Unfortunately, they're also pretty expensive to buy (even with the £2500 government grant for EVs costing less than £35,000) and that means they're pricy to insure. It's gospel! Well, it kind of is, because here we've assembled a motley crew of electric cars that are cheap to insure.
And we've not cheated, you won't find the quadricycle Renault Twizy (insurance group 10) or tiny Smart Fortwo (group 10), here. No, all the electric cars on this list have everyday usability going for them, so keep reading to find the cheapest electric cars to insure.
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Insurance group 10
If the standard Volkswagen Up is a black belt in city motoring then the e-Up electric model is its all-knowing sensei – it's an even better town car. Unfortunately, it is quite pricey compared to the standard model.
On the bright side, the e-Up's cheap to insure for an electric car and free from paying emissions charges, it drives like an automatic because it has one gear and its regenerative brakes mean you barely have to press the brake pedal. The battery, meanwhile, has a 161-mile and the torquey motor means it feels quick in the city.
Meanwhile, everything we like about the standard Up stands in the e-Up. It's nice to drive for a small car, its cabin has VW's classic feel of solidity and, considering it's tiny, it's roomy inside. This may be the cheapest electric car to insure, but it's also one of the best.
Insurance group 11
It's as if the Smart EQ Forfour escaped its pen at Mercedes HQ in Stuttgart to be brought up by a pack of Berlin-based, craft-beer swilling hipsters everything about it – from its dinky looks to its trendy interior – screams urban dweller.
Its rear-mounted motor means it's ultra maneuverable because, with no engine in the way, the front wheels can turn very tightly, its raised driving position gives you a great view of the road and it is also very cheap to run. However, it is the Smart's group 10 insurance that wins it a place on this list.
Mind you, not everything is great. Its 85-mile range is about half what you can expect from a Volkswagen e-Up – so it's a city car that really is best kept within city limits – and, while it has room for four people, they'll feel pretty hemmed in.
Insurance group 12
Like the standard version of the SEAT Mii, the SEAT Mii Electric is heavily based on a Volkswagen equivalent - the e-Up electric in this case. As usual it's slightly cheaper to make up for the fact that SEAT badge isn't quite so desirable as a Volkswagen and it's not quite so smart inside.
More or less everything else is identical, mind, which means the Mii has room for four adults inside and a bigger boot than most other city cars. Just like the e-Up, the Mii Electric is a city centre specialist with a pokey electric motor and a 161-mile range, while its regenerative brakes that slow the car when you take your foot off the accelerator and single gear means you can get away with using one pedal most of the time.
The only oddity is that it sits in insurance group 12 – two groups higher than the identical VW.
Insurance group 14
While up until this point the cars on this list are electric versions of a conventional model, the Renault Zoe is a car that has been designed from the ground up to be electric – not that you'd know it because there not much strikingly space age about its design.
Dig a little deeper though and you'll find there's a lot to like about the Zoe, such as its range of up to 245 miles and ability to recharge its battery to 80% in around an hour using a rapid charger. A full charge at home will take nine hours, but save you a fortune and it is at this point we should also mention that the Zoe has relatively low group 14 insurance.
It makes a lot of sense if you live in town thanks to effortless acceleration at low speeds and the B driving mode, which means the car's regenerative brakes slow the car when you lift off the accelerator. It's not as fun-to-drive or as trendy inside as a MINI Electric, but it is more practical.
Insurance group 16
If imitation is the greatest form of flattery then, jeez, Toyota must be feeling pretty blooming flattered – the Hyundai Ioniq Electric is a carbon copy of its Prius. Slinky, aerodynamic body? Check. Slightly boring interior with high-tech drivetrain readouts? You betcha. Tiny fuel sipping hybrid engine? Well... Kinda.
Sleuths will have spotted a pin hole in the argument because while the Toyota Prius is available in hybrid and plug-in hybrid, the Ioniq goes one better by offering pure electric power, too (which is just as well given the title of this list).
In this configuration, the Ioniq has a range of up to 183 miles and (for all the same reasons other EVs on this list are great in the city) is an ideal town car. It's also pretty practical, with the slightly tight rear seat headroom balanced out by the fact it has a big boot. Perhaps the Hyundai's biggest selling point is that it comes with the five-year warranty that Toyota has recently phased out.
Insurance group 15
It's is fair to say the Volkswagen e-Golf isn't perfect – its performance and range now look lacklustre and the boot is smaller than in the regular car. But the fact this is a Volkswagen means the usual quality shines through while refinement and comfort are both very impressive.
Being a Golf means you get superb interior quality and an infotainment system that is an absolute joy compared to the newer incarnation. Practicality is also strong with a spacious back seat and a boot that – while smaller than the standard model – is still bigger than in plenty of the VW's period rivals.
Sure, the 120-mile range and acceleration (0-62mph in 13.4 seconds) isn't great, but if you want all the things you love about the Golf, but with electric power – this is your only option, the introduction of the Volkswagen ID.3 means there's no electric version of the new Golf that was launched in 2020.
Insurance group 16
In less than 40 years, Hyundai's cars have gone from being unknown to not great to mainstream, while models like the Hyundai Tucson got oh so close to the 'class-leading' tag motoring journalists covet as their benchmark. What does the future hold? Well, something like the Hyundai Kona Electric.
Electric power means it is time for Hyundai to shine brighter than ever, the South Korean company is streets ahead of many competitors in such matters – something the Kona Electric abily proves. Even the entry-level version (the one with the cheapest insurance) has a range of nearly 200 miles and acceleration of 0-62mph in less than eight seconds. It's no barnstormer, but the effortless performance suits the sensible-family-car brief beautifully.
As does the spacious interior. There's room for four in there and you get a useful square-shaped boot. Hyundai has also gone to the effort of sprucing up the cabin compared to the regular Hyundai Kona and all models get a reversing camera. If this is Hyundai's future, we like it.
Insurance group 18
The Volkswagen ID.3 could be the car that turns EVs mainstream because it comes from the same manufacturer that brought us household names like the Beetle, Polo and Golf. If anyone knows how to get us all driving electric cars, it is likely Volkswagen.
So what can you expect from your future electric car? Number one is an infotainment-laiden cabin with a larger centre screen, a digital dashboard and the option to have a head-up display with augmented reality that interacts with your car's surroundings. You also get lots of passenger space thanks to the neater packaging of the battery and motor.
The latter is actually found under the boot and drives the rear-wheels. For the cheapest insurance, you'll need to go for the 45kWh battery model, which has a range of more than 200 miles and gets from 0-62mph in 8.9 seconds – decent figures, however, the ID.3 is in its best light treated as a quiet and comfortable cruiser.
Insurance group 18
If the Kia Soul was a TV show it would be the BBC's I Can See Your Voice. If you've been lucky enough to miss ICSYV (jealous!) it's a show where contestants have to guess if the singer standing in front of them is indeed singing or – plot twist – miming. The idea being that just because you radiate star-like qualities doesn't necessarily mean you have them.
In the opposite way, the Kia Soul looks like nothing special, but hidden underneath its unintriguing body is a superstar of an electric motor which has 201PS – so it's quick – but also a startling range of 280 miles. It's easily one of the best electric cars you can buy as a result.
Yet, with a price tag of £32,445, it is also one of the cheapest. That buys you a car that has lots of kit – including an excellent infotainment system – room for four people and a boot that'll just about swallow a couple of suitcases. Doesn't look so boring now, does it?
Insurance group 19
Wouldn't it be great to combine the best bits of several cars? You could have the engaging drive of a sports car like the MX-5, the interior space of an SUV like the CX-3 and the acceleration of a high-performance electric car. That's the idea behind the Mazda MX-30.
People love SUVs so if you want them to buy your electric car, giving it an SUV body makes a whole lot of sense and the company's gone to some effort to make the MX-30 look cool with its visor grille, coupe roofline and suicide doors.
While it's no sports car, Mazda's successfully injected some of its famous sparkle into the driving experience, even if the MX-30 doesn't feel that quick. More of an issue is the 124-mile range, almost acceptable in a city car – a lot harder to come to terms with in something the Mazda's size. The interior, meanwhile, is plush but boy does the back seat feel cramped.
The cheapest electric car to insure is the Volkswagen e-Up. It looks almost identical to the standard Up, but its familiar body hides a high-tech electric drivetrain that gives it a 161-mile range and nippy in-town performance.
That depends. Mild-hybrid cars cost about the same to insure as a petrol or diesel, plug-in hybrid model tend to cost a bit more because their large batteries are more expensive to replace. Read our guide to the best hybrid cars to find out more.
Electric cars tend to cost more to insure than a comparable petrol or diesel. That's because they have large batteries that are expensive to replace if the car is damaged.