OVO Energy’s Charge Anytime is a fundamentally different product from every other tariff in our comparison. Rather than a whole-home time-of-use tariff with cheaper overnight rates, it is an EV-only smart charging add-on that sits alongside your existing OVO home tariff.
The key appeal is that you don’t have to change your home energy supply at all. But the trade-off is an effective charging rate that is significantly more expensive than the whole-home alternatives on the market.
How Charge Anytime works
Charge Anytime is a monthly subscription add-on, currently priced from £27.50 per month. In exchange, OVO provides a separate rate that applies only to electricity used for EV charging. Your home electricity continues on your standard OVO tariff at the normal rate.
OVO uses smart dispatch technology powered by Kaluza to schedule your charging automatically. The system works with compatible smart chargers and EVs to charge your car when electricity is cheapest and greenest within the dispatch window. You set a departure time and Charge Anytime handles the rest.
The effective cost per kWh works out to approximately 14p/kWh at typical usage levels, though this varies depending on how much you charge each month and the subscription cost allocation.
Why the effective rate looks high
Compared to the rest of the UK EV tariff market, Charge Anytime’s effective rate is significantly more expensive:
| Tariff | Off-peak rate | Type |
|---|---|---|
| OVO Charge Anytime | ~14p/kWh | EV-only add-on |
| British Gas EV Tariff | 9p/kWh | Whole-home |
| EDF GoElectric Overnight | 9p/kWh | Whole-home |
| Octopus Go | 9.5p/kWh | Whole-home |
| Octopus Intelligent Go | 8p/kWh | Whole-home |
| Outfox My EV | 7.7p/kWh | Whole-home |
| So Energy SO EV | 6.5p/kWh | Whole-home |
At 14p/kWh effective for a 60kWh battery, a full charge from empty costs approximately £8.40. On So Energy’s 6.5p rate, the same charge costs £3.90. Over 15,000 miles per year, Charge Anytime costs roughly £600 more annually in charging costs than So Energy.
When does Charge Anytime make sense?
The subscription model and EV-only pricing can work in specific situations:
You’re on a favourable OVO home tariff you don’t want to lose. If you have a competitive OVO tariff for your home supply that you’d lose by switching entirely, Charge Anytime avoids that disruption.
You charge infrequently. Lower-mileage drivers who charge a small number of times per month may find the subscription plus effective rate adds up to an acceptable total. At very low mileage, the savings from switching supplier may not offset the friction of changing.
Your vehicle requires smart dispatch. If you specifically want smart scheduling rather than a manual timer, and your car or charger isn’t supported by Octopus or E.ON Next, OVO’s growing compatibility list may include your setup.
OVO’s environmental positioning
OVO has made environmental commitments central to their brand. Plan Zero offsets carbon for members, plants trees, and invests in green infrastructure. Charge Anytime electricity is scheduled to prioritise times when the grid runs on more renewable power.
For environmentally motivated EV drivers who want verified renewable sourcing, Good Energy and Ecotricity both have more rigorous sourcing commitments and longer track records in green energy.
Charger and vehicle compatibility
OVO Charge Anytime is compatible with a growing range of smart chargers including Ohme Home Pro and Indra Smart Pro, as well as an expanding list of electric vehicles with built-in scheduling via the Kaluza platform. Check the OVO website for the current compatibility list before applying.
The honest comparison
For most UK EV drivers charging at home regularly, Charge Anytime is not the cheapest option. A whole-home switch to Octopus Intelligent Octopus Go, E.ON Next Drive Smart, or So Energy SO EV will typically produce greater annual savings.
The subscription structure makes Charge Anytime genuinely difficult to compare directly on rates alone, but at most typical mileage levels the effective cost per kWh lands well above the best whole-home alternatives.
Our verdict on OVO Charge Anytime
Charge Anytime is a convenient but not cost-efficient product. It removes the friction of switching supplier and fits within the OVO ecosystem. But the effective charging rate makes it substantially more expensive than the whole-home alternatives from Octopus, E.ON Next, EDF, and So Energy.
If you’re an OVO customer happy with your home tariff and want to add smart EV charging dispatch without switching supplier, Charge Anytime is a workable option. For everyone else, switching to a specialist whole-home EV tariff will save significantly more money each year.
How OVO Energy compares
See how this tariff stacks up against the best alternatives.
| Tariff | Off-peak | Peak | Window | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Charge Anytime OVO Energy | 14p/kWh | 25.96p/kWh | Smart dispatch (EV only) | Switch |
| Intelligent Octopus Go Octopus Energy | 8p/kWh | 33.72p/kWh | Smart dispatch (typically 11pm–5am) | View |
| Drive Smart E.ON Next | 8p/kWh | 28.25p/kWh | Smart dispatch | View |
| SO EV So Energy | 6.5p/kWh | 27.82p/kWh | Overnight off-peak | View |
Rates correct as of April 2026. Always check with providers before switching.
Click below to visit OVO Energy's website and switch online in minutes.