Current charge, target charge and usable energy determine the kWh the car needs.
Tesla smart charging
Charge your Tesla when your home electricity is cheapest
Smart charging should answer three questions: how much energy the car needs, when electricity costs less, and when the car must be ready. Then it can place charging into the lowest-cost eligible window.
Need your utility hours first? Check TOU peak/off-peak periods →
If your electricity price is flat all day, timing alone will not lower the energy cost. Start with Tesla home charging cost.
Three inputs
A charging schedule should start with the need — not the plug-in time
Off-peak, mid-peak and peak hours can vary by plan, weekday, weekend and season.
The car only needs enough eligible charging time to meet the target before departure.
Example night
28 kWh needed before 7 a.m. — so why start charging at 5 p.m.?
If the car can receive all 28 kWh during the cheapest period, charging can wait. The rates below are illustrative; use your own utility plan.
Illustrative TOU scheduleRequired energy: 28 kWh · Ready by: 7 a.m.
Lowest-cost eligible hours should be used first.Try your own numbers
Can the cheap window fit the charging you need?
Illustrative planner. Real charging power can vary, and utilities may include fixed charges, demand charges or other rules not represented here.
What Tesla already does
Sometimes you do not need another charging scheduler
Looking for Tesla's current ready-by controls? See Tesla Scheduled Departure →
Tesla already has strong native charging controls. The right solution depends on your tariff and home-energy setup.
Scheduled Charging
Best when your cheap hours are simple and repeat on a fixed schedule.
- set charging start and stop times;
- select days and frequency;
- works without a Powerwall.
Rate Plan Charging
Tesla can already optimize around an energy rate plan when the required home-energy hardware is present.
- uses lower-cost rate periods;
- works toward an end-charging time;
- currently requires compatible Powerwall + Wall Connector hardware.
Vehicle-side rate-aware planning
Being built for Tesla owners who want rate-aware charging tied to vehicle energy need, departure target and DriveQuery history — without adding home-energy hardware.
- use the car's required kWh;
- map that need to your utility periods;
- avoid changing the schedule unless something material changes.
If Tesla Rate Plan Charging already fits your home setup and rate plan, it may already solve the scheduling problem. DriveQuery's goal is not to duplicate a working native setup.
Rate-aware logic
What happens when the cheapest window is not long enough?
A useful planner should not miss your departure target just to protect a cheap rate. It should fill the lowest-cost eligible hours first, then expand only as far as necessary.
Wait and charge only during the lowest-cost period.
Use all of the cheap window, then add the next-lowest-cost eligible hours.
Manual charging should stay under the driver's control rather than being unexpectedly stopped by optimization.
Quiet automation matters too
A parked Tesla should not be woken repeatedly just to discover that nothing changed. DriveQuery is being designed to use last-known state when appropriate, avoid resending identical schedules and react when the charging need or plan materially changes.
What the driver keeps in control
- target state of charge;
- ready-by or departure time;
- utility and rate-plan assumptions;
- whether optimization is enabled; and
- manual override behavior.
Common questions
Tesla smart charging FAQ
What is the best time to charge a Tesla at home?
If your utility uses time-of-use pricing, the cheapest time is normally the plan's off-peak period. Exact hours depend on the utility, rate plan, season and sometimes weekday versus weekend.
Does Tesla already support scheduled charging?
Yes. Tesla vehicles can schedule charging start and stop times by location, including days and frequency. If your cheap period is fixed and predictable, that may already be enough.
What is Tesla Rate Plan Charging?
Tesla Rate Plan Charging uses your home energy rate plan to charge during lower-cost periods while meeting a desired charging duration by an end time. As of August 2026, Tesla requires a compatible Powerwall and Wall Connector setup for this feature.
What happens if the off-peak window is too short?
A rate-aware plan should use the cheapest eligible hours first and then extend into the next-lowest-cost period only as much as needed to reach the required energy before departure.
Does smart charging save money on a flat electricity rate?
No, not from timing alone. If the energy price is identical all day, moving a charging session to another hour does not reduce the electricity rate.
Official Tesla references
Related guides
Tesla charging at home: compare 120V, 240V, NEMA 14-50 and Wall Connector →
Use the cheap hours. Keep the car ready.
DriveQuery is being built to turn energy need, utility rates and departure time into a quieter charging plan.