US Fast Chargers Pass 80,964 Ports, But Utilization Stays Flat at 15.9% as Tesla Raises Prices
- Analysis EVs Infrastructure & Grid Connection
Marin Holt
- 0
- 10 minutes read
- Q3 2026 additions: 664 stations, 4,106 ports
- US fast-charging ports: 80,964
- National utilization: 15.9%
- Tesla non-member price: $0.569/kWh, up 15%
US fast-charging operators added 664 stations and 4,106 ports in the third quarter of 2026, according to a Paren report published Oct. 13. That took the national DC fast-charging network to 80,964 ports across 14,614 locations, Electrek reports from the same data. The network passed 80,000 ports for the first time. But the build slowed from the second quarter, when 4,618 ports opened. National utilization barely moved, at 15.9% against 15.8% in the second quarter.
Why It Matters
For utilities sizing feeders and tariffs, the flat national number hides two very different markets. Ports in the top 30 metros ran at 21.1% utilization, about twice the 11.0% everywhere else. Los Angeles led all metros at 31.8%. National utilization has stayed between 15.7% and 16.5% for five straight quarters.
The hardware is also getting heavier. Among non-Tesla networks, 35% of new ports were rated 400 kW or more, up from 10% a year ago. Across all networks, 73% of new ports are rated at least 250 kW. Peak time-of-use prices rose 4.3% to $0.637/kWh while off-peak prices held at $0.438. Only 27.1% of per-kWh stations use time-of-use pricing, and 72.9% use a fixed rate.
Fewer Sites, Bigger Sites
Through the third quarter, operators opened 2,158 stations, about 20% fewer than the 2,696 through the same point in 2025. Port additions fell only about half as much. Operators added 12,354 ports so far this year, about 9% below 13,600 a year earlier. New non-Tesla sites averaged 5.0 ports, up from 4.1 a year ago. Rural markets accounted for 68 new stations, about 10% of the quarter. Paren expects a fourth-quarter push like 2025, when operators opened 6,191 ports in the last quarter.
Who Built It and What It Costs
Tesla still built the most, with 1,287 new ports and a 31.3% share of the quarter. Its share of all US fast-charging ports slipped from 54.3% to 49.3%. Ionna added 378 ports, up from 182 in the second quarter, and moved into second place ahead of Walmart at 344. Non-Tesla networks installed 677 NACS ports, 23% of their new connectors.
Drivers paid more, and the rise sits with Tesla. The national average reached $0.540/kWh, or 54 cents, up 2.7% from a year ago. Tesla’s non-member price rose 15% to $0.569 and its member price rose 9% to $0.396. The non-Tesla average has held near $0.533 for five quarters. Sessions reached 50.4 million in the quarter, up 26% from the third quarter of 2025, with a record 17.6 million in July.
What the Report Does Not Show
Paren says it monitors more than 98% of US DC fast-charging infrastructure in real time. It counts ports, sessions, reliability and prices. Neither its public summary nor the Electrek account gives a megawatt total for the network or its peak draw. So the grid load behind 80,964 ports is not stated. The national reliability score held at 93.9 against 93.7 a year ago, but 29 of 52 states and territories declined over the year. A flat national average again covers local slippage.
Critical Perspective
Paren puts the network at 80,964 ports, and 73% of this quarter’s new ports are rated at 250 kW or more. At 15.9% utilization, those ports sit unused most of the day. Their grid connection still has to carry the hours when many stalls draw power at once. PG&E built Flex Connect in 2025 for this mismatch, as MGRID reported. It lets a charging site connect at reduced capacity and draw full power outside peak grid events. Outside the top 30 metros, ports ran at just 11.0%. New non-Tesla sites still grew to 5.0 ports each. Who pays for the distribution upgrades behind those bigger, mostly idle sites when the report gives no megawatt total for them?
Sources
- Paren: US EV Fast Charging, Q3 2026 (2026-10-13)
- Electrek: Tesla still leads US fast-charger growth, but it's raised its prices (2026-10-13)
- EVWire: Paren data: US EV fast-charging network passes 80,000 ports in Q3, Tesla still on top, Ionna jumps to No. 2 in new ports (2026-10-13)
