{"id":504016,"date":"2026-03-04T22:20:13","date_gmt":"2026-03-04T22:20:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/504016\/"},"modified":"2026-03-04T22:20:13","modified_gmt":"2026-03-04T22:20:13","slug":"public-charging-stations-are-now-half-of-fueling-stations","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/504016\/","title":{"rendered":"Public Charging Stations Are Now Half of Fueling Stations"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/p>\n

According to Cox Automotive,\u00a0there were 1.28 million EVs sold in\u00a02025, a 2% decline from the record 1.30 million sold in 2024.\u00a0Meanwhile, the\u00a0number of public EV charging\u00a0stations grew 12%,\u00a0reaching\u00a0a record\u00a077,086 sites\u00a0as of February 1,\u00a02026,\u00a0according to the U.S. Department of Energy\u2019s\u00a0Alternative Fuels Data Center.\u00a0The total number of charging locations is now more than half of the approximately 150,000 fueling\u00a0locations\u2014c-stores, hypermarkets,\u00a0kiosks\u00a0and service stations–in the country.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n


\n <\/p>\n

The demand signals an opportunity\u00a0for convenience stores, which\u00a0serve as recharging destinations for\u00a0EV drivers.\u00a0A\u00a0May\u00a02025 NACS Consumer Survey found that a little more than\u00a0half of all drivers (53%) say they have a garage, driveway, parking\u00a0spot\u00a0or other suitable location to charge an EV.\u00a0The survey\u00a0also\u00a0found that drivers consider convenience stores the best location for public EV chargers (see chart).\u00a0<\/p>\n


\n <\/p>\n

Of course, there are huge\u00a0variations in the number of charging locations by state. California has\u00a018,846 charging locations, or\u00a0nearly\u00a0a\u00a0quarter of\u00a0chargers in the\u00a0United States\u00a0(24.4%).\u00a0However, EV chargers are\u00a0scarce\u00a0in\u00a0less populated states like\u00a0North Dakota (106), South Dakota (115),\u00a0Wyoming (119)\u00a0and\u00a0Montana (155).\u00a0<\/p>\n


\n
\nEV Charging Dominates Alternative Fuels\u00a0
\n <\/p>\n

EV charging\u00a0accounts for\u00a0roughly 90%\u00a0of all alternative\u00a0fuels\u00a0locations.\u00a0It\u2019s\u00a0a\u00a0big change\u00a0from 12\u00a0years ago,\u00a0when automakers at the Washington Auto Show\u00a0highlighted a slew of alternative-fueling options\u00a0such as\u00a0propane,\u00a0hydrogen, liquified\u00a0(LNG)\u00a0and compressed natural gas\u00a0(CNG)\u00a0and even solar.\u00a0At the time, EV charging was\u00a0considered\u00a0one of many options as opposed to the dominant one.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n


\n
\nFueling Locations\u00a0and Nozzle Counts Tell Different Stories\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0
\n <\/p>\n

In recent years,\u00a0some\u00a0advocates for\u00a0EV charging have used\u00a0dubious\u00a0data points\u00a0to claim that\u00a0\u201cthe gas station is dead.\u201d\u00a0That\u2019s\u00a0simply not correct.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n


\n <\/p>\n

In 2025,\u00a0there were 298.7 million registered vehicles in the United States. Of that total, about\u00a0six\u00a0million vehicles, or about 2% of the overall total, were EVs.\u00a0With\u00a0total\u00a0new vehicle sales of around 15 million\u00a0per year (remember that only 1.28 million EVs were sold in 2025), it will take decades to fully replace the existing vehicles on the road, regardless of the\u00a0fuel\u00a0they use.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n


\n <\/p>\n

The 77,086\u00a0U.S.\u00a0charging locations\u00a0represent\u00a0about 51% of the estimated\u00a0150,000\u00a0fueling locations in the country, of which\u00a0about 122,000\u00a0are convenience\u00a0stores.\u00a0That is an impressive number, but\u00a0charging ports are\u00a0not the same as\u00a0fueling positions.\u00a0<\/p>\n


\n <\/p>\n

According to the\u00a0Alternative Fuels Data Center, there\u00a0are\u00a0236,407\u00a0public\u00a0charging ports in the\u00a0United States, of which 67,948 are DC fast chargers.\u00a0<\/p>\n


\n <\/p>\n

Meanwhile,\u00a0convenience stores\u00a0that sell\u00a0fuel\u00a0average\u00a09.8 fueling\u00a0positions per location, according to the NACS\u00a0State of the Industry\u00a0data.\u00a0Spread across the estimated\u00a0150,000\u00a0fueling locations in the\u00a0U.S., that means there are about 1.47\u00a0million fueling\u00a0\u201cnozzles\u201d\u2014about six times the\u00a0total\u00a0amount\u00a0of public EV charging positions.\u00a0<\/p>\n


\n <\/p>\n

While\u00a0EV charging will need years of\u00a0strong\u00a0growth\u00a0to reach the\u00a0same\u00a0level of\u00a0fueling locations\u00a0or positions,\u00a0the continued growth of public charging locations\u00a0provides\u00a0interesting\u00a0opportunities for\u00a0convenience\u00a0retailers\u00a0to convert charging customers into in-store customers.\u00a0We\u2019ll\u00a0look at some of these opportunities in future issues\u00a0of NACS Magazine.\u00a0\u00a0

\n\"FE-chart-2-(1).jpg\"<\/p>\n


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