A property owner installs an EV charger, then faces a second decision nobody warned them about: what to actually charge for it. Free, to keep it simple? A flat fee per session? A price per kWh, the way a gas pump prices by the gallon?
Each choice affects utilization, revenue, and how much administrative work the charger creates down the road, and in Maryland specifically, one of those choices is about to become a legal requirement rather than a preference.
The right answer depends on why the charger is there in the first place. A workplace perk, a resident amenity, and a revenue-generating public charger each call for a different structure, and DMV property owners have more regulatory room to work with than owners in many other states.
Blue Whale EV is Sourcewell’s top-ranked contractor for EV charging installation and holds EVITP certification, and we’ve worked through this pricing decision with property owners across the DMV region many times over. This guide reflects our experiences and best practices when considering EV charging price per kWh for your properties.
The Three Ways Properties Price EV Charging
According to the U.S. Department of Energy’s Alternative Fuels Data Center, common pricing structures fall into a few categories: by kWh, by session, by length of time connected, or through a subscription. The kWh price at EV charging stations is what most drivers compare between locations, since it’s the one number that lets them predict a session’s cost before plugging in.
More than 20 percent of public charging in the U.S. is still free to use, which is worth knowing if free charging feels like an odd choice. It isn’t. It’s common, particularly as an amenity rather than a revenue source.
Per-kWh pricing
Per-kWh pricing charges for the actual electricity delivered, the same logic as a utility bill or a gas pump. It’s the fairest method for the driver, since two people plugged into identical chargers for identical time can use very different amounts of energy depending on their vehicle and battery level. It’s also the method regulators increasingly favor, for reasons covered below.
Time-based pricing
Time-based pricing charges per hour or per minute connected, regardless of energy delivered. The AFDC notes this structure is common specifically in states where non-utilities are restricted from selling electricity directly, since billing by time sidesteps the legal question of selling power. Virginia, Maryland, and DC don’t have that restriction, which is covered in the next section.
Flat session and subscription pricing
Flat session and subscription pricing charge a fixed amount per plug-in or per month, independent of time or energy. It’s the simplest to administer and the easiest for drivers to predict, but it can undercharge heavy users and overcharge light ones.
Why the DMV Region Has More Flexibility Than Most States
Whether a property can legally sell electricity by the kWh at all depends on state utility law, and this is where Virginia, Maryland, and DC differ from a meaningful share of the country. In many states, only a regulated utility can sell electricity, which pushes site hosts toward time-based pricing simply to stay compliant.
Virginia’s code takes the opposite approach. An entity that isn’t a public utility may sell electricity for EV charging, and the State Corporation Commission is explicitly barred from setting the rates non-utilities charge. DC’s code reaches the same result: a person or entity that owns or operates EV charging equipment is not defined as a public utility. Maryland treats EV charger owners as retail electric customers rather than utilities, which has the same practical effect.
In plain terms, DMV property owners can price by the kWh without wading through the regulatory workaround that time-based billing exists to solve elsewhere. Given that per-kWh is also the pricing method drivers generally consider fairest, that’s a real advantage worth using rather than defaulting to time-based pricing out of habit.
Maryland Requires Per-kWh Pricing on Public Chargers
Maryland has gone a step further than simply allowing per-kWh pricing. Since July 1, 2026, the Maryland Department of Agriculture’s Weights and Measures program requires that all electrical energy sold at retail as vehicle fuel be sold in units of the kilowatt-hour. Time-based pricing alone won’t satisfy the requirement for chargers that fall under the program.
The registration itself applies to publicly available Level 2 and DC fast chargers where a fee is charged, including workplace chargers open to the public and multi-fleet chargers billed through an agreement. The fee is $75 per port, a figure MDA reduced from an original $150 after industry pushback, according to the department’s June 2026 announcement. Chargers must also meet NIST Handbook 44 metering accuracy standards and carry an NTEP certificate of conformance. Those accuracy standards apply for the life of the charger, not just at installation, which is what our WhaleCareâ„¢ preventative maintenance program is built to cover.
What doesn’t require registration is directly relevant to the apartment and condo audience asking about this: private-use chargers at multifamily properties are exempt, as long as they:
- Sit on the property
- Aren’t located on a public street or in a public garage
- Can’t be accessed by visitors or the general public
- Carry signage stating they’re for resident use only.
A condo board or apartment manager who wants to avoid the registration and metering requirements entirely has a clear path to do so, provided the charger is genuinely restricted to residents.
Where that gets complicated is a common condo scenario: a resident asks the board why they can’t just be billed based on what they use, the way their own electric bill works. Per-kWh billing answers that fairly, but if the charger is ever opened to visitors or listed on a public charging app, it crosses into the registered, regulated category. Boards weighing that decision may want guidance from Blue Whale EV’s Charge Point Operator Service, which handles metering, billing, and compliance so the property doesn’t have to track the rules itself. For the installation side of that decision, our guide to installing EV charging at apartments and condos covers HOA approval and electrical planning.
What to Actually Charge: A Starting Framework
None of this answers the number itself, and there isn’t a single right one. A reasonable starting point:
Cover your electricity cost first. Check your utility rate per kWh, including any demand charges a DC fast charger might trigger, and don’t price below that unless the charger is intentionally a free amenity.
Add a margin if this is meant to generate revenue, not just recover cost. Blue Whale EV’s Commercial EV Charging Cost & ROI Calculator is built to model this specifically, comparing utilization scenarios against your actual site conditions rather than a generic estimate, since no two sites produce the same cost picture.
Decide whether visitors pay differently than residents or employees. A common structure offers free or discounted charging to residents and tenants, with a market rate for public or guest use.
Idle Fees: The Piece Most Pricing Plans Miss
A per-kWh or per-session price only controls what happens while a car is actively charging. It says nothing about a driver who finishes charging and leaves the vehicle parked in the spot for the next four hours. On a two-port Level 2 station, that’s half your capacity gone for reasons that have nothing to do with electricity delivered.
An idle fee, sometimes called an overstay fee, charges separately once a session ends but the vehicle stays connected. Electrify America’s published idle fee policy is a useful reference point: $0.40 per minute after a 10-minute grace period. The exact number matters less than having one. For a property with limited ports and real driver demand, an idle fee is often the difference between a charger that turns over three times a day and one that turns over once.
Maryland’s registration rules require idle fees, if used, to be disclosed to the customer before the charging session begins, alongside the per-kWh rate. That disclosure requirement is a reasonable practice everywhere in the DMV region, not just where it’s mandatory.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the average price to charge an EV at a commercial property?
There’s no single average, since pricing depends on the local utility rate, charger type, and whether the property is pricing to recover cost or generate revenue. The more useful number is your own utility rate per kWh, which sets the floor for what to charge if the goal is at least breaking even on electricity cost.
Can an apartment or condo charge residents for EV charging in Maryland?
Yes. Owners and operators of EV chargers are treated as retail electric customers rather than utilities, so billing residents for actual electricity used is allowed. Chargers restricted to resident use, not visible to the public, and properly signed are exempt from Maryland’s EVSE registration and metering program.
Do I have to charge by the kWh, or can I charge by the hour?
In Virginia and DC, either method is legal for a private property owner. In Maryland, publicly available chargers that fall under the Weights and Measures registration program must sell electricity by the kilowatt-hour as the primary method of sale, though additional time-based idle fees are allowed as a separate, disclosed charge.
What is an idle fee and should my property charge one?
An idle fee charges a driver for occupying a charging spot after their session has finished. It’s worth using on any property where charger demand regularly exceeds available ports, since it’s the main lever that encourages turnover once a car has already been charged.
Does my EV charger need to be registered with the state of Maryland?
If it’s publicly available and charges a fee, yes, as of July 1, 2026. Chargers restricted to private use, including most resident-only multifamily chargers, workplace chargers not open to the public, and private single-fleet chargers, are exempt.
How much do apartments charge for EV charging?
Structures vary by property. Some apartment complexes offer charging free as an amenity, others bill at or slightly above the property’s electricity rate per kWh, and some charge a flat monthly fee bundled with a parking spot. The right structure depends on whether the property is treating the charger as a retention amenity or a revenue source.
How do you keep people from not using your condo’s EV charger?
Underused chargers are usually a pricing or awareness problem, not a hardware problem. Free charging removes any reason for a resident not to use it, which is why many condos treat the first charger as a resident-only amenity rather than a paid service.
If the charger is billed and utilization is still low, check whether residents actually know the rate and how to start a session; unclear or intimidating billing is a more common cause of low use than the price itself. The other version of this problem is a charger that’s occupied by a non-charging vehicle, which an idle fee (covered below) is built to solve.
Let Blue Whale EV Help with a Pricing Model Built Around Your Actual Site
A pricing strategy is only as good as the data behind it: your utility rate, expected utilization, and whether Maryland’s registration rules apply to your specific chargers. Blue Whale EV’s free EV Charging Interest Report starts with a survey of the people who would actually use your property’s charging, then models what pricing and charger count make sense for your site, not a generic estimate.
Get your free EV Charging Interest Report and find out what charging at your property should actually cost, and what it could earn.
