Level 1
All electric vehicles come with a cord that lets you charge your EV using any standard 120-volt household outlet.
This level of charger is the slowest speed of charging, it will give you about 8 km range per hour. Consider it your EV jerry can – in case of emergency you can plug in anywhere!
Level 2
This is the most common way to charge your electric vehicle, most EV owners will install a level 2 charging station at home (any electrician can do this for you).
All EVs and charging stations in North America use the same plug standard, so no matter what the model of your electric vehicle, you will always be able to charge your battery at a level 2 charger in Canada and the United States.
This level of charger gives you about 30-40 km range per hour.
Level 3
DCFC
Level 3, most commonly called Direct Current Fast Chargers (DCFC) is the fastest way to charge your electric vehicle. They are usually found in public areas and are what you would use to charge your EV on a road trip. Think of them as gas pumps for EVs.
There are three plug standards for DCFC, one of which is unique to Tesla. Every non-Telsa DCFC charging location has both non-Tesla plug adapters, so no matter what the model of your car you can charge up at a DCFC!
This level of charger gives you up to 1,600 km range per hour. Most EVs will charge in 20-30 minutes.
Where to find public charging stations
There are more than 1,700 public charging stations with more than 5,000 charging ports in Ontario (see here for details) – and more are being added every day. But how do you know where to find them?
The best way is via PlugShare and A Better Route Planner. These public charging maps track the location and operating status of all public charging stations in Canada (and the United States) You can find them online, or download them as apps for either iOS or Android.
For Ottawa-specific charging information visit Engage Ottawa.