Do I need an app to charge my EV?

What to know about charging your EV with and without using an app

If you’re an EV charging novice, or simply curious about how charging works, you might be wondering: do I need to download yet another app? Simply put, no, you don’t. In fact, charging your EV without using an app might make more sense in certain circumstances. For instance, if you’re renting or leasing an electric car for a short amount of time, and you’re not sure you’re going to be driving an EV long-term.

In this article, we’ll explain how to charge your EV if you don’t have an app, as well as all the reasons you might want to consider using one. Just to be clear, anytime we mention an app, we’re talking about the bp pulse one. If you use EV chargers on other public EV charging networks, you’ll need to check the specific requirements for that network.

Using EV public chargers without an app

Let’s say you’ve managed to find one of our charging locations without using the app. You’re parked neatly in a bay, your car is ready to plug in and start charging. What next?

To start a charge, follow the instructions on the screen. You’ll then need to choose one of the two payment options that don’t require you to use the app: contactless payment and the online payments portal. Once you’ve paid through either of those, your car will begin charging. To stop the charge, use whichever method you chose to pay and off you go.

Use the app to find EV charging points on the move

With the app, on the other hand, you can search for the nearest charger by availability, speed and connector type. Open the app and it’ll display a large map and all the nearest charging sites to your current location. Use the drop-down menus at the top of the screen to filter by connector type and charging speed. You can also search for a specific location by typing it into the search bar. So you can enjoy peace of mind that there’ll be somewhere to charge your EV ahead of any upcoming journeys.

Use the app to create a personal map of your favourite chargers

Another advantage of using the app to charge your EV is that you can start building a personalised map of your favourite EV chargers. These might be the locations you use most often day to day, or the locations you found most convenient on your travels.

Use the app to pay as you go and review your charging history

One of the four payment options that requires you to download and log in to the bp pulse app is pay as you go. Through the app, you can use this payment method to stop and start a charge, check how much money is left in your account (you need a minimum of £5 to start charging) and check your charging history.

Save 20% on contactless rates when you download the app and subscribe*

When you subscribe to bp pulse for £7.85 per month, you'll enjoy our lowest EV charging rates. Your first month's subscription fee is on us, and we'll give you £45 credit over 5 months** . You'll also get a handy bp pulse charge card, which can be used in the same way you’d use a contactless payment card to start and stop charging your EV.

Technically, you don’t need to use the app if you have your bp pulse charge card with you. But, if you forget to bring it, you can start and stop charging via the app instead. And, similar to pay as you go users, subscribers with the app can check membership invoices and review their charging history.

Whether you decide to use the bp pulse app or not ultimately depends on how often and how far you tend to drive your EV. If you’re regularly paying a visit to our charging locations, it may just offer the convenience and ease you’re looking for.