EV Charging Card Comparison 2026: EnBW, Shell, Maingau, ADAC, Ionity, EWE Go & Plugsurfing

Prices as of September 8, 2026. All prices are a snapshot and change regularly - some providers also run temporary promotions. Always check the relevant app before a trip, since tariffs change faster than this article.

Elunio shows you where a charging station is, which connector type it has, and the approximate price the community last reported - but you still pay at the station via a charging card, an operator app, or a roaming card. Which card makes sense depends heavily on your own driving profile: if you charge rarely, a tariff without a monthly fee usually works out cheaper, while regular drivers can save significantly with a monthly base fee. This article compares seven tariffs that are widely used in Germany.

The tariffs at a glance

EnBW mobility+ in detail

EnBW runs Germany's largest own direct-charging network and offers three tariff tiers. Tariff S has no monthly fee and suits occasional drivers, but at a regular 56 ct/kWh it costs the most per charge. Tariff M costs €5.99 a month and lowers the price to 46 ct/kWh - switching already pays off from around two to three charging sessions a month. Tariff L has a higher monthly fee but brings the price down to 35 ct/kWh and suits genuinely frequent drivers. Until September 30, 2026, a summer promotion additionally knocks 5 ct/kWh off all three tariffs, after which regular prices apply again. EnBW energy customers also receive a permanent 10% discount on the base tariffs.

Shell Recharge in detail

Shell Recharge stands out mainly for its international reach, since Shell has access to several roaming networks at once through past acquisitions. The Basic tariff has no monthly fee, costs from 49 ct/kWh at AC charge points and from 59 ct/kWh at DC/HPC stations - exact prices vary by location and background operator. The e-Deal tariff costs €5.99 a month and lowers the price to a flat 44 ct/kWh, but is capped at a maximum of 400 kWh per month. Anyone who regularly charges more than roughly 15 kWh every two weeks generally comes out ahead with e-Deal rather than Basic.

Maingau Autostrom in detail

Maingau Autostrom is popular with frequent drivers because there's no monthly base fee and prices are tiered by station type. Maingau customers get an advantage tariff: 52 ct/kWh at low-price stations such as Ionity, Edeka or Autostrom Plus, 62 ct/kWh at other standard DC stations, and 82 ct/kWh at high-price locations such as Aral, EnBW or E.ON Drive. Non-customers pay 62, 72 and 82 ct/kWh respectively at the same station types. On top of that, a blocking fee of 10 ct per minute applies after 180 minutes at AC charge points and after 60 minutes at DC charge points, so anyone parking for a long time after charging should keep that in mind.

ADAC e-Charge in detail

The ADAC e-Charge card runs on the Aral pulse network and is also available without an ADAC membership, though members benefit from lower prices. At Aral pulse's own charge points, members pay 55 ct/kWh, rising to 75 ct/kWh on the wider roaming network. There's no monthly fee, and no blocking fee applies at Aral pulse stations - a clear advantage over providers that charge a standing-time fee everywhere. For anyone who mostly charges at Aral pulse stations and is already an ADAC member, this is a very predictable tariff with no hidden costs.

Ionity in detail

Ionity operates exclusively high-power chargers (HPC) along motorways, making it mainly relevant for long-distance trips. Without a subscription, i.e. on the ad-hoc/Direct tariff, spontaneous charging at an Ionity station in Germany and the DACH region now costs around 79 to 80 ct/kWh - noticeably above every other tariff compared here. Anyone regularly driving HPC routes gets around 39 to 41 ct/kWh with the Passport Power subscription for €11.99 a month, which pays for itself from about 45 kWh of monthly usage. For frequent drivers who mostly charge at Ionity, there's also an annual subscription called Power 365 for €119.99 a year at around 42 ct/kWh - anyone who rarely charges at Ionity should stick with the ad-hoc tariff or use a roaming card with cheaper Ionity access instead.

EWE Go in detail

EWE Go skips a monthly fee entirely and instead charges a single, simple price per kWh with no distinction between AC and DC charging: 52 ct/kWh at EWE Go's own stations and 62 ct/kWh at partner stations on the roaming network. This simplicity makes the tariff easy to plan around - there's no need to think about different price tiers before charging. A blocking fee of 10 ct per minute applies at partner stations after four hours of standing time, which is irrelevant for most normal charging sessions anyway. The charging card itself is free.

Plugsurfing in detail

Plugsurfing is a pure roaming card with no network of its own, covering a very broad set of different operators instead. Since July 2025, a four-tier price structure applies depending on the charge point operator: Ionity stations are billed at 70 ct/kWh, stations run by Hamburgische Energiewerke, Eviny, Lidl or Kaufland at 54 ct/kWh (AC) or 68 ct/kWh (DC), stations run by Aral Pulse, EnBW, EWE Go or Vaylens at a notably higher 79 ct/kWh (AC) or 96 ct/kWh (DC), and all other operators at 59 ct/kWh (AC) or 79 ct/kWh (DC). There's no monthly fee, but the RFID card costs a one-time €9.95. Given the sometimes considerably higher prices at certain operators, Plugsurfing makes most sense as a fallback for stations where you'd otherwise have no way to pay at all - not as your everyday default card.

Why AC and DC prices often differ

Several of the tariffs compared here distinguish between AC charging (alternating current, usually at slower charge points up to 22 kW) and DC charging (direct current, at fast and HPC chargers with much higher power) - and DC is almost always more expensive per kWh. That's because fast chargers cost far more to build and operate than simple AC wallboxes, and operators need to recoup those higher fixed costs through the per-kWh price. EWE Go is an exception here with a single flat price regardless of charging type, which simplifies calculations but tends to be somewhat pricier for pure AC use than providers that differentiate between AC and DC. Anyone who mostly charges slowly overnight or during work benefits more from a tariff with a separate, cheaper AC price, while heavy fast-charger users should focus more on the DC price and possible HPC surcharges.

Understanding blocking fees

Beyond the plain per-kWh price, it's worth checking the so-called blocking fee some operators charge when a car stays plugged in after charging has finished, occupying the spot for others. Maingau charges 10 ct per minute after 180 minutes at AC and already after 60 minutes at DC charge points, EWE Go applies the same rate only after four hours at partner stations, and ADAC e-Charge skips it entirely at its own Aral pulse locations. For most normal charging sessions where you drive off right after charging, this barely matters - it becomes relevant mainly if you leave the car plugged in during a longer break, while shopping, or overnight after charging has long finished. A quick check in the relevant app before leaving the charge point can save unnecessary extra costs.

Recommendation by driving profile

For occasional drivers who charge in public at most once or twice a month, a tariff without a monthly fee - such as EnBW Tariff S, Shell Recharge Basic, ADAC e-Charge or EWE Go - usually makes sense, since the saved fixed cost clearly outweighs the slightly higher per-kWh price. Frequent drivers who charge in public several times a week, on the other hand, typically come out ahead with a tariff that has a monthly fee, such as EnBW Tariff M or L, Shell e-Deal, or the Maingau customer tariff, since the monthly fee pays for itself quickly through the lower per-kWh price. Anyone who regularly drives long distances on motorways using Ionity HPC chargers should consider the Passport Power or Power 365 subscription, since the ad-hoc price without a subscription is noticeably more expensive at around 80 ct/kWh. For frequent drivers abroad, or anyone who often charges at unfamiliar, changing operators, a roaming card such as Plugsurfing or the Chargemap Pass remains useful as a fallback - ideally alongside a cheaper direct app rather than as your only payment method, since the roaming surcharge is noticeable at nearly every operator.

How Elunio helps you decide

Elunio shows an approximate reference price at many listed charging stations and, where available, a price actually paid as reported by the community. This estimate doesn't replace an exact final bill - as this comparison shows, too many individual tariff and contract details are involved for that - but it does help you roughly gauge before setting off which card or app is likely cheapest at a given station. If you add your vehicle to Elunio, you'll also see the estimated charging time matched to your car's battery size and the station's charging power, which makes the tariff choice even more concrete: a short 15-minute top-up puts a monthly fee in a different light than a long full charge on a road trip.

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