Updated analysis from Geotab has found that electric vehicle batteries are continuing to hold up well in long-term use, with an average degradation rate of 2.3% per year.
The latest study draws on several years of telematics data from more than 22,700 EVs across 21 models, showing how charging habits, climate and utilisation influence battery ageing.
The findings highlight that charging behaviour is now the most significant factor affecting battery health. Vehicles frequently relying on DC fast charging above 100kW see degradation rates of up to 3% annually, compared with around 1.5% for EVs mainly using lower‑power charging. By contrast, climate plays a smaller role, with EVs in hotter regions degrading around 0.4% faster per year than those in milder environments.
Despite concerns about EV longevity, Geotab’s updated results indicate that modern batteries continue to perform strongly. As Charlotte Argue, senior manager, Sustainable Mobility at Geotab, noted, “EV battery health remains strong, even as vehicles are charged faster and deployed more intensively.” She added that “charging behaviour now plays a much bigger role in how quickly batteries age.”
The study also challenges the idea that strict daily charging limits are essential. Degradation only accelerates when vehicles spend more than 80% of their time at very high or very low states of charge. Higher‑use vehicles show slightly increased degradation – around 0.8% more per year – but this is outweighed by gains in productivity and return on investment.
