By: Otaiba Ahsan

Charging can be a challenging concept for new Tesla owners, especially if they’re new to electric vehicle (EV) ownership. While opening the charge port and plugging the cable in can be quite intuitive, it’s also important to understand the charging status of your car as it progresses. Continue reading for steps on how to tell the charging status of your Tesla.

Plugging In

Simply open the charge port, and fully insert the charging cable. When the connector is correctly inserted, charging will begin automatically. Once plugged in, a latch will engage that holds the cable in place, and the car will heat or cool the battery if required.

NOTE: When your Tesla is plugged in but not actively charging, such as if you’ve scheduled a charge or if the vehicle has already reached its charging limit, it will draw energy from the charging equipment instead of using stored energy from the battery. For example, if you’re using the air conditioning while the car is plugged in but not actively charging, your battery level won’t decrease.

Charging Status

Once the vehicle is plugged in and charging has begun, the charging status displays at the top of the car status screen. Here are the following things it shows:

1. Time Remaining: An estimated time remaining is displayed, indicating approximately how much longer to reach the charge limit you’ve set.
2. Charging: The current power of the charger. This will change based on where you’re charging. For example, refueling at a Supercharger vs. charging at home.
3. Rate of Charging: Displays what the available, maximum current rate is from the attached charge cable.
4. Range Gained: An estimated increase in driving distance achieved during the current charging session.
5. Driving Distance: Displays the total estimated driving distance or energy percentage, depending on how you’ve configured your display settings, available.
6. Charge Status: Any charge status messages such as if you’ve scheduled charging for later, or if you’re at a Tesla Supercharger.

NOTE: Curious about how to schedule charging for your Tesla? We’ve created a comprehensive guide on how to set up scheduled charging for your Tesla that covers all the information you need.

The Bottom Line

The steps on how to tell the charging status of your Tesla are straightforward. Once you’ve plugged your vehicle in, there are several things that are displayed on the car touchscreen. This includes the time remaining, rate of charging, current power of charging, and more. Refer to the complete list above for details.