Every EV carries a battery that stores direct current (DC). The grid delivers alternating current (AC). Somewhere between the grid and the battery, a conversion has to happen — and where it happens is the entire difference between AC and DC charging.
The one-sentence difference
An AC wallbox is a smart power socket: it hands AC to the car, and the car's onboard charger converts it — slowly, because onboard chargers are small (typically 7-22 kW). A DC fast charger does the conversion itself, outside the car, at 60-360 kW, and pushes DC straight into the battery.
What that means in real minutes
| Charger | Power | Typical session | Range added |
|---|---|---|---|
| AC wallbox 7 kW | 7 kW | Overnight (8 h) | ~250-350 km |
| AC wallbox 22 kW | 22 kW | 3-4 hours | ~250-350 km |
| DC fast 120 kW | 120 kW | 25-40 minutes | ~300 km |
| DC fast 360 kW | 360 kW | 10-15 minutes | ~300 km |
How to choose for your project
- People park 2+ hours (hotels, offices, apartments, homes) → AC wallboxes. Cheaper hardware, cheaper installation, and time is free for your users.
- People park 20-60 minutes (highways, malls, fleet mid-day top-ups) → DC fast chargers. Higher hardware cost, but each charger serves 5-10× more vehicles per day.
- Fleets charge at night → a mix: AC for overnight charging plus one or two DC units for operational flexibility.
The budget reality
Rough hardware cost per unit: AC wallboxes land around a few hundred USD; DC fast chargers start in the low thousands and rise with power. But per kWh delivered over five years, DC hubs usually beat AC on utilization — the math is in the parking time, not the sticker price.
Still unsure? Send us your site type and vehicle mix — we will spec both options with the numbers side by side.
