21/04/2026
For the first time ever, the average new electric car in the UK is cheaper to buy than the average new petrol car.
According to Autotrader, the average listed price of a new electric vehicle has dropped to £42,620, compared to £43,405 for a new petrol model.
That's a gap of £785 in favour of electric, and it marks a genuine turning point in a debate that has been running for years.
The upfront cost has always been the main sticking point.
Electric cars have been cheaper to run for a while now.
Charging at home costs a fraction of filling up at a forecourt, servicing tends to be simpler, and there are tax advantages for business drivers.
But that higher purchase price kept a lot of people sitting on the fence. That barrier has now gone, at least on paper.
A few things pushed prices down to get here.
The government's electric car grant, introduced last summer, takes up to £3,750 off certain models.
Car manufacturers have also been under real pressure to hit electric sales targets, which has forced some historically heavy discounting earlier in the year.
An influx of Chinese electric car brands coming into the UK market has pushed traditional manufacturers to sharpen their pricing to stay competitive.
On top of all that, recent fuel price rises have made petrol and diesel running costs look even less attractive by comparison.
Autotrader and other platforms across Europe have reported a surge in interest from buyers looking to cut what they spend getting from A to B.
The catch, and there is one, is that not everyone is equally placed to take advantage of this shift.
If you don't have a driveway or a dedicated parking space, you're dependent on the public charging network.
And while that has improved, it remains unreliable in many parts of the country.
For people in that situation, the sums look different.
Electric car sales already made up 22% of all new car registrations in the first quarter of this year.
That number will likely keep climbing as prices stay competitive and the choice of models keeps growing.
It is a genuine milestone.
Whether it's the right time for you personally to make the switch is a completely separate question.
More on that in the comments 👇
