Workplace charging capacity: how many sockets do you actually need?

Every employer that installs workplace charging eventually asks the same question: how many sockets is enough? Install too few and you create a queue and a grievance. Install too many and you have spent capital on hardware that sits idle.

Here is a way to size it without guessing.

Start with need, not with headcount

Not every EV driver needs to charge at work. Drivers with home charging and a short commute rarely do. The people who need workplace charging are those without off-street parking and those doing high mileage. Survey for that specifically, rather than counting EVs in the car park.

Model dwell time, not vehicles

A single 7kW socket can serve two or three cars in a working day if you have a sharing rule and people move their vehicles. The constraint is rarely power, it is behaviour. Sockets multiplied by turnover, not sockets equals drivers.

Plan for the electrical supply, not just the sockets

Grid connection and distribution board capacity are usually the long lead item, not the chargers. Size the supply for where you expect to be in three years even if you install fewer units now.

Set the sharing rules before day one

Booking, time limits, and what happens when someone leaves a fully charged car plugged in all afternoon. Agreeing this before installation avoids the passive-aggressive notes in the kitchen later.

Decide what you charge for it

Free workplace charging is a benefit, but it is also an uneven one: it rewards the drivers who need it least and does nothing for the employee who charges at a motorway rapid on a Saturday. Charging at cost, combined with salary sacrifice charging, spreads the benefit far more evenly.

The alternative to more hardware

Workplace charging is one option, not the whole answer. Salary sacrifice covers home, workplace and public charging, which means you can support every EV driver without installing a socket for each one. For drivers with no driveway, the public network of 76,000+ charge points does the work your car park cannot.

Next steps

To model the mix of home, workplace and public charging across your workforce, book a demo.