Germans buy three times as many charging stations for electric cars in 2021
11/11/2021
Translation: Jessica Johnson-Ferguson
An increasing number of car buyers are saying goodbye to gasoline and going electric for the first time. Sales of electric cars are on the rise. Accordingly, there’s also a great demand for car charging stations and cables. Online department store Galaxus in Germany and Switzerland sold around three times as many charging stations in 2021 than in the previous year. At Galaxus.de, charging cable sales were even four times as high.
From Tesla to BMWi to VW ID: the demand for electric cars has risen sharply this year. But charging stations aren’t always easy to find. That’s why many people are equipping their homes with a personal charger. Sales soared at Galaxus this year with orders tripling. The majority of car chargers in Germany were sold in the more rural parts of the country. Bavaria leads the sales chart, followed by Brandenburg in second place. These states are followed by Hesse, Baden-Württemberg and North Rhine-Westphalia.
Here are the five best-selling charging stations on galaxus.de in 2021:
Juice Technology Juice Booster 2 German Traveller Set
ABB Terra AC
EVBox charging station Elvi 11kW, Wi-Fi for smart charging
Juice Technology Juice Booster 2
Easee Home Ladestation (1.4 – 22kW) anthracite
Digitec Galaxus in Switzerland is also seeing a significant rise in sales: the demand for electric car charging stations has increased by 190 per cent this year. For charging cables, we’re looking at 230 per cent.
Relying on subsidies can be worthwhile
Subsidies are a driving incentive for the purchase of electric cars and charging stations. In July, the German Federal Ministry of Transport announced that charging stations would be subsidised with 900 euros each. However, the fund, totalling 800 million euros, has already run dry. Now the next government will have to decide if and when it will be refilled. Until then, it’s good to know that some states and municipalities, such as Schleswig-Holstein or the city of Munich, still offer additional subsidies.
What to look out for before buying?
«When you’re charging an electric car, the decisive factor is speed,» Lennart Krüger points out. Lennart is Leader Category Management at Galaxus Deutschland. The charging speed of your electric car is specified in kilowatts (kW). At the moment, charging speeds above 100 kW are considered fast (even though the kW is technically not a unit of speed).» Anything below 50 kW is deemed slow. «But this is less of an issue with home chargers. After all, if you’re charging at night, there’s no time pressure.» Here’s an example: a Mercedes EQC that can be charged at 110 kW can also be charged at 7 kW. So while charging the EQC at 110 kW takes 40 minutes, charging it at 7 kW takes 13 hours and 30 minutes. Find more articles on mobility in the Galaxus magazine:
What’s your experience with charging stations? Thanks for sharing your opinion in the comment section below.
Daniel Borchers
Senior Communications Manager
Daniel.Borchers@galaxus.deA soft spot for good series, loud music, science fiction and (second division) football. As PR Manager, I am available to answer journalists' questions about Galaxus and honest e-commerce.