2021 Electric Cars With the Longest Range
Driving range is one of the biggest concerns for car shoppers considering an electric car. That’s because range anxiety, the concern that your electric car or SUV won’t have the battery life needed to complete a journey, is one very strong motivating factor. Like running out of gasoline in a conventional car, driving an EV that’s suddenly out of charge is no one’s idea of fun.
Related: Electric Cars With the Longest Range
With this in mind, we gathered 13 electric cars currently on sale with published ratings by the EPA for the 2021 model year that offer a minimum of 200 miles of total driving range. The vehicles vary in style and size, from luxurious SUVs and high-performance sports sedans to handy hatchbacks and practical crossovers. We start at the top with the car that delivers the best range per recharge, then work our way down.
All ranges are based on EPA-estimated figures but are purely estimates. Your range may vary depending on a number of factors, including weather, where you drive, driving style, occupancy and more.
Prices listed here are for the specific trim that delivers the best driving range. For some vehicles, such as the Chevrolet Bolt EV and Hyundai Kona EV, there’s only one powertrain available, and all trims deliver identical range. In other cases, as with the Tesla Model 3 and Nissan Leaf, there are sizable differences in driving range depending on the trim you choose. Any potential local, state or federal EV tax incentives were not factored into our pricing information.
Electric Cars With the Longest Range
1. 2021 Tesla Model S Performance all-wheel drive with 19-inch wheels: 387 miles
2. 2021 Tesla Model X Long Range Plus RWD: 371 miles
3. 2021 Tesla Model 3 Long Range AWD: 353 miles
4. 2021 Tesla Model Y Long Range RWD: 326 miles
5. 2021 Ford Mustang Mach-E RWD California Route 1: 305 miles
6. 2021 Chevrolet Bolt EV: 259 miles
7. 2021 Hyundai Kona Electric: 258 miles
8. 2021 Volkswagen ID.4 1st Edition RWD: 250 miles
9. 2021 Polestar 2: 233 miles
10. 2021 Porsche Taycan 4S Performance Battery Plus: 227 miles
11. 2021 Nissan Leaf S Plus: 226 miles
12. 2021 Audi E-Tron: 222 miles
13. 2021 Volvo XC40 Recharge: 208 miles
2021 Tesla Model S Performance
Price: $70,620, including $1,200 destination charge
Maximum electric driving range: 387 miles
The Tesla Model S is a fast, luxurious and spacious electric-powered sedan. Since it burst onto the scene back in 2012, the Model S has transformed how people view electric cars. With sharp handling and acceleration to rival some of the world’s quickest sports cars, a Model S is no golf cart. In Performance guise with 19-inch wheels, the Model S returns an EPA-estimated 387 miles of driving range.
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2021 Tesla Model X Long Range Plus
Price: $81,190, including $1,200 destination
Maximum electric driving range: 371 miles
Tesla takes the top four spots thanks in part to the 371 miles of range offered in the Model X SUV. Quirky features found in the Model X include a massive windshield that arcs over the front seats, rear Falcon Wing doors that open skyward, and an available small third-row seat (an option best reserved for small children who need a serious timeout). Come to think of it, the electric motors and lithium-ion battery pack are probably the most normal aspects of the extroverted Model X. The Plaid model needs less than 3.0 seconds to sprint from 0-to-60 mph, but it’s the Long Range Plus variant that delivers the EPA-estimated 371 miles of driving range.
2021 Tesla Model 3 Long Range
Price: $47,190, including $1,200 destination
Maximum electric driving range: 353 miles
It might be the little brother to the Model S in terms of overall size and price, but the Tesla Model 3 isn’t overshadowed when it comes to delivering plenty of range. The trim that delivers the most miles per charge is the available Long Range version, which starts at approximately $47,000. While the Standard Range Plus Model 3 delivers a useful 263 miles of range and the powerful Performance provides 315 miles, the Long Range version ups this number to 353 miles.
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2021 Tesla Model Y Long Range
Price: $50,190, including $1,200 destination
Maximum electric driving range: 326 miles
With the same platform and powertrain as the current Model 3 sedan, the Model Y SUV was a newcomer for the 2020 model year. Like the Model 3, the Model Y will offer quick steering reflexes and enough power to pin you into your seat under hard acceleration. Those looking for the most power can opt for the Performance model, which has 303 miles of range.
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2021 Ford Mustang Mach-E California Route 1
Price: $50,900, including $1,100 destination
Maximum electric driving range: 305 miles
A newcomer for the 2021 model year and the only other vehicle to exceed 300 miles of driving range, the Ford Mustang Mach-E — in rear-drive California Route 1 trim — has 305 miles of driving range, according to the EPA. We’ve found our time in the Mustang Mach-E to be hit or miss, with impressive power and useful tech marred by a harsh ride and occasional glitches.
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2021 Chevrolet Bolt EV
Price: $37,495, including $995 destination
Maximum electric driving range: 259 miles
The Chevrolet Bolt EV is proof you don’t need to empty your savings account to get an electric car that delivers big when it comes to driving range. Capable of traveling an EPA-estimated 259 miles for every recharge, this five-door Chevy hatchback is fun to drive and has space for five onboard (though three adults would be pretty cozy in the backseat) and more than 16 cubic feet of trunk space behind the rear seatback. Downsides include a drab cabin with cheap-looking materials for a car in this price range. An updated Bolt EV and a new SUV-like Bolt EUV are coming for the 2022 model year, but it’s unlikely the estimated driving range will differ (neither has been officially rated by the EPA yet as of this writing).
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2021 Hyundai Kona Electric
Price: $38,575, including $1,185 destination
Maximum electric driving range: 258 miles
Trailing the Bolt EV by only one mile of range, the Hyundai Kona Electric is a small SUV that emphasizes value. While it’s not as nimble or punchy in a straight-line sprint as the Bolt EV, the Kona Electric is comfortable, quiet and offers more stretch-out space in its cabin. The Kona Electric is only available in a dozen states as of this writing: California, Colorado, Connecticut, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont and Washington.
2021 Volkswagen ID.4 1st Edition
Price: $45,190, including $1,195 destination
Maximum electric driving range: 250 miles
Another newcomer and another all-electric SUV, the 2021 Volkswagen ID.4 is the first of VW’s ID line of electric vehicles to go on sale in North America. As of this writing, only RWD versions are available, and each is rated at 250 miles of driving range; AWD will be available on a more powerful version later on, but EPA ratings remain unavailable. While the ID.4 is a fairly straightforward SUV from the outside, the interior relies heavily on capacitive-touch controls in lieu of physical knobs and buttons, much to our chagrin.
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2021 Polestar 2
Price: $61,200, including $1,300 destination
Maximum electric driving range: 233 miles
A new all-electric sedan from Geely-owned Polestar (that’s the automaker that bought Volvo), the Polestar 2 may be the direction compact luxury sports sedans are heading. With a Google-based operating system we found easy to use, the interior has enough to please tech enthusiasts. We also found the driving experience to be fairly entertaining — 408 horsepower and 400 pounds-feet of torque will do that. Unfortunately, for a fairly high price point, the Polestar 2 is only rated at 233 miles of range.
2021 Porsche Taycan 4S Performance Battery Plus
Price: $110,720, including $1,350 destination
Maximum electric driving range: 227 miles
When Porsche builds an electric sports sedan, you can expect the result will be special. The Taycan not only looks like a concept car that’s fresh from an auto show, it drives like a sports car that happens to conveniently have four doors attached. The balance of ride and handling is precise and what you’d expect from a car wearing a Porsche badge — not to mention one with a starting price of more than $100,000. There isn’t a vast difference in driving range among Taycan models, but it’s the 4S version (fitted with the Performance Battery Plus option package) that has the best range — increased from 203 miles for 2020 to 227 miles for 2021.
2021 Nissan Leaf S Plus
Price: $39,220, including $950 destination
Maximum electric driving range: 226 miles
For about a decade, the Nissan Leaf has been nudging electric cars into the mainstream. That hasn’t always been an easy task, especially considering EVs cost more and usually have less driving range than conventional gas-powered cars. Still, the Leaf’s latest generation delivers more than double the range the original model did back in 2011. This is a variant called the Leaf Plus, mind you — not the standard Leaf, which starts around $30,000 and has an EPA-estimated 149 miles of range. A roomy cabin, convenient hatchback body style and healthy list of standard features help to keep the Leaf current and up to date against EV rivals from Chevrolet, Hyundai, Kia and Tesla.
2021 Audi E-Tron
Price: $66,995, including $1,095 destination
Maximum electric driving range: 222 miles
The Audi E-Tron wraps its zero-emissions hardware into an SUV body. Loaded with tech touches, it comes standard with a long list of standard features. The only thing the E-Tron lacks is driving range — for this amount of money, 222 miles isn’t impressive, though it’s an increase of 18 miles compared to earlier versions. Buyers can also pay a little more to get the E-Tron in a coupefied Sportback body style, but it will sacrifice a bit of total range.
2021 Volvo XC40 Recharge
Price: $55,085, including $1,095 destination
Maximum electric driving range: 208 miles
Volvo’s smallest SUV got the all-electric treatment and, like the Polestar 2, boasts more than 400 hp and an updated Android-based operating system courtesy of Google. With the removal of its combustion engine from under the hood, the XC40 Recharge also gains additional cargo space. With just 208 miles of total range, however, that extra cargo space might be better suited for bigger grocery runs than long road trips.
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