Best electric car charger apps in South Africa

South African electric vehicle (EV) drivers can use several apps to check for the locations of public charging stations, plan trips, and make charging session payments.

There are well over 400 public EV charging stations in South Africa, including many with fast chargers along major long-distance routes.

These stations make it possible to travel nearly anywhere in the country without sacrificing too much time to recharge relative to using a petrol or diesel car.

However, although there are undoubtedly enough chargers to go around, EV drivers need to plan meticulously to optimise their travel time compared to petrol and diesel car drivers.

Motorists in non-electric cars have many more fuel stations to choose from and can top up in less than five minutes.

EV drivers need to work out whether it is better to make many shorter stops or just a handful of longer stops, taking into account their car’s charging speed and what the public charger they plan to use supports.

One factor that is impossible to plan for is that charging stations can be in use by another vehicle or suffer a fault that renders them inoperable.

While load-shedding has become less of an issue, smaller localised power cuts can be a big problem.

These factors make it necessary to have an app that provides the locations and status information of public EV chargers nationwide.

In most cases, using a public EV charger also requires having an account with a charge point operator (CPO) or mobility service provider (MSP) to make payments.

These accounts have digital wallets which can be loaded with prepaid charging credits for payment.

While the digital wallet can be linked with a physical RFID card for making payments by tapping on a sensor at the station, users can also initiate charging sessions when their car is plugged in by using the CPO or MSP’s app or support channels.

Below are the four major EV charging apps in South Africa that help make EV ownership and long-distance travel more feasible and convenient.

ChargePocket

ChargePocket is the official app of GridCars, South Africa’s biggest CPO and MSP.

The app operates within a browser rather than as a standalone Android or iOS mobile app.

However, it can be pinned to your home screen like a regular mobile app and has been optimised for smartphones.

The app offers a station map that includes all GridCars charging points and the sites of its partners.

It features sections for loading credits on the ChargePocket wallet, initiating a charging session, viewing a map of GridCars and partner stations and their real-time status, and a profile section for managing customer details, transaction history, and reporting problems.

To access the app, users must first sign up for a ChargePocket account and get a card to link to that account.

Rubicon Charge

South Africa’s second-biggest CPO, Rubicon, launched its mobile app for Android and iOS in August 2024.

The interface is far more simplified than the ChargePocket app and features five main sections:

• Locations — A map of chargers with details on their current us
• Wallet — For viewing and topping up of payment account, as well as checking transaction history
• Charge — Initiate a charging session via the app instead of your card
• Reservations — Not yet launched, but should allow drivers to lock a charger for a specific time for their use
• Profile — User information including name, contact details, and vehicle data

Rubicon offers a physical card only as an optional payment method.

The company recently also started rolling out regular card payment terminals to some of its chargers, which enables anyone with a bank card to pay for their charge.

Rubicon has also added its chargers to the GridCars’ network, allowing ChargePocket users to benefit from its charging stations.

PlugShare

PlugShare is the only international app on our list and is not operated by any CPO or MSP.

Launched over 15 years ago by software developer Recargo, PlugShare crowdsources data from EV drivers and charging providers to provide the most comprehensive map of chargers possible.

Users can add charging station locations with photos and report their experience using the charger to help the broader community.

Its map includes public chargers not linked to a CPO or MSP, including free stations installed at commercial or business properties.

It also has charger locations that will be rolled out soon. These forthcoming charger locations can be loaded by recognised charging providers.

Keep in mind that PlugShare does not offer real-time charger status data like ChargePocket or Rubicon Charge.

PlugShare also does not support any wallets or payments but is intended purely as a way to report the locations and current state of a charger and keep track of the status of one’s favourite charging locations.

Charge

The newest charging app in South Africa is operated by Stellenbosch-based Charge, formerly called Zero Carbon Charge.

The company plans to build 120 off-grid EV charging stations across the country by early 2026, with the aim of having one available every 150km.

Charge completed the first of its stations along the N12 in North West in November 2024, while at least another three are set to come online in early 2025.

The Charge app features a minimalist yet effective interface, which includes a map for finding stations, viewing available chargers, and managing payment cards.

Unlike GridCars or Rubicon, Charge does not have a dedicated wallet or card.

Instead, users can plug in their car, scan the QR code on the charger through the app, and make payments with a linked bank card.