Guide · 8 min read
Level 1 vs Level 2 vs Level 3 EV charging: a practical guide for site operators
If you run an apartment building, business fleet, or holiday park, choosing the right EV charger level is the single biggest decision you will make. It drives the install cost, the monthly electricity bill, and what drivers actually get out of the bay. Here is the plain-English comparison.
The three levels at a glance
| Level 1 | Level 2 | Level 3 (DC fast) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Power | 1.8-2.4 kW | 7-22 kW | 50-350 kW |
| Supply | 240V AC, 10A | 240V AC, 16-32A (single or 3-phase) | 3-phase, dedicated transformer often required |
| Range per hour | ~10 km | 30-100 km | 150-1,000+ km |
| Hardware | Trickle cable from a power point | Wall- or pedestal-mounted EVSE | Free-standing DC unit + comms cabinet |
| Install cost (AUD) | $0-$300 | $2,500-$7,500 per bay | $45,000-$200,000+ per unit |
| Best for | Emergency top-ups only | Apartments, workplaces, fleets, holiday parks | Highway corridors, retail dwell sites |
Level 1: the household power point
Level 1 is what you get when a driver plugs an EV into a standard 10A general-purpose outlet. It draws about 1.8-2.4kW and adds roughly 10km of range per hour. For a 60kWh battery that is 24+ hours to fill from empty.
For an operator, Level 1 is almost never the right answer. The power points were not designed for continuous 8-12 hour loads, body corporates and insurers increasingly ban it, and you have no way to meter or bill the energy. Treat it as the backup option that an EV ships with — not infrastructure.
Level 2: the operator default
A Level 2 EV charger uses 240V AC at 16-32A — single-phase 7kW units are the apartment standard, and 3-phase 11-22kW units are common in fleet depots and workplaces. A typical sedan picks up 30-50km of range per hour on single-phase and 70-100km on 3-phase. Most drivers plug in once a day; overnight or workday dwell is more than enough.
Level 2 is the right answer for almost every private network: apartments, body corporates, holiday parks, business fleets, hotels, and workplaces. The install cost is reasonable, the hardware speaks OCPP 1.6 / 2.0.1 so you can pick any back-office, and load management lets you put dozens of bays behind one upgraded switchboard.
Apartments
1 charger per bay at 7kW, soft-capped by load management. Residents pay per kWh on their own card.
Business fleets
11-22kW 3-phase chargers in the depot. Top up overnight, schedule around tariff windows.
Holiday parks
7kW per powered site or shared 22kW bays. Bill by session or bundle into the nightly rate.
Level 3: DC fast charging
Level 3 — also called DC fast charging — bypasses the car's onboard charger and pushes DC directly into the battery at 50kW to 350kW. A modern EV will go from 10% to 80% in 20-60 minutes.
The catch for private operators is the bill. A 150kW unit usually needs a dedicated transformer, civil works, and triggers demand charges that can add thousands per month even on light usage. DC makes sense at highway sites, supermarkets, and retail destinations where drivers will not wait an hour — not at the bottom of an apartment carpark.
How to choose
- Average dwell over 2 hours? Level 2 is almost certainly the right answer.
- Drivers staying under 30 minutes? You need Level 3 — and a site that can absorb the demand charges.
- Single residence? Start with a 7kW Level 2 unit and add load management later.
- Multi-bay site? Specify OCPP 1.6 or 2.0.1 hardware so you keep your software choice open.
- Want to charge users? You need a back-office that meters, invoices, and pays out to the building — not just a wall plug.
Have chargers already? Get paid for them.
Tethered layers on top of OCPP 1.6 / 2.0.1 Level 2 and Level 3 hardware. Invite tenants or staff, set your tariff, and we handle metering, Stripe payments and monthly payouts to the building's account.