Planning Your 2027 EV Charging Budget: What to Account for Before You Request Funding

Posted 09/15/2026

Installing electric vehicle (EV) charging infrastructure on your commercial property requires careful planning. Even if you just want a couple of Level 2 (L2) chargers, there is still a lot to prepare before you go ahead with your project. And if you want to install Direct Current Fast Chargers (DCFCs), the planning increases significantly.

A big portion of that planning comes in the form of budgeting and procuring funding for your EV charging project. This is why it is so important to start your budgeting early. If you are thinking about installing EV charging infrastructure on your premises in 2027, you should do your research now and include it in your capital plans for the year to ensure it gets done and you are fully prepared for the amount of time, effort, and capital that it will take.

EV charging cost categories

EV charging installation can be broken down into cost categories to help you figure out exactly what the budget is going to be put toward.

The categories include:

design,
Engineering,
utility coordination/cost,
hardware,
installation,
utility,
networking,
software,
maintenance, and
accessibility.

Hardware

EV charging hardware is the actual EV chargers themselves. Level 2 chargers, like the Blink Shasta, naturally cost less than DCFCs like the Blink DC Distributed System. The hardware that is right for your project will depend on factors such as your location, expected usage, and charging goals. Blink can help determine the best charging solution based on your site's specific requirements.

The Department of Energy’s Alternative Fuels Data Center (AFDC) says:

“public charger costs are approximately $3,500 per connector for Level 2 and $38,000 to $90,000 per connector for DC fast, with higher costs depending on power output.”

You can help to lower purchasing costs by participating in bulk purchasing agreements with other buyers. Blink Charging is available through several cooperative purchasing contracts, which can simplify procurement for eligible organizations.

Installation

Installation is the act of making your EV chargers usable, which means hardwiring them into your electrical system and commissioning them. Installation requires wiring and conduits and may also include items like bollards, cement pads, pedestals, paving, signage, line painting, and anything else you need to do to get your EV chargers ready for use by drivers and keep them safe from accidents.

According to the AFDC, installation costs alone for public and workplace charging projects average around $2,500 per connector for Level 2 chargers and can range from $20,000 to $60,000 per connector for DCFCs. Installation costs vary depending on factors such as site conditions, location, the number of chargers installed, and power requirements.

For public charging destinations – especially ones that aim to become a local charging hub – you may want to install some amenities if none currently exist there. For public charging hubs, property owners may also want to consider driver amenities such as lighting, seating, restrooms, food, or retail access, depending on the site's location and intended use.

Utility

Utility fees can be looked at in two ways: electrical upgrades and ongoing electricity fees.

If your site requires electrical upgrades to run the number and type of chargers you want to install, you will need to pay for those upgrades before installation can happen. (More on this below.)

And, once your chargers are in place and operational, you will need to pay for the electricity that they use. If your chargers are open to the public, you can recoup these costs by having drivers pay to use the chargers. If you are just using them for your own fleet, this will be added to your ongoing operational costs.

Ways to save money on electricity include charging during off-peak hours (such as overnight when electricity demand is less). You may also consider the installation of a Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) which is essentially like a giant battery. You can purchase electricity for the BESS during off-peak hours and then use the BESS to operate your chargers during peak electricity demand times when electricity would cost more.

You may also consider installing renewable energy generators, like solar panels, to help you run your chargers, which will help you save on electricity costs in the long run.

Networking

Networking an EV charger means to connect it to whichever EV charging network your chargers belong to. For Blink Charging customers, this would be the Blink Network. Networked charging platforms connect chargers to cloud-based software that enables monitoring, management, reporting, and other operational functions. Blink customers can manage eligible charging stations through the Blink Network and its management tools. Every host on the Blink Network is provided with their own portal where they can control all aspects of every charger they own and view reports about those chargers.

Network fees are an ongoing cost, usually collected monthly or annually from your EV charging provider. In some cases, like with certain parking garages, a cellular repeater may be required so your EV chargers can communicate with the network. This would be an additional cost.

Software

Most EV charging related software is cloud-based and comes with being part of a given network. Therefore the costs will be part of your network fees. Fleets may wish to opt for additional fleet-specific EV charging software to help them manage their charging schedules. Some EV fleet software uses artificial intelligence to optimize routes and charging schedules for minimal downtime.

Maintenance

EV chargers require ongoing maintenance. This is especially true for public chargers. Inoperable chargers are one of the main gripes from EV drivers when it comes to public chargers. To this end, you will need to inspect your chargers regularly and perform maintenance tasks like cleaning and testing them to ensure they are in working order. Some DCFCs have filters and coolants that require replacement.

You are able to outsource this type of ongoing maintenance to professionals. Blink Charging has the Blink Care program that provides the following maintenance items:

Two visits within a 12-month period,
Detailing of equipment - cleaning of the screen, cables, and cable management system,
Inspection of RFID card reader for any malfunctions,
Testing of the equipment via plug-in simulator or electric vehicle,
Visual inspection and documentation for any damage to the equipment, including scratches and nicks,
Full visit report, including complete service checklist and photographs of equipment before and after service.

For DCFCs, the Blink Care program provides all the listed items above, plus:

Inspection of filters and coolants and replacement as needed,
Inspection of cabinets for optimal operations.

Accessibility

If you are planning to install public chargers, you will need to think about accessibility for at least one of them, potentially more. Check with your region’s requirements for accessibility. This may require spots that are larger than a regular charging spot and specialized signage and ground markings to accommodate accessibility requirements.

Why electrical capacity and site readiness can affect the budget

Electrical capacity is the maximum amount of steady electrical flow your site can draw from all your electrical sources (local electrical grid and any independent electricity generators like solar panels). If your electrical capacity is not high enough, you may not be able to power the EV chargers you want to install. Hosts who want to install DCFCs, for example, often require a transformer to be installed on or near their site to accommodate the amount of power the chargers draw.

This is why it is crucial to start coordinating with your utility provider from the very start of your project. You want to know for certain if you currently have enough electrical capacity or if you will require upgrades, which can increase the cost of installation significantly.

Like electrical upgrades, site readiness (or lack thereof) can also increase costs. If your site is completely raw and untouched, you will need to level and pave it. You may want to build some amenities there and install security measures to help keep it safe for drivers to use. EV charging installation goes far beyond the actual EV chargers themselves.

Planning for phased deployment rather than overbuilding

It can be a bit tricky to know exactly how many chargers you will need at a given site. Even fleet operators will likely go through a transitional phase where they replace their internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles with EVs, and therefore won’t need a full contingent of chargers to begin with.

We recommend to clients that they start with a smaller number of chargers and then add charging capacity as demand grows. For public charging spots, this is when you start to get more and more EV drivers using your site. For fleets, it is when you start replacing more ICE vehicles with EVs.

Blink Charging makes phased deployment easy thanks to our chargers’ modular design. The aforementioned Blink DC Distributed System contains power modules that can increase the charger’s power output incrementally. You can add charging ports along with the power modules to accommodate more vehicles as demand increases.

The obvious advantage to a phased deployment is that you get to spread costs out over a number of years rather than spending all the money at once. And, with modular chargers, you may not even need to increase your site’s footprint by much because you can just add modules and charging ports to the already existing charger, increasing its power output and the number of vehicles it can service at once.

Even if you don’t install all your chargers at once, though, we do recommend installing the groundwork infrastructure (wiring and conduits) for future chargers when you perform your initial installation to help you save on future labor costs.

How grants, rebates, and alternative ownership models may affect the capital plan

To put it simply, grants, rebates, and alternative ownership models can save you money on the cost of EV charging installation.

Grants and rebates

Grants, which are usually administered by state governments, and utility rebates, administered by utility providers, can help you with the purchase and installation of EV charging equipment, and sometimes with electrical site upgrades and other costs related to EV charging installation.

They work on a reimbursement basis, meaning you will have to pay for the installation upfront and then get reimbursed at a later date for a percentage of the cost, which generally ranges from 50-80%.

Blink has published numerous guides on how to look for and procure grant and rebate funding, which you can use to help you find and apply for funding. You can also talk with a Blink representative to find out more about how funding works and how you can procure it.

Alternative business models

The usual business model is for the host to purchase EV charging infrastructure and have it installed and pay for everything. However, there are other business models where the EV charging provider may pay for some or all of the costs associated with purchasing and installing the infrastructure.

Blink Charging has four different business models. For select sites, we can offer the Blink Owned Turnkey Business Model where the host does not pay any upfront costs. See the table below for the differences in the available Blink business models.

Blink Business Models

	Host Owned	Host Owned Finance	Blink Owned Hybrid	Blink Owned (DCFC Only)
Equipment Cost	Host	Host (over 12-60 month term	Blink	Blink
Charger Installation	Host	Host	Blink/Host (site preparation)	Blink*
Electricity	Host	Host	Host	Host
Maintenance	Host	Host	Blink	Blink
Network Connectivity Fee	$20/$40 per port	$20/$40 per port	$20/$40 per port	$40 per port
Charging Revenue Share	Host	Host	Host/Blink	Blink

* Contingent on site approval

Pricing and business-model terms are subject to change. Contact Blink for current pricing and availability.

What information to collect before searching for incentives

To search for EV charging installation grants, rebates, and other incentives, you can use Blink Charging’s Commercial Incentives Finder Tool or speak to a Blink representative who can help you locate incentives.

Before you begin your search, you should collect some basic information about your site. This includes:

Site’s current electrical capacity and any potential upgrades required
Estimate of how many vehicles will be using the site for charging
Type and number of chargers desired for first phase of deployment (and specs)
General layout of site
Accessibility requirements
Potential amenities to be built on-site
Why EV charging is needed in this specific spot

Grant applications will require this information and more, so the sooner you can start gathering it, the more prepared you will be to apply for grant funding. Please see Blink’s Complete Guide to Navigating EV Charging Grants and Funding for more information on how to fill out grant funding applications.

Getting started

To get started with budgeting and planning your EV charging project, you can speak with a Blink representative who can help you locate funding opportunities, make recommendations for your project, and arrange a free site assessment for you. Please contact Blink Charging via one of the contact forms on our website or by calling 1-888-998-2546.