Over half of US buyers think electric cars cost way too much

• The cost of electric cars continues to hamper adoption, consultancy Deloitte found in a new survey.
• More than half of consumers say cost is standing in the way of an EV purchase.

Just over half of US consumers say that the cost of an electric car is the biggest hurdle to EV adoption — and 70% don't want to spend more than $50,000 if they buy one, according to a new study from Deloitte. New EVs sold for an average of $65,041 in November, per Kelley Blue Book.

Consultancy firm Deloitte's 2023 global automotive consumer study surveyed more than 26,000 people globally between September and October 2022, roughly 2,000 of which were in the US.

US car-buyer intent to buy a hybrid EV, plug-in hybrid EV, or all-battery-powered EVs rose a collective 9 percentage points year-over-year, while intent to buy a gas-powered car dropped from 68% to 62% in the same period.

Though automakers are eager to jumpstart consumer adoption by building cheaper EVs, they've mostly introduced high-end models to date. That's because it's still expensive to build these vehicles, and it will take time to scale production and build a more cost-effective battery supply chain. In the meantime, inflation and the lack of a robust used EV market are exacerbating high prices.

Other barriers

Alongside cost, 48% of US-based respondents said they were concerned about range. 47% cited charging time, and 46% cited lack of public charging infrastructure.

The latter is particularly interesting given that 77% of those intending to buy electric at some point expect to charge their vehicle most often at home. Most research says a majority of EV-charging can be done at home, especially overnight.

That means those EV drivers could rely less on public charging infrastructure. Yet, for those living in multifamily dwellings and buildings without access to charging, establishing a public network remains critical.

Meanwhile, range anxiety has somewhat waned, especially as many realize they don't drive enough to warrant needing a 400-plus mile battery. Regardless, range is still a factor for many prospective buyers.