EV vs petrol cost in Tasmania, Australia (2026) — the true 5-year total

What is different about Tasmania's numbers

Home electricity in Tasmania is 28.00c/kWh — 15.2% below the 33.00c Australia average (AER, 2026-08-06), which makes Tasmania the cheapest of the 8 states we price: South Australia, the dearest, charges 1.6× more for the same kWh. Petrol stays Australia-wide at $1.63/L (AIP), as do rego and incentives, so Tasmania changes exactly one input on this page.

What the AER figure for Tasmania actually is: Aurora Energy regulated; med-low confidence.

Run all 52 models that have their own cost page through the kernel at both rate sets and the average electric car's 5-year total in Tasmania lands $705 below its Australia-average figure, while a petrol or hybrid car's total does not move by a cent — in Australia only electricity changes by state. Net effect: Tasmania narrows the gap an EV has to close by about $705. At Tasmania rates EVs take 2 of the 12 head-to-head matchups we track, against 1 at the Australia average — we publish that whichever way it falls.

Take one car — a BYD Atto 1 (Essential) — and Tasmania is the cheapest place in Australia to keep it charged: $1,920 less over 5 years in Tasmania than the identical car in South Australia.

Running cost at Tasmania prices: a BYD Atto 1 (Essential) draws about $4.39 of electricity per 100 km charging at home in Tasmania with the ~12% charging loss counted, against $11.41 of petrol for a 7 L/100km car — a petrol car would have to do 2.7 L/100km to match the EV's energy bill in Tasmania. Only the most frugal small hybrids get near that, so on energy alone an EV is still well ahead in Tasmania. Energy is only one line of the total: depreciation and insurance decide the 5-year figure, which is why most of the matchups on this page still go to the petrol or hybrid car.

Sorting all 52 models by 5-year cost at Tasmania rates instead of the Australia average moves 19 of them out of the position they hold nationally. The ones Tasmania moves furthest:

• GWM Ora 5 — 4 places better in Tasmania than at the Australia average, at $51,581 over 5 years here.
• Lexus NX 350h Luxury 2WD — 2 places worse in Tasmania than at the Australia average, at $67,802 over 5 years here.
• Toyota HiLux — 2 places worse in Tasmania than at the Australia average, at $71,119 over 5 years here.

All 28 models whose total actually moves with the electricity price reach their cheapest of any state in Tasmania.

Cheapest to own in Tasmania, Australia

Ranked by true 5-year cost at Tasmania's own electricity rate (12,000 km/yr, all-in). Tap a column to sort, or filter by type:

That is the Tasmania-relevant slice of the fleet. All 52 models we price, at the Australia average rate, are on the Australia hub.

Matchups that change hands in Tasmania

Of the 12 head-to-head matchups we track in Australia, 1 comes out differently at Tasmania rates than at the Australia average — it is the only comparison on this site where "it depends where you live" is literally true in Tasmania:

• Nationally the Ford Ranger is $555 cheaper over 5 years, but at Tasmania rates the BYD Shark 6 wins instead, by $16. BYD Shark 6 vs Ford Ranger →

Every other matchup falls the same way in Tasmania as it does nationally. All 12 Australia matchups →

States whose numbers look like Tasmania's

Closest matches to Tasmania on home electricity and pump price — where the same car lands nearest to its Tasmania total — plus the cheapest and dearest states in Australia to run an EV:

• Victoria → 30.0c/kWh
• Australian Capital Territory → 30.8c/kWh
• Western Australia → 32.4c/kWh
• South Australia → 43.7c/kWh

Tasmania is one of 8 states we price: see all of them, and the full 52-model directory →

Estimates for planning, not financial advice. Australia depreciation, insurance and maintenance are dated estimates calibrated to Australia sources. How we calculate →