Power demand: EV electricity use growth slows to 8% in 1H 2026
EIA estimates US electric vehicles used nearly 14 billion kWh in the first half of 2026, up 8% from late 2025 as new EV sales fell 19% after tax credits ended.
| Item | Figure |
|---|---|
| EV electricity use, 1H 2026 | nearly 14 billion kWh |
| Change vs 2H 2025 | +8% |
| Prior six-month growth rates | 13% to 24% |
| EV electricity use vs 1H 2023 | more than doubled |
| New EV sales, 1H 2026 vs 2H 2025 | -19% |
| EV share of registered light-duty vehicles, 2024 | 2% |
WASHINGTON - Electricity demand from electric vehicles is still rising, but more slowly. The U.S. Energy Information Administration estimated on Sept. 30 that light-duty electric vehicles used 8% more electricity in the first half of 2026 than in the second half of 2025, a pace well below the 13% to 24% gains in six-month periods in recent years.
Slower growth after tax credits ended
EIA tied the slowdown to a drop in sales after federal tax credits expired in September 2025. The New Clean Vehicle Credit and the Qualified Commercial Clean Vehicle Credit, which reduced the cost of buying and leasing new electric vehicles, ended on Sept. 30, 2025. New electric vehicle sales in the first half of 2026 were 19% lower than in the second half of 2025.
Even with slower growth, usage is much higher than three years ago. EIA estimates that light-duty EV electricity consumption has more than doubled since the first half of 2023 and totaled nearly 14 billion kilowatthours in the first half of 2026.
What the estimate covers
The figures are modeled estimates for on-road light-duty vehicles weighing 8,500 pounds or less. They include battery electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles, which draw power from the grid, and exclude conventional, hybrid and fuel cell vehicles. EIA does not collect these data through its traditional surveys. It built the series from a recently finalized model based on external data sources and will keep publishing it in the Monthly Energy Review and the State Energy Data System.
Context for energy markets
Electric vehicles are still a small part of the fleet. In 2024, the latest year with data, they made up 2% of all registered light-duty vehicles in the United States. Growth rates for EV charging therefore start from a small base of vehicles. The EIA piece does not discuss power prices or fuels, and the slowdown it reports applies to the pace of growth, not to a decline in use.
Reading the trend
The agency’s chart compares six-month periods beginning with the first half of 2023. The latest bar, at 8%, is the smallest increase in the run of recent periods that EIA cites, all of which ran between 13% and 24%. Because the series is a model output rather than a survey count, EIA presents it as an estimate.
Prepared with AI assistance from public sources and reviewed under our editorial policy. Not investment advice.
