operator cost – even on fast chargers
Free Tapkey charge card
Pay session costs monthly
Receive a monthly invoice of all your charge sessions
Flexibility to downgrade to our free plan or cancel anytime
Access to the largest public charger networks including Equans, TotalEnergies, Vattenfall, Allego, Shell, Fastned and Ionity.

I want the best EV charging app

The Tap Electric and ANWB laadpas apps have the highest ratings in the App and Play Store, both above 4.5 stars.

There are very few providers in our comparison set with an App and Play store rating above 4 stars. Every provider develops their apps differently – by downloading and exploring a few charging apps you will know what features are the most important to you.

A good charging app makes it easy to see all charger pricing information. This includes whether prices change throughout your session and if you could pay any start, idle and parking costs. Not every app has this level of transparent pricing. You may see some apps group complex pricing into a ‘from’ price without a further breakdown of what you’re paying for. With these apps there’s no way of knowing if you’re paying more than you should.

The Tap app has charger comparison tools to help you find the best value:

Use Map Intel to analyse an area on the Tap map to find out the average cost, which provider is the cheapest and how many chargers there are. All costs in the analysis are based on the price set by operators only.
Check Price Intel to see a full breakdown of charger costs for every charger and visualise if prices change throughout your session before you even start charging. The price you see here reflects your subscription status. Our subscribers get the cheapest prices on Tap!

When you start charging with Tap you can also see your prices in real-time. We believe drivers should know exactly what they’re paying for!

Why choose a Tap charge card?

Get a free charge card with Tap
Tap has the cheapest charge cards in the Netherlands
Pay based on prices set by the operator of the charger
Pay your charging costs once a month instead of after every session
Flexibility to cancel and upgrade at any time
Get the best charging app experience

Want to know more about public charging in the Netherlands?

Check out our ultimate guide to EV charging.

Start charging now via the Tap app

Only pay the operator cost with Tap Roamer

Get the cheapest charge card subscription in the Netherlands – only €2,50/month!

Resources and expertise:

the methodology behind our data

Our experts fact checked and last updated this research on 9 October 2024.

Sources:

Charge card provider sites:

E-flux by Road
ANWB
Shell Recharge
Vandebron

Sampled chargers:

Data was taken from live tariff data of public chargers on 24 April 2024 incl. VAT.

Details:

Our experts reviewed charge card subscription pricing structures for the following popular providers.

Charge card without subscription:

Tap Light – free subscription
E-Flux by Road Flex
ANWB charge card with no subscription
Eneco E-mobility charge card with no subscription
Shell Recharge
Vattenfall InCharge