How to choose an EV charger in Australia — buyer's guide

Buying your first EV charger? There are six decisions to make. Here's how we walk customers through them.

1. Single phase or three phase

The big one. Single phase 7kW handles overnight charging for any normal Australian household. Three phase 22kW makes sense if your EV accepts 11kW or 22kW onboard and you've already got three phase supply. We've got a detailed breakdown on this.

Quick decision: if your home is single phase and your EV onboard charger is 7kW, single phase. Otherwise, talk to us before deciding.

2. Brand

The main brands available in Australia, ranked by what we install most:

• Tesla Wall Connector Gen 3 — best for Tesla-only homes, clean design, app integrated
• Zappi V2 (myenergi) — best for solar homes, solar-aware charging, works with any EV
• Fronius Wattpilot — pairs cleanly with Fronius solar inverter homes
• Wallbox Pulsar Plus — well-priced universal charger, good app
• Ocular LTE / LTE Plus — Australian-supplied, strong on commercial; works for residential
• Schneider EVlink — commercial leaning, well-built
• ABB Terra — commercial mostly, residential range available

3. Smart features (or not)

Smart chargers add Wi-Fi, app control, scheduling, solar awareness, OCPP, monitoring. They cost a few hundred dollars more. Worth it if:

• You've got solar and want to charge from sun
• You're on a time-of-use tariff and want to schedule charging at off-peak rates
• You're a data nerd who wants to see kWh and cost over time
• You're installing multiple chargers (commercial / strata) and need OCPP management

Skip the smart features if:

• Single charger, no solar, flat tariff — you'll never use the features
• You hate apps

4. Plug type or tethered cable

"Tethered" chargers have a captive cable always attached — plug it into the EV like a fuel hose. "Socket" chargers have a Type 2 socket that you plug your own EV cable into.

Tethered is more convenient day-to-day. Socket is more flexible (works with any Type 2 cable, easier to replace if damaged). For home use, tethered is almost always the right call. Public chargers tend to be socket-only.

5. Charger location

Where the charger ends up affects install cost and how usable it is.

• Best — on the wall next to where your EV parks, ideally close to the meter box (shorter cable run = cheaper install)
• OK — garage wall, even if 20m+ from the meter box (we run cable)
• Worth thinking about — does the cable reach both sides of the car? Tesla Model 3 has its charge port at the rear-left; BYDs are on the front-right. If you reverse-park or front-park changes which side faces the wall.
• Outdoor — every quality charger is IP54 or higher, fine outside as long as it's not in direct prolonged sun (UV shortens the housing life)

6. Warranty and support

Standard manufacturer warranty is 2-3 years for most home chargers. Tesla and Fronius offer 3-year warranties as standard. We back up the manufacturer warranty with our own workmanship guarantee — if something fails because of the install, we fix it.

Watch out for grey-import or eBay-sourced chargers from overseas. They're not certified for Australian conditions, the warranty often doesn't apply locally, and we'd be reluctant to install them. Buy from an Australian distributor or directly from the manufacturer's AU storefront.

The quote process

Once you know roughly what you want, send us:

• Your address (so we know your network supply area)
• What EV you have or are getting
• A photo of your switchboard
• Where you'd like the charger mounted
• Whether you've got solar

We'll come back with a fixed quote, no callout fee, no obligation.

Get your quote: 0413 635 112 or send the details online.