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EV Chargers

Load balancing is the feature that stops your main fuse tripping — everything else is convenience.

Pen-and-ink drawing of an electric car plugged into a charge point

A car is the largest single load most houses will ever add. Charging one at 11 kW roughly triples a typical household’s draw, which is why the interesting features here are not app design but electrical: whether the charger can throttle itself, whether it can follow your solar production, and whether it can be scheduled into cheap hours.

The first thing to establish is your supply. Single-phase means one live conductor and caps you at about 7.4 kW no matter what the charger claims — buying a 22 kW unit for a single-phase house wastes money. Three-phase, common in the Netherlands, Belgium and Germany, allows the full 11 or 22 kW. Your electrician will also tell you the rating of your main fuse, and that number decides whether load balancing is optional or essential.

Load balancing is the one feature we would not compromise on. The charger watches total household consumption — via CT clamps or a P1 meter — and reduces its own current when the oven, shower and kettle come on together, instead of tripping the main fuse and leaving the house dark mid-charge. Without it, you are relying on nobody cooking while the car charges.

What to look for

Your supply, before anything else

Single-phase tops out around 7.4 kW; three-phase allows 11 or 22 kW. Also find out your main fuse rating, because that is what determines whether load balancing is a nice-to-have or a requirement. An electrician can tell you both in five minutes.

Load balancing, and what it needs

Dynamic load balancing needs a live consumption signal. Some chargers include CT clamps; others read a P1 or HAN meter; a few need extra hardware bought separately. Confirm what is in the box rather than assuming the feature is self-contained.

Tethered or untethered

Tethered means a fixed cable, which is convenient and one less thing to carry. Untethered means a Type 2 socket and you bring your own cable, which is tidier on a wall, easier to replace if damaged, and necessary if you have two cars with different plugs.

Solar surplus charging

If you have panels, the charger should be able to consume only your excess generation rather than importing from the grid. Implementations vary a lot in how gracefully they handle a passing cloud, and this is where a good charger earns its price.

Electrical protection

Look for residual current detection (which spots leakage to earth) and, in the UK and Ireland especially, PEN fault protection — which detects a broken combined neutral-and-earth conductor in the supply and removes the need for a separate earth rod in the ground.

Connectivity that survives your Wi-Fi

Several chargers include a built-in 4G modem as a fallback, which matters because a charger is usually in the worst-covered part of the property. Ethernet is even better where a cable is possible.

The shortlist compared

BrandModelMax outputConnectorCableLoad balancingIndicative price
aminaS22 kWType 2Tethered 6 mYes€486
TeslaUniversal Wall Connector22 kWType 2Tethered 7.3 mMeter sold separately€535
ZaptecGo22 kWType 2UntetheredYes€595
NexBlueEdge 222 kWType 2UntetheredYes, up to 5 units€595
PeblarHome11 kWType 2Tethered 5 or 7.5 mYes, via CT or P1€699
EnuaCharge22 kWType 2DetachableYes€740
EaseeCharge Up22 kWType 2UntetheredYes, per phase€750
go-eGemini Flex 2.022 kWType 2UntetheredYes€829
WallboxPulsar Max22 kWType 1 or 2Tethered 5 mYes€899
myenergiZappi22 kWType 2EitherYes, plus PEN protection€949
VoltieCharger22 kWType 2Tethered 5 or 7 mYes€1150

Prices move constantly and vary by country, so we give an indicative band rather than a figure that would be stale within a month. Check the brand's own store for the current price.

The picks in detail

Easee Charge Up

Wi-Fi with 4G fallback

The all-round pick. Easee reports current, voltage and power per phase with genuine accuracy, which means load balancing works properly rather than approximately, and your energy dashboard gets useful data rather than a rough total. The built-in mobile modem is more valuable than it sounds — chargers live on outside walls and in garages where Wi-Fi is weakest.

It is 22 kW on three-phase or 7.4 kW on single-phase, and remote current setting per phase makes it flexible in constrained installations. Budget for a cable, since none is included.

  • Very accurate metering per phase
  • Load balancing and earth-fault protection built in
  • Built-in LTE as a fallback when Wi-Fi fails
  • Cable can be locked and unlocked remotely
  • Untethered only — you must supply a cable

myenergi Zappi

Wi-Fi

The charger to buy if you have solar panels. You can set a minimum proportion of green energy and the Zappi will wait for it, topping up from the grid only when you tell it to via boost mode. That is more sophisticated than a simple surplus-only mode, which stalls the moment a cloud passes.

PEN fault protection is the other reason it is popular, particularly in the UK and Ireland. A PEN fault is a break in the supply’s combined neutral-and-earth conductor, which can make earthed metalwork dangerous; detecting it in the charger avoids installing a separate earth rod in the ground, saving real money on installation.

  • PEN fault protection removes the need for an earth rod
  • Best solar integration here, with a minimum green-energy percentage
  • Boost mode for when you need charge regardless of sun
  • Tethered or untethered
  • Bulky and heavy
  • Premium price

Peblar Home

Wi-Fi or Ethernet

The Dutch pick, and the one with the best local control story: an Ethernet port and a web interface served by the charger itself, so it does not depend on a manufacturer’s cloud to be configured or monitored. Load balancing can read either CT clamps or a P1 meter, which fits neatly with Dutch installations.

The onboard display showing energy, cost and tariff for the current session is genuinely useful and rare. Capped at 11 kW three-phase — which is enough for overnight charging of any car on the market, but worth knowing.

  • Ethernet option plus a local web interface
  • Load balancing from CT coils or a P1 meter
  • Built-in display showing session energy, cost and tariff
  • Tidy single-board internal design
  • 11 kW maximum, so no 22 kW option

Zaptec Go

Wi-Fi with 4G fallback

Norwegian, robust, and the sensible budget choice among established brands. The environmental monitoring is thorough — it watches its own temperature, current, earth leakage and internal humidity — which is reassuring for something bolted to an exterior wall in a Scandinavian winter.

One frustrating gap: the hardware contains an energy meter but the software does not yet expose the readings, so you cannot see consumption per session from the charger itself. Pair it with a household meter if that data matters to you.

  • Best value of the well-known brands
  • Six colours
  • Sensors for temperature, overcurrent, residual current and humidity
  • Rated −30 to 40 °C
  • The built-in energy meter is not yet exposed in software

go-e Gemini Flex 2.0

Wi-Fi with eSIM

The most automation-friendly charger here. Being able to switch between single-phase and three-phase charging under software control is unusual and genuinely useful with solar: single-phase at low current follows a small surplus gracefully, then switches to three-phase when there is plenty to go around.

It is also portable, well sealed and rated for real cold. RFID tags let it recognise different cars and vary behaviour accordingly — useful in a two-car household with different charging needs.

  • Phase switching can be triggered by an automation
  • 1.4 to 22 kW range
  • IP65 and IK08, rated −25 to 40 °C
  • Learns per-vehicle patterns via RFID
  • The Flex version needs a cable bought separately

Wallbox Pulsar Max

Wi-Fi

Well built, well finished and the only one here still offering Type 1 — the older, five-pin connector used by early Japanese and American EVs. If you run a first-generation Leaf or an older plug-in hybrid, that matters and almost nothing else on this list will help you.

IK10 is the highest common impact rating, which is worth having on a charger in a shared or commercial car park where things get knocked.

  • Type 1 and Type 2 versions, so older EVs are covered
  • 7, 11 and 22 kW variants
  • IK10 impact and IP55 water rating
  • Simple backplate installation
  • Premium price
  • Wi-Fi only, no cellular fallback

Tesla Universal Wall Connector

Wi-Fi

Do not be put off by the badge — the Universal version has a Type 2 connector and charges any modern electric or plug-in hybrid car. It is well made, generously cabled and priced below most rivals.

Tesla owners get extra control, including locking and unlocking the charge port and reading battery status. The catch is that the energy meter needed for load balancing is not included and has to be bought and fitted separately, which erodes the price advantage.

  • Charges any modern EV over Type 2, despite the name
  • Cheap for the build quality
  • 7.3 m cable
  • Extra features for Tesla owners
  • The energy meter is a separate purchase and must be retrofitted

amina S

Zigbee

The interesting outlier: the only Zigbee charger here, which means it joins your existing mesh network rather than adding a Wi-Fi client in the least convenient part of the property. Slim, cheap and well protected.

The fixed 6 m cable is not user-replaceable, which is the thing to weigh — a damaged cable on a tethered charger elsewhere is an inconvenience; here it is a service call.

  • Cheapest here and the most compact at 89 mm deep
  • Zigbee rather than Wi-Fi, so it joins your mesh
  • Weather, UV, flame and impact resistant housing
  • Tethered cable cannot be replaced by the owner

NexBlue Edge 2

Ethernet, Wi-Fi or 4G

A strong specification for the money, and the one to look at for two cars or a small shared installation, since it balances load across up to five units rather than just protecting the house fuse from one. Ethernet, Wi-Fi and a built-in 4G eSIM cover every connectivity situation, and the off-peak scheduling and solar surplus modes are both present.

  • Load balancing across up to five units
  • Built-in meter accurate to ±1%
  • IP54 and IK10, rated −30 to +50 °C
  • Five-year warranty
  • Cable not included

The three questions to answer before you buy

How much power can your house actually deliver? A 22 kW charger on a single-phase supply will charge at 7.4 kW, because that is all one phase can carry. Establish whether you have single- or three-phase, and what your main fuse is rated at, before comparing any products. The answer may also be that your connection needs upgrading, which is a conversation with your grid operator rather than a shopping decision.

Do you need 22 kW at all? Almost nobody does at home. At 11 kW a typical 60 kWh battery goes from nearly empty to full in about six hours — comfortably overnight. Many cars cannot accept more than 11 kW of alternating current anyway, because the limit is the onboard charger in the vehicle, not the wallbox. Paying for 22 kW frequently buys nothing.

Where will the consumption signal come from? Dynamic load balancing needs to know what the rest of the house is doing. If your charger reads a P1 meter, remember that the port is a single socket and something else may already be using it — some dongles pass it through, which avoids an awkward choice.

Installation is not a DIY job anywhere. A charge point is a permanently connected high-current circuit that in most countries must be installed by a qualified electrician and notified to the grid operator. In several places, including the Netherlands and the UK, the installation must also be registered. Get quotes for installation before choosing hardware — it frequently costs more than the charger.

Further reading

Best BuysEnergy MetersWhere the load-balancing signal comes from, and how to read whole-house consumption. Best BuysEnergy Storage SystemsBatteries that let you charge the car from stored cheap or self-generated power. AutomationsEnergy recipesOff-peak EV charging, solar surplus diversion and negative-price guards.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need a 22 kW charger?

Almost certainly not. 22 kW requires a three-phase supply, and most cars cannot accept more than 11 kW of AC anyway because the limiting factor is the charger built into the vehicle. At 11 kW a typical 60 kWh battery charges from nearly empty in about six hours, which is well within a night.

What is load balancing and why does it matter?

The charger monitors your household’s total consumption and reduces its own current when other appliances draw heavily, so the main fuse is never exceeded. Without it, running the oven, shower and car charger together can trip the main fuse and cut power to the whole house. It needs a live consumption signal, from CT clamps or a P1 meter.

Tethered or untethered — which is better?

Tethered is more convenient day to day and means you always have a cable. Untethered looks tidier, lets you replace a damaged cable cheaply, and copes with two cars using different connectors. Note that several untethered chargers ship without any cable at all, so add that cost when comparing.

Can I install a charger myself?

No. A charge point is a permanently connected high-current circuit, and in most countries installation is legally restricted to qualified electricians and must be notified to the grid operator. Get installation quotes before buying, because installation often costs more than the charger itself.

What is PEN fault protection and do I need it?

A PEN fault is a break in the supply cable’s combined protective-earth-and-neutral conductor, which can leave earthed metalwork at a dangerous voltage. Chargers with built-in PEN fault detection remove the need to install a separate earth rod in the ground, which saves significant installation cost. It is particularly relevant in the UK and Ireland.

Terms explained

Single-phase and three-phase
The number of live conductors supplying a building. Single-phase caps home charging at roughly 7.4 kW; three-phase, common in the Netherlands, Belgium and Germany, allows 11 or 22 kW.
Load balancing
A charger reducing its own current draw in response to the rest of the household’s consumption, so that the main fuse is never exceeded. Dynamic load balancing does this continuously using a live meter reading.
Type 2 connector
The standard European seven-pin EV charging plug. Type 1 is the older five-pin connector found on early Japanese and American electric vehicles.
PEN fault protection
Detection of a break in the supply’s combined protective-earth-and-neutral conductor, a fault that can make earthed metal dangerous to touch. Chargers with it built in do not need a separate earth rod installed.
Point of connection
The physical and electrical boundary where a property connects to the public grid. It defines whose equipment ends where, the maximum capacity available to the property, and which side of the meter the grid operator is responsible for — which is why upgrading your available power is a conversation with the grid operator, not an electrician.

More terms in the smart home glossary. Related questions: What should I look for in a smart EV charger?