EV Service Stations

There are over 100 motorway service stations in the UK, which are used day and night by drivers across the country. Everyone has used a service station at some point, and some even have their favourite place to stop on a long drive.

The best service stations have everything you need for a motorway journey - from food and drink to shops and children’s play areas. But what about electric vehicle charging points?

According to a report from ZapMap, the UK charging points network has grown by 16% in 2024 and the amount of ultra-rapid and rapid devices has increased by nearly 45% since 2023.

With the rise in popularity of electric car leasing and electric van leasing, most service stations in the UK have some form of electric vehicle charging. However, the last thing you want to do is wait in line to use a slow charger instead of making progress on your route.

That’s why this year we decided to revisit our findings from 2023 and analysed every motorway service station in the UK to find this year’s best place to stop for electric vehicle drivers. We looked at the number of charging devices, including ultra-rapid chargers; the average cost of charging, and amenities at service stations across the nation to reveal the best EV service station.

1. Rugby | EV service station score 9.05/10

Rugby service station takes top spot for the second year in a row, and is, once again, the best service station to visit if you drive an electric vehicle. The M6 station is home to more electric vehicle chargers than any other service station except Exeter. Rugby service station has more than doubled its offer of ultra-rapid chargers since last year and is one of the cheapest places to charge, as it costs on average £0.70/kWh to use the chargers at Rugby’s Moto services. The service station is rated four out of five stars by users and is home to a children’s play area and grassy outdoor space.

2. Reading | EV service station score 8.86/10

Another Moto service station takes one of the top spots as Reading comes in second place as one of the best in the UK for electric vehicles. The M4 rest stop is home to 52 electric vehicle chargers, including 44 ultra-rapid chargers. It costs on average £0.79/kWh to use the chargers at Reading services and visitors can choose from 12 food outlets and 2 shops.

3. Hopwood Park | EV service station score 8.68/10

Hopwood Park Services on the M42 is one of the best rest areas in the UK for electric vehicle drivers, coming in joint second to Reading in customer satisfaction. The Welcome Break service station has 46 electric vehicle charging devices, including 44 ultra-rapid chargers. While the service station is the only one in the top 5 without a hotel it offers plenty of choice for food and shopping with 13 eateries, 2 shops and a children’s play area.

In 2024 there are still some motorway service stations that are completely unequipped for electric vehicle charging - which by definition would be entirely unsuitable for EV drivers. Our above study only analysed rest stops with at least one electric charger. The following service stations are the worst places to stop, out of all stations that have electric vehicle charging options.

1. Bridgwater | EV service station score 1.08/10

Bridgwater Service station is located on the M5 and is operated by Moto and was recently voted one of the UK's worst motorway services by Which, in our list it takes the bottom spot as it is considered the worst for electric drivers. The rest stop has just one electric vehicle charger on ZapMap, with a highest output of 60kWh and an average cost of £0.79/kWh. On the positive side, Bridgwater has 1 hotel and 6 eateries, including West Cornwall Pasty Co. and Krispy Kreme, however, unfortunately with a mere 2 star rating from users, this number of eateries proved insufficient to avoid the bottom spot on our list. 

2. Pont Abraham | EV service station score 1.19/10

Pont Abraham Services is the first Roadchef-operated station to appear in our bottom three after remaining in the same position within the bottom three as it did last year, scoring just 1.19 out of 10 for EV-friendliness. The M4 service station hasn’t made any progress from last year as it still has one electric vehicle charger and no ultra-rapid chargers. The rest stop has however been upgraded slightly from 3 eateries to 4, including McDonald’s and Starbucks on the Go.

3. Hamilton (northbound) | EV service station score 1.22/10

Once again, one of the worst performing service stations is Roadchef-operated, with Hamilton service station ranking third in our bottom three as one of the worst places to stop for electric vehicle drivers. The M74 service station has one charging device and an average charging cost has risen 10p from last year and is now at £0.79/kWh. There are only four food outlets at Hamilton Services, including McDonald’s and Costa Coffee.

Running out of charge in your electric vehicle can be a nightmare, especially when you are travelling on a motorway. Most service stations are equipped with electric vehicle chargers, although if there aren’t enough devices you might have to wait before you can use one. On an unfamiliar journey, it's a good idea to plan ahead and choose a place to rest and charge that works with your route. You can also look at the number of chargers online and pick somewhere with a few chargers so you won't have to wait. At the Exeter service station on the M5, there are a whopping 58 electric vehicle chargers, 30 chargers more than last year, and with 56 ultra-rapid chargers, the service station takes top spot on that as well.

The cost of electric vehicle charging can vary depending on the charger provider, so it helps to know the cheapest places in the UK where you can stop and charge your car. Stafford on the M6 is the cheapest motorway service station for electric vehicle charging, costing 49p/kWh on average. The average cost of charging across all the service stations in our study is £0.72/kWh, making it around 23p cheaper per kWh on average to use the chargers at Stafford services.

Electric vehicle charging devices can be expensive, and charging at Ashby de la Zouch and Sedgemoor northbound services might be more costly than at any other UK service station. The average cost of charging in these locations is £0.85/kWh, which is £0.36/kWh more expensive than at the UK’s cheapest service station. When compared to the average cost of charging across all the service stations in our study, which is £0.72/kWh, charging at these service stations could cost you around 13 pence more per kWh.

On a long motorway drive, there is a big chance either you or your passenger gets hungry. Whether you are travelling during lunchtime or dinner, Beaconsfield services on the M40 is home to the biggest selection of food outlets in the UK, so you are guaranteed to find options for every craving. The service station houses 16 eateries and a very large selection of food, including Chopstix Noodle Bar, Pizza Express, and Nando’s.

When travelling long distances, you might find yourself on the road and in need of a drink, snack or even a bunch of flowers. Service station shops can be a lifesaver for getting the essential items you need for your journey. Cairn Lodge and Gloucester service stations have six shops each. When stopping at Cairn Lodge services, you can visit the Farm Shop and the Deli Counter for some high quality grocery shopping for the Gelato Counter shop for a sweet treat. At Gloucester services, travellers can also shop at the Farm Shop for local produce or visit the Fish Counter.

We wanted to discover the best motorway service stations for electric vehicles in the UK. We compiled a seed list of motorway service stations with electric vehicle charging stations sourced from Motorway Services Online. We omitted all service stations with no electric chargers.

• We sourced the total number of electric vehicle chargers at each motorway service station from ZapMap on 15th July 2024. We looked at all charging options, including ultra-rapid chargers (100kW), fast chargers (43kW), slow chargers (7kW) and Tesla chargers. Where electric vehicle charging devices had more than one available power setting, the highest power setting was used. Charging devices with no price information were omitted. For service stations with northbound and southbound sites, the number of chargers at both locations was recorded.
• We sourced the average charging cost in £/kWh at each motorway service station from ZapMap on 15th July 2024. We recorded the charging cost for each available charging device before calculating the average cost of charging. For charging devices where the price differed based on power output, the highest rate was used. Charging devices with no price information were omitted. For service stations with northbound and southbound sites, the data was combined.
• We sourced the number of eateries at each service station from Motorway Services Online on 15th  July 2024. We included food outlets with seasonal opening dates and those located in the forecourt. We omitted drink outlets that do not serve food.
• We sourced the number of shops at each service station from Motorway Services Online on 15th July 2024. We included shops in the forecourt and omitted fuel station shops.
• We sourced the number of hotels and children’s play areas at each service station, and the user review rating from Motorway Services Online on 15th July 2024.
• To calculate the EV service station score out of 10 we gave each motorway service station a score out of 10 for each factor, giving each factor equal weighting. We then calculated the average score of each service station across all factors to find the EV service station score out of 10 which formed the basis of our ranking.