Consumer Reports’ Real-World Electric Car Range Comparison
EVs from BMW, Cadillac, Chevrolet, Hyundai, Mercedes-Benz, Rivian, Tesla, and Volvo got over 300 miles on a charge
Consumer Reports has tested the real-world ranges of some of the most popular electric cars, trucks, and SUVs on the market.
Despite impressive claims, we found that many electric vehicles don’t meet their advertised ranges on highway trips. Some EVs fell up to 50 miles short of their advertised EPA ranges when driven at highway speeds, while others exceeded those ranges by the same amount.
Photo: Mike Crossen/Consumer Reports Photo: Mike Crossen/Consumer Reports
But unlike the mileage estimates for conventional cars and hybrids, which indicate separate city and highway efficiency, EV range estimates show a combined total range that’s based on now-outdated standards set by the Environmental Protection Agency, along with “MPGe” units that make it hard to relate to your own driving patterns. Further complicating matters is that EVs, unlike gas-powered cars, tend to be less efficient on highways than in cities. Where you drive also makes a significant difference.
“Real-world comparative tests are critical to understand if an EV is right for you,” says Jake Fisher, senior director of Consumer Reports’ Auto Test Center. “That’s why we purchase our vehicles like a consumer would and drive them at highway speeds like a consumer would on a road trip.”
To find out how much range EV models actually get in highway driving conditions, we put EVs through a highway-speed range test, driving fully charged vehicles at a steady speed of 70 mph until they run out of charge.
“Even if the car indicated zero miles of range, we didn’t stop driving until the car came to a stop,” Knizek says. “Then we brought the car to a charger on a flatbed.” While most models stopped shortly after indicating zero range, a few traveled up to 30 additional miles.
EVs With the Longest and Shortest Highway Ranges
Consumer Reports' EV Range Test Findings
Of the 26 current EVs we have tested so far, half fell short of their EPA-estimated ranges at highway speeds. We are continuing to evaluate highway range for every EV we test with detailed findings available on the model pages.
Although most vehicles that fell short only missed their EPA estimates by a few miles, in some cases we found more significant differences in range. The recently discontinued Ford F-150 Lightning pickup truck’s battery ran out after just 270 miles—a 50-mile difference from the EPA estimate. Similarly, our 2025 Rivian R1S fell 52 miles short of its 410-mile estimate.
On the other hand, some BMW and Mercedes-Benz vehicles beat their EPA-estimated ranges by more than 40 miles. There are trends in how some automakers treat range claims, with some being cautious and others a bit optimistic.
“Those extra miles can be a benefit for those who need to drive in cold weather or utilize some of the blistering fast acceleration that EVs provide, both of which can cut range considerably,” Fisher says.
For more details on how our test models were equipped, as well as more test results, visit their model pages.
The difference between EPA range and our highway tests is largely due to how the EPA tests EVs, says Chris Harto, senior energy policy analyst at CR.
“EPA range tests combine both simulated city and highway driving segments under ideal conditions,” he says. “Since EVs are always more efficient in the city, real-world highway ranges tend to fall short of the EPA combined ratings.” It is possible to see an EPA estimate of highway-only range based on these simulated laboratory conditions, but it requires customized settings on the EPA’s fuel economy website and is not included on an EV’s window sticker.
How Consumer Reports Tests EV Highway Range
To ensure the vehicle is properly broken in and still has full battery capacity, we only test cars we own with between 2,000 and 15,000 miles on the odometer. Beyond mileage, we also inspect tires for additional wear, which can affect range. And as always, all tested vehicles were purchased anonymously from local dealerships and vehicle manufacturers.
Because driving in the cold and running the heater can shorten an EV’s range between 25 and 50 percent, we perform all our range tests in summer at temperatures between 70° F and 90° F and when the weather is clear, which is the most favorable for EV range. If we purchase a new vehicle at another time of the year, we will initially score it based on its EPA range until we can perform our own tests.
Some popular new EVs, including the Jeep Wagoneer S, will be tested as soon as the weather improves at our test facility in Connecticut. With our latest update, we removed some vehicles from our list, including the BMW iX, because they have undergone significant changes since we last tested them.
We control the tests in other ways as well, setting tire pressure and suspension alignment to factory specifications, preconditioning the vehicles inside our garage, setting climate control to 72° F, and using cruise control with speed and mileage verified via GPS. To better understand what drivers experience when range gets critically low, we document what warnings the vehicles provide. We also test vehicles in Eco mode, if the car has it, to maximize range the way drivers would likely do on a road trip. If there’s a significant slowdown on our route, we restart the test.
How Consumer Reports Tests EV Charging and Performance
In addition to the highway test, our evaluations also reflect how EVs perform in real-world driving. Since we live with the EVs we purchase for our testing program, we know what it’s like to plug in our EVs every night or at public chargers on a road trip.
For example, we evaluate the speed of charging in two ways: The maximum miles of range you can add per hour of Level 2 charging, and the peak miles of range you can add per minute of DC fast charging under ideal conditions. Most Level 2 charging takes place at home or work—overnight or while you’re at the office. By comparison, most DC fast charging takes place on longer trips, when you’d rather be on the road than waiting at a charger, so we give more weight to quick DC fast charging than to Level 2 charging. This score also gives an advantage to more energy-efficient vehicles, which can go more miles per charge.
Photo: John Powers/Consumer Reports Photo: John Powers/Consumer Reports
On our electric vehicle model pages, we also indicate each vehicle’s charging speed for various chargers. A car might be capable of super-fast charging, but if you don’t have access to a 350-kilowatt charger, we can also tell you the charging speed you will get at slower and more common chargers.
“The size of the charger or how quickly a battery goes from 20 percent to 80 percent charged is only part of the equation,” Knizek says. “How quickly you can add miles is what matters most.” The top-scoring vehicles are those that charge quickly but are also very efficient.
Our charging scores also take into account how easy an EV is to plug in and unplug, and whether it comes with any built-in features, such as navigation, that make charging easier. As part of an EV’s transmission score, we score the ease of one-pedal driving, which allows the driver to speed up or slow down by using only the accelerator pedal. For EV road-test scores, we also gave our acceleration test results less weight because most EVs offer blazing-fast acceleration that’s impractical for public roads. “Not everyone will take their EV to a drag strip, but everyone plugs it in,” Fisher says.
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