Electric or combustion car: what does it really cost to own in Finland?

Suomi

No direct EV purchase grant (the grant has ended): Finland's EV purchase grant for private cars (hankintatuki, up to 2 000 EUR) has ended and was not renewed. In 2026 its place is taken by a conditional scrappage bonus (romutuspalkkio): 2 500 EUR for a new fully electric car — but only if you scrap a passenger car you own that was registered in 2015 or earlier and has been in road use (applications to Traficom from 1.1.2026, a 20 M EUR budget, granted until the funds run out). Because the bonus is conditional and budget-limited, we model it as 0 EUR in the headline total cost (honestly) — check your own eligibility separately. For company-car drivers, the taxable value of a fully electric company-car benefit is still reduced by 170 EUR/month (extended to the end of 2029), but that applies only to the company-car benefit — it is not a cash grant and is not included in a private owner's total cost. In addition, from 2026 BEVs face a slightly higher base rate of the annual vehicle tax (~+53 EUR/year, the base tax rises from about 53 EUR to 106 EUR) and employer-provided charging becomes a taxable benefit — these weaken the EV's position, they don't improve it. Source: LVM (Finland's Ministry of Transport and Communications) / Traficom / European Alternative Fuels Observatory / Ayvens Suomi, 1 July 2026. Check the terms in force before you buy.

Nord Pool spot-price volatility is the most honest variable: on energy costs the EV wins clearly — night charging in the cheapest overnight hours on a spot contract costs, per kilometre, a fraction of Finland's petrol price, which is among the EU's highest (95E around 2,15 EUR/L in Finland). But we do not model the very lowest bare spot energy price (about 5,1 snt/kWh — euro cents per kWh — the 2025 average), because it ignores the transmission fee, the electricity tax and the 25,5 % VAT. Nor do we use Eurostat's all-in fixed-tariff price (about 0,2254 EUR/kWh, December 2025). We model a defensible night-charging mix of 0,17 EUR/kWh and offer a night-charging toggle at 0,12 EUR/kWh. A warning: Finland is a Nord Pool spot market where the price is set in 15-minute periods and swings hard — it can turn negative in windy hours and spike during cold snaps. Spot savings are real but not guaranteed. Depreciation (residual value) is adapted from the EU's documented three-year gap (Cox Automotive / eCarsTrade, November 2025: EV ~58-62 % vs petrol ~60-65 %); the Nordic used-car market broadly follows the EU, so BEVs are set slightly below ICE and HEV. Source: Yle / Oomi / Fortum / Helen / Eurostat (electricity), EC Weekly Oil Bulletin (fuel), Cox Automotive EU / eCarsTrade (depreciation), 1 July 2026.