Cheapest electric cars in 2025

Forget cheapest electric cars for a second, the Citroen Ami is actually the cheapest new car on sale right now, and by some margin. Even if you head up to the top-spec Citroen Ami Tonic, it'll cost less than £9,000, which is thousands less than a Dacia Sandero. So what's the catch? 

Well, we're playing very fast and loose with the word 'car' here. Technically, the Citroen Ami is a quadricycle. It means the Ami can be driven without a full driving licence by a 16 year-old, but it also means it's limited in use and doesn't have to pass the same kind of safety tests as a car. 

As such, the Citroen Ami has an electric range of just 47 miles, but that doesn't really matter when the top speed is limited to a measly 28mph. You only get two seats, the only real equipment on offer is a heater and you can only charge it from a domestic plug socket. 

Don't write off the funky little Ami, however. It's great fun to thread through town, costs pennies to run and is certainly more secure and safe than a moped when it comes to city commutes or leisure journeys. The Citroen Ami has its place: just don't expect too much from it.

The Dacia Spring is very new to the market, so used prices are still comparable to new, but that's no bad thing because the Spring is the cheapest new electric car you can buy. And yes, this one's actually a car.

Having been on sale in Europe for a few years, the Spring finally arrived in the UK in 2024, and in facelifted form, too. New prices start at just £14,995, which gets you the Expression trim with a 45PS electric motor, air conditioning and rear parking sensors. If you want a proper infotainment system, you need to upgrade to the £16,995 Extreme trim, which also gives you a punchier 65PS motor.

Range? Around 140 miles on a fully charged battery, which isn't loads, but then this is an avowed city car. If you rarely venture out of town, this should do the job.

Don't feel bad if you've not heard of Leapmotor before, because not many folk in the UK have yet. Leapmotor is a Chinese car company that is part-owned by the multinational manufacturing powerhouse known as Stellantis (the firm that also owns and operates brands including Citroen, Peugeot, DS, Vauxhall, Fiat, Alfa Romeo, Jeep, along with many others), and in 2024, the decision was made to start flogging Leapmotor models in Europe through Stellantis' vast network of existing dealerships.

The Leapmotor T03 is the firm's first UK offering, and it's a teeny electric city car. It has a 95PS electric motor connected to a 37.3kWh battery, which gives the T03 a driving range of 165 miles according to official WLTP figures. Just one trim level is offered, and comes very well equipped for the £15,995 you pay. You get alloy wheels, a panoramic sunroof, adaptive cruise control, digital instruments and a 10.1-inch infotainment screen with built-in sat-nav and Bluetooth. However, there's no DAB, Apple CarPlay or Android Auto, which might put some buyers off.

The electric version of Citroen's C3 costs from just £21,990 new, which is remarkably affordable for a car with up to 199 miles of battery range.

It's still very new, so there aren't very many examples on the used market yet. When there are, though, they'll represent even more of a deal.

This is no bargain-basement model, either. It's a proper car with alloy wheels, LED headlights, nicely padded seats, and a proper infotainment system, as well as space for four and a 310-litre boot. Even the top-spec version is less than £24,000 new.

It's certainly not the cheapest EV on our list, but the new Renault 5 might just be the coolest. Or at least, it's a tie between this and the MINI Cooper Electric mentioned further down the page. Renault has done an incredible job of reimagining the classic 5 for modern times and given it a suitably up-to-date electric powertrain in the process. Impressively, the production model looks scarcely different from the concept car revealed a few years ago.

Under that neo-retro bodywork is a 40kWh battery pack giving a fairly modest official range of 186 miles, which means you may struggle to get 150 miles on a single charge with mixed driving. The larger 52kWh battery, which provides up to 252 miles of range, isn't available with the base Evolution trim, so you'll need to upgrade to Techno. 

Paired with the bigger pack, a Renault 5 Techno is a still very reasonable £26,995, and you also get a more powerful motor to sweeten the deal.

The modern-day Fiat 500 first arrived in 2008 and has been a huge success for the Italian brand. For this third-generation model, Fiat has made the bold decision of making it electric only, although you can still buy the old model as a budget new-car choice. 

Still one of the smallest cars on the road at just 3.6m long, the Fiat 500 Electric starts at just £24,995 brand new. This gets you a modest 24kWh battery which gives a 118-mile range, but versions with larger batteries are available with a 200-mile combined range. 

Fiat's freshened up the 500's already stylish looks with some nice little touches, and while entry-level trim is pretty basic, other models get niceties such as a 10.25-inch touchscreen with sat-nav and fancy styling add-ons. 

The Ora 03, as its now known, was originally launched in the UK as the Ora Funky Cat, but it would appear that the original name was a bit too out-there for conservative British buyers, hence the rebrand to a name that couldn't be more dull if it tried. It's actually produced by Great Wall – one of China's biggest car manufacturers – and sold in the UK by IM Group (who also import Subaru and Isuzu models).

Once you get over the dull/bizarre name (it's called the Good Cat in China), it's actually a pretty decent electric car. You get quirky looks, a feel-good, high-quality interior and quite a lot of passenger space (although the boot is bizarrely small). For this money, the Ora 03 comes in Pure trim, with a 48kWh battery that provides a range of up to 193 miles. Or, for £28,995, you can have the Pro version, which gets a 63kWh battery that gives you up to 260 miles.

Chinese firm BYD has made quite the splash in the UK, launching several impressive cars within a very short space of time. The Dolphin hatchback is the most affordable, costing from £26,195 when brand new.

It represents a lot of car for the price, with a battery range of around 200 miles on the Dolphin's smaller 45kWh battery, and up to 265 miles on the larger 60kWh unit. Power for the entry-level model is 95PS, while more expensive versions can have up to 204PS.

There's lots of room inside, with a 345-litre boot and an eye-catching infotainment system that swivels from portrait to landscape depending on your preference. Android Auto and Apple CarPlay are bundled in, too.

The Citroen e-C4 has been moving up and down this list on a fairly regular basis in recent times, and that's because there have been lots of fluctuations in its price. There was a time it would've cost you somewhere in the region of £32,000 but, for now at least, the range kicks off at just £26,295, bumping the car up to ninth place in our table.

For that, you get the You! version, which comes with a 136PS powertrain and the smaller of two battery options offered in Stellantis-produced electric cars, rated at 50kWh. This gives it a range of 219 miles. Pay a chunk more (around £30,000), and you can also have it in 156PS 54kWh form, which has a range of 257 miles.

There's more to like about the e-C4 than just the price, though. It's rugged SUV-style design certainly appeals, but it's actually more of a family hatchback. It's bigger and roomier than most of the EVs in this list, too, so there's space for four adults to get comfortable, and a decent 380-litre boot. What's more, the car has just undergone a significant facelift, introducing a variety of improvements, to make it more appealing than ever.

The MINI Cooper Electric's predecessor often struggled to get better than 100 miles of range on a cold day, even though its official WLTP range figure stood at 145 miles. Its successor, though, does a bit better. For the money mentioned, you get the MINI Cooper E with a 184PS motor and a 36.6kWh battery, giving a slightly better range of 185 miles. Spend three grand more, and you can have the Cooper SE, which has 218PS, a battery of 49.2kWh, and a range of 247 miles.

What hasn't changed is how fun the MINI Electric is to drive: it's probably the most entertaining EV you can buy without parting with a serious amount of money for something like a Hyundai Ioniq 5 N or Porsche Taycan. It also, as mentioned, competes with the Renault 5 for the title of being the coolest EV at this end of the market. There are a couple of catches, though. The MINI Cooper Electric is not a big car, with a small boot and tight rear legroom, and those wanting to use the rear seats will find ingress and egress tricky since the MINI is only available in a three-door configuration.

All in all, we reckon, the MG4 is one of the best budget electric cars you can buy right now. It's the brand's first entry into the family hatchback sector and should be seen as a direct rival to the Volkswagen ID.3. 

But while the ID.3 starts at around £31,000, the MG4 starts at just £26,995. Granted, it's a touch smaller than the ID.3, but the interior is finished nicely, has plenty of good tech, and there's enough space for a growing family. It's also very good to drive, with tidy handling and a comfortable ride. 

You're not compromised when it comes to electric range, either, with even the most affordable MG4 capable of covering 218 miles before needing to be charged. Pick the Trophy Extended Range model, and you'll get 323 miles on a single charge.

Mazda likes to do things differently, so there was no doubt that its first electric vehicle would stand out against competitors. For a start, the Mazda MX-30 has a relatively small 33.5kWh battery, which means it can cover just 124 miles between charges according to official WLTP tests (and, likely, considerably less in reality).

That's not necessarily a bad thing, though. Smaller batteries are kinder to the environment (both to produce and recycle), while they're also a lot quicker to charge. Less than 30 minutes at a public rapid charger will top up the Mazda MX-30.

What's more, the Mazda MX-30 has a fun driving experience, a neatly designed interior with quirky rear-hinged rear doors and plenty of standard kit. It's priced competitively compared with other small SUVs, too, with new prices starting at £27,995.

This car has been called both the Vauxhall Corsa-e and the Vauxhall Corsa Electric during its years on sale, and that's not all that's changed over time. Like the related Citroen e-C4 we mentioned earlier, the price of the electric version of the Vauxhall Corsa has fluctuated massively in recent times, and as a result, its place on this list has moved up and down faster than - ironically - a piston in a combustion engine.

Right now, the Yes special edition of the electric Corsa sits on price lists at £26,840, but that version is a very short-lived option. The cheapest regular version of the electric Corsa is the Design at £29,045. Both come with the lower-grade powertrain offered in the Corsa range, combining a 136PS motor with a 50kWh battery, giving a range of up to 221 miles.

It's a pretty conservative and sensible car, but it's also well made, grown up and pretty good to drive. It comes with all the creature comforts you demand, too.

Look beneath the surface of the Peugeot e-208, and all the oily - and coppery - bits are virtually identical to those used in the Vauxhall Corsa we were just talking about, and the Citroen e-C4 we mentioned earlier. And spolier alert: those same bits and pieces figure further down this list, too. That surface is very important, though, because it constitutes most of what marks the Peugeot out against its stablemates, not to mention electric-supermini rivals. Okay, so the e-208 a bit more expensive that its Vauxhall Corsa cousin, but also looks a lot more glamorous.

While it's not the roomiest car of its type, it's packed with features including a touchscreen infotainment system, with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto all included. A full charge of the standard 50kWh battery will get you up to 225 miles, while the upgraded 51kWh battery (available from late 2023) extends that to 248 miles. New prices start at £29,950, but because the e-208 been on sale for a few years now, you can pick up a used one for far less.

Yep, our final entry on this list is yet another member of the Stellantis brigade, and although the 600 Electric has similar styling to the Fiat 500 Electric we talked about earlier, it's actually based on the same architecture as the Citroen, Peugeot and Vauxhall products we've also been talking about, which is rather different to the 500's.

There's a minor difference: while the others are offered with two different powertrain specifications, the 600 Electric is only offered with the group's higher-spec one. That means you get a 156PS motor, a 54kWh battery and a driving range of up to 254 miles.

Like the other cars it's related to, the 600 Electric has slightly limited practicality and a handful of iffy-looking cabin plastics, but it's better in other areas. It's decent to drive, pretty well equipped and comes with a decent level of tech. Obviously, it's the 600 Electric's charming retro style that'll be the biggest draw for buyers, but if you prefer something more rugged instead, just £24 more buys you the Jeep Avenger, which again, is all-but-identical underneath.