How much does it really cost to own and run a new Nissan Leaf?

If you’re wanting a new electric car that’s made in Britain, then the Nissan Leaf is a great option. It’s not only comfortable to drive, it’s also got a handsome interior, and it’s roomy inside as well.

Remember that you shouldn’t only look at the upfront cost if you’re genuinely looking to buy one. You also have to factor in road tax and charging into your running costs throughout your time with the car.

To help you avoid doing the maths, I’ve made things a little easier for you. I ran the numbers on a new Nissan Leaf over a typical three-year ownership period and 24,000 miles to calculate its total running costs. I also looked at whether leasing might actually be the smarter option.

If you just want the headline figures, click below. Otherwise, here’s the full breakdown of costs.

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Remember, you can buy a brand new or used car right here on Carwow. And you can sell your car, too. We’re here to help you through every step of your car-changing journey.

Starting price

The first step is to actually buy the Nissan Leaf.

For my calculations, I used PCP finance as this is still one of the most popular ways to buy a car. Here, the monthly payments of this flexible car finance option cover much of the car’s expected depreciation, rather than the full purchase price.

These were some of the parameters I used for this:

• A £5,000 deposit
• Three-year term
• 8,000 miles per year
• Returned the car after the term

For these calculations, I’ve used the 75kWh Engage version, which has a starting price of £35,999. This model is also eligible for the government’s £3,750 electric car grant, bringing the cost down to £32,249.

Here’s a breakdown of all the costs you can expect. At the time of writing, the Nissan Leaf had a 5.49% APR and fixed annual interest rate, so I’ve included the total amount payable for reference. Nissan was also offering a £2,450 finance contribution, which you won’t have to pay back, that I’ve factored into the figures.

Car’s list price (after ECG)	£32,249
Initial deposit	£5,000
Deposit contribution	£2,450
Regular monthly payments	£375
Total cost to PCP if you return the car	£18,485
Optional final payment	£14,583
Total amount payable if you buy the car	£33,068

Road tax

Next up, you need to factor in road tax.

As the Nissan Leaf is an electric car, you’ll pay a £10 first-year rate, followed by the standard £200 annual rate from the second year onwards.

This means you’ll pay a total of £410 in road tax over the first three years.

Add this to the total cost to PCP if you return the car, and it brings the total to £18,895 so far.

Charging costs

Charging costs are a little more complicated, as prices can vary significantly depending on where and how you charge. So, we’ve used three different rates to reflect the different ways you’re likely to charge the car. Here are the average charging rates used in our analysis at the time of writing:

• Home charging: 8p/kWh (E.ON Next)
• Public slow charging (AC): 54p/kWh (Zapmap)
• Public fast charging (DC): 77p/kWh (Zapmap)

During our time with the Leaf, we managed an EV efficiency of 3.8 miles per kWh, so we used this figure to calculate the cost of charging.

We also considered that many people use a mix of home and public charging in their day-to-day driving, so we carried out a calculation based on this. The figures are based on total electricity consumption (kWh) over 24,000 miles, assuming charging is split between 70% at home, 20% using slow AC public chargers and 10% using rapid chargers.

With all this in mind, here’s a breakdown of how much it could cost to charge a Nissan Leaf at home, using slow public chargers and using rapid chargers over three years, based on driving 8,000 miles per year:

Home charging only	£505.26
Public slow charging only	£1,136.84
Public fast charging only	£4,863.16
Mixture of charging (70-20-10)	£1,521.57

How much will it cost you overall?

When we add up the road tax and the mixed charging costs, it would cost you around £20,416.57 to own a Nissan Leaf over three years.

As the numbers show, buying an electric car makes the most financial sense if you have home charging. But is buying outright actually the cheapest option? Let’s take a look at leasing costs to find out.

Is it cheaper to lease a Nissan Leaf?

To see how the two options compare, we’ve worked out the cost of leasing a Nissan against buying one. We’ve used the same 75kWh Engage model and the same charging costs in our buying calculations, so the comparison is like-for-like.

The leasing figures are based on relevant Carwow deals available at the time of writing, using a three-year lease with an annual mileage allowance of 8,000 miles.

Here’s a breakdown of costs for a deal I’ve found on Carwow:

Monthly payments	£327.91
Initial payment	£4,292.92
Total cost of lease	£15,769.77
Total cost with charging	£17,291.34

Although the monthly payments are a little higher than the PCP deal we found, our calculations show that you’ll save around £3,100 over three years by leasing rather than buying a Nissan Leaf on PCP finance.

The good thing about leasing too is that road tax is often included in the monthly payments, so you don’t need to factor into your running costs.

So, its lower overall cost – alongside its lower monthly payments – makes leasing a Nissan Leaf particularly appealing option, and overall the best value.

Car change? Carwow!

Looking for a new set of wheels? With Carwow you can sell your car quickly and for a fair price – as well as find great offers on your next one. Whether you’re looking to buy a car brand new, are after something used or you want to explore car leasing options, Carwow is your one stop shop for new car deals.

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