Why do different drivers pay different prices?
The cable is back in its holder, 41 kWh delivered. Three cars charged here within the hour.
Our driver pays 0.64 €/kWh through their app. The van driver next to them paid 0.54 on a subscription. A visitor without a contract paid 0.69 by debit card.
The questionSame charger, same hour, three prices. Who set each one, and where does the money go?
Guess firstWho set that 0.64 €/kWh?RevealHide
In this case the eMSP, the provider of the driver's app. It pays the operator an agreed wholesale price that the driver does not see, and sets its own retail price: higher, lower, or reduced through a subscription. Only the visitor paying ad hoc paid the operator's own price.
The driver pays the eMSP named in the app or contract. The charger operator normally does not receive this full retail price.
Money moves in the opposite direction to energy. The prices are an illustrative example.
Three routes to one charger
- Contract with an (0.64). The everyday route: one app, one monthly invoice, valid in many networks through . The eMSP's margin is the difference between its retail price, net of VAT, and the wholesale price it pays.
- Subscription (0.54). The same route with a different structure: a monthly fee in exchange for a lower price per kWh, useful for frequent charging.
- payment (0.69). No contract, the operator's own price, shown before the session starts. Every public charger must allow ad hoc payment. Those built since April 2024 must accept electronic payment: by card reader or contactless card at 50 kW and more, below that also by an online payment such as a QR code. From 2027, older chargers of 50 kW and more along the trans-European road network need a card reader or contactless reader as well.
Much of what the operator receives is spent again quickly. Energy purchase is the largest variable cost, followed by the 's rent or , hardware depreciation and service. How many sessions a site sells therefore decides its result, as stop 7 shows.
After every session, a (charge detail record) travels from the operator to the eMSP: the digital receipt with energy, duration and tariff. It becomes a line on the driver's invoice, so its accuracy matters to everyone in the chain.
Check your understanding
4 questions. Answer all of them to complete this stop. Each answer explains itself.
Three drivers, one charger, three prices. The main reason is…
The commercial route sets the price. The charger delivers the same energy either way.
What is the CDR's role in this story?
Without a CDR there is no invoice. Its accuracy decides whether everyone is paid correctly.
Why can an ad hoc session be attractive for the operator?
With a direct customer, no eMSP or hub takes a share; only the payment provider's fee and VAT come off. The trade-off: no contract, so no guaranteed return visits.
What is usually the largest variable cost of a charging site?
Every kilowatt-hour sold has to be bought first. Energy is the cost that grows with each session.
- Roaming Charging in another company's network with your own card or app. Stop 03 Glossary
- eMSP E-mobility service provider: issues the charging card or app, sets the driver's price and sends the invoice. Stop 02 Glossary
- Site host The owner of the location, who provides the parking spaces for the chargers. Stop 02 Glossary
- CDR Charge detail record: the digital receipt of a session, with energy, duration and tariff. Glossary
- Ad hoc Charging without a contract, paid directly at the charger, for example by card or QR code. Glossary
- Revenue share An arrangement in which the site host receives a share of the charging revenue, per kWh or per session, instead of a fixed rent. Business models, stop 04 Glossary
- EUR-Lex: Regulation (EU) 2023/1804 on the deployment of alternative fuels infrastructure (AFIR), Article 5. https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg/2023/1804/oj. Checked 07 Oct 2026. © European Union, reused under Commission Decision 2011/833/EU.