Understanding the Difference Between Charging Stations and Charging Hubs

Introduction: The adoption of electric vehicles (EVs) in India has seen significant growth, with a penetration rate of 6.46% in 2024. To support this rapid adoption, many charging point operators (CPOs) are strategically setting up charging stations to ensure EV owners don’t run out of charge. While you may be familiar with charging stations, you might not know as much about charging hubs. CPOs like Voltran focus on setting up charging hubs with up to 35 chargers, including a few providing up to 240kW, and have established 13 hubs, mostly in Telangana. Other CPOs like ChargeZone and Glida are also setting up charging hubs, although they primarily focus on charging stations. Understanding the differences between them will not only help you make informed decisions but also empower you to use them efficiently.

In this blog, we aim to cover the key differences between charging stations and charging hubs and when to use them.

Size and Structure: Charging stations are small and often blend into their surroundings. They usually have a small roof over the chargers, allowing EVs to charge under shade and are typically located within closed walls. Charging stations can be found both within and outside cities, catering to daily commutes as well as intercity and interstate travels.

On the other hand, charging hubs are generally as large as fuel pumps with high-rise roofs, making them hard to miss even from afar. Charging hubs are found mainly at major junctions on highways, catering to both local and long-distance travellers.

Charging Points and Capacity: Charging stations usually come with limited charging points. On average, they have two chargers with four charging points per station, which means you might have to wait at busy charging stations most of the time. Typically, they host DC chargers with an average capacity of up to 60kW, and very few charging stations host slow chargers.

Charging hubs, however, host more than ten chargers with 20 charging points. Hence, there is usually no waiting period as they have multiple points. For instance, Glida’s charging hub at Hyderabad airport has 45 charging points. Charging hubs host chargers with capacities ranging from 7.4kW slow chargers to up to 240kW fast chargers, catering to various types of vehicles with AC & DC chargers.

Amenities: Charging stations are mostly found within places where amenities are already present. For example, you would find them at hotels, restaurants, shopping malls, resorts, etc., so that you can spend your time productively while your EV is being charged.

In contrast, charging hubs are built with amenities such as coffee shops, food courts, Wi-Fi, lounges, and dedicated and clean washrooms to make the charging experience comfortable.

Operations: Charging stations are self-operated using EV charging mobile apps specific to the network, so you will not see anyone manning the station or guiding you to charge your EV. Some charging stations are operational for limited hours based on their location, but most of them operate 24/7.

Charging hubs, while also self-operated, are manned to help users with selecting the ideal connectors and making payments. All charging hubs operate 24/7 and are fully lit.

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Scalability: Charging stations face restrictions in expansion due to space constraints at places like restaurants, hotels, or café shops. Most stations are set up in limited parking spaces at such properties.

Charging hubs, however, are designed with scalability in mind so they can expand to accommodate more chargers in the future. Charging hubs may start with a limited number of chargers to see the traction, and as traffic to the hub increases, they keep adding to meet the rising demand. This means reduced wait times and consistent availability of charging points, even during peak hours.

Longevity: Charging stations depend on the businesses they are located at, such as restaurants, cafes, or shopping malls. If these businesses go out of business, the charging station will too.

In contrast, charging hubs lease the land for 15+ years, investing in infrastructure to set up the chargers, amenities, etc. In the long run, charging hubs become reliable landmarks, allowing users to plan their routes and charging stops with confidence, knowing that these facilities will remain operational.

Light vs. Heavy Vehicles: Charging stations are suited primarily for passenger as they can easily fit into the compact spaces.

On the other hand, charging hubs are designed to host not only light and commercial vehicles but also heavy vehicles like buses and trucks due to their larger size.

Conclusion: Both charging stations and charging hubs are essential for the growing EV ecosystem. Each serves different purposes. Charging hubs, with their ability to charge multiple vehicles simultaneously and their extensive amenities, create significant visibility for charging infrastructure, boosting the confidence of prospective EV users. We hope to see more charging hubs in the future. With the EVJoints app, you can locate and check availability of all the charging stations and hubs across different networks. We hope this blog has added some value to your EV journey. Please comment if there are any specific topics you would like us to write about.