Are EV Prices Now The Same As Petrol Car Prices: We Find Out!
Discussions around achieving price parity between petrol-powered and electric vehicles are hot again. Speaking at the 20th FICCI Higher Education Summit 2025, Union Minister Nitin Gadkari reiterated that price parity between the two would be achieved in the next four-to-six months. It is true that EVs have become more affordable in the past few years. But have the prices come down so much that EV's now cost the same as petrol automatics? Short answer, No! In this article, we'll explain this in detail using a few examples. We will be comparing the petrol automatic variants with all-electric forms.
Hyundai Creta P iVT vs Hyundai Creta Electric
The Creta Electric starts at Rs 18.02 lakh, ex-showroom. This is for the base-spec Executive variant with the smaller 42 kWh battery pack that claims a range of 420 km per charge. The ICE Creta with its petrol-IVT combination starts (EX(O) iVT variant) at Rs 13.88 Lakh, ex-showroom - a difference of 4.14 lakh. This variant, however, falls short in terms of features and tech on offer. The SX (O) Knight Edition is comparable to the EV’s Executive variant on this front. It has an ex-showroom price of Rs 15.56 lakh. This brings the ex-showroom difference down to 2.5 lakh.
Now, let’s talk about the on-road prices. In New Delhi, the Creta EV Executive has an on-road price of Rs 18.95 lakh. The SX (O) Knight Edition’s on-road price is Rs 18.01 lakh. The EV costs just Rs 94,000 more than the ICE!
Kia Carens Clavis vs Clavis EV
Kia launched the Carens Clavis in India early this year. The EV came in July and was based on the same platform as the ICE version. It starts at Rs 17.99 lakh, ex-showroom (HTK Plus variant). The ICE Clavis offers multiple powertrain options. It is available with petrol (naturally aspirated and turbocharged) and diesel engines and manual and automatic transmissions.
The HTK Plus Turbo DCT variant that offers similar kit levels as the EV’s HTK Plus, has an ex-showroom price of Rs 16.28 Lakh. The ex-showroom price difference here is just Rs 1.71 lakh. The on-road prices in Delhi for these are Rs 18.76 lakh and Rs 20.65 lakh, respectively. The difference here is Rs 1.89 lakh.
Tata Nexon vs Tata Nexon EV
The Nexon is a very popular nameplate. It currently offers a slew of variants and multiple powertrain options- turbocharged petrol, CNG, diesel, and EV. For this comparison, let’s take the Smart Plus AMT variant of the ICE Nexon and the (starting) Creative Plus MR variant of the electric version. This ICE variant, however, misses out on features like automatic climate control, engine start/stop, and a height-adjustable driver seat. It, however, has an ex-showroom price of Rs 8.78 lakh.
The Creative Plus MR has an ex-showroom price of Rs 12.49 lakh and comes with a 30 kWh battery pack that claims to offer 325 km per charge. The difference in ex-showroom prices is Rs 3.7 lakh. The on-road prices in Delhi are Rs 9.84 lakh for the Smart Plus AMT and Rs 13.17 lakh for the EV variant. Not so close for the Nexon, right? But take the Nexon Petrol DCA and the game changes. It is priced Rs 11.16 Lakh ex showroom. Much closer to the rs 12.49 Lakh of the Nexon Creative Plus MR. On road price for the petrol DCA is Rs 12.93 lakhs while the EV variant is Rs 13.17 lakhs - that's almost nothing!
If we compare the Creative AMT variant of the ICE Nexon with the EV’s Creative Plus MR variant, the price difference shrinks to Rs 1.79 lakh (ex-showroom) and 1.3 lakh in on-road figures. The Creative AMT variant has an ex-showroom price of Rs 10.70 lakh and an on-road price of Rs 12.40 lakh.
Harrier Vs Harrier.EV
The Harrier offers both diesel and electric powertrains. We will compare the diesel automatic with the base-spec electric. The Pure X AT variant of the ICE Harrier has an ex-showroom price of Rs 18.53 lakh. The higher-spec Adventure X Plus AT costs Rs 19.90 lakh, ex-showroom and stands closer to the base-spec Adventure 65 variant of the EV, in kit levels. This variant of the EV has an ex-showroom price of Rs 21.49 lakh.
The on-road prices of Pure X AT, Adventure X Plus AT and Adventure 65 stand at Rs 22.04 lakh, 23.65 lakh and 22.58 lakh, respectively. Yes, the Adventure X Plus AT variant will cost you more to take home than the entry-spec EV! The difference between the on-road prices of the entry-spec EV variant and the Pure X AT, on the other hand, is just Rs 54,000.
Tiago EV vs Tiago AMT
The Tiago EV is still one of the most affordable electric cars that you can buy in India. It now has a starting ex-showroom price of Rs 7.99 lakh for the XE MR variant. The petrol-powered Tiago, on the other hand, starts at Rs 4.57 lakh, ex-showroom. The first variant to offer an automatic transmission (AMT) is the XZA AMT which has an ex-showroom price of Rs 6.91 lakh. The difference between ex-showroom prices is just Rs 1.08 lakh. The on-road prices of XZA AMT and XE MR are Rs 7.77 lakh and 8.32 lakh respectively- a difference of just Rs 55,000.
Citroen C3 vs eC3
Citroen eC3 may not be a popular electric car today. But it continues to be on sale here, alongside the ICE sibling C3, and thus needs a mention here. The entry-level Feel variant of this EV has an ex-showroom price of Rs 12.90 lakh and an on-road price of Rs 13.53 lakh, in Delhi. The C3 X Shine Turbo AT variant that was launched recently has an ex-showroom price of Rs 9.05 lakh. The on-road price here is Rs 10.14 lakh. The difference in ex-showroom prices is Rs 3.85 lakh, and that in on-road prices is Rs 3.39 lakh. Citroen is a notable exception to the trend of petrol and EV prices coming closer to each other.
MG Astor Vs ZS EV
MG’s first electric car for the Indian market was the ZS EV, which launched in 2020. Its ICE version, the Astor came in 2021. Today, the first Astor variant to offer a CVT automatic transmission is the 100 Year Limited edition priced at Rs 16.24 lakh, ex-showroom.
The ZS EV starts at Rs 18.50 lakh, ex-showroom, at a premium of Rs 2.26 lakh. The on-road prices of these Astor and ZS EV variants are Rs 18.74 lakh and 19.45 lakh, respectively. A difference of just Rs 71,000.
Special Mention: Mahindra XUV700 vs XEV 9e vs BE6
Well, the XEV9e and BE6 cannot be directly compared to the XUV 700, as they differ significantly in body style, powertrains, and platform. The XEV 9e and BE6 aren’t based on a converted ICE platform, but an indigenously developed EV skateboard. The first XUV 700 variant to offer a petrol automatic combination is the AX5 7Str AT, priced at Rs 18.8 lakh, ex-showroom.
The entry-spec Pack ONE variants of the XEV 9e and BE 6 costs Rs 21.90 lakh and 18.90 lakh, respectively. The latter clearly sits close to the XUV 700 AX5 AT. The on-road prices of XEV 9e and BE6 base variants are Rs 23.01 lakh and Rs 19.87 lakh, respectively. The XUV700 AX5 has an on-road price of Rs 21.88 lakh, in New Delhi. Though priced close to each other, the XEV 9e and BE 6 differ significantly from the XUV 700.
Bottomline
As can be seen in these cases, petrol-powered and electric vehicles still have decent differences in their ex-showroom and on-road prices. In most cases, EVs continued to be pricier than ICE variants with comparable kit levels. The recently announced GST 2.0 has made (qualifying) petrol cars more affordable, and leaving electric vehicles nearly untouched. This too has contributed to the price gap between these. Battery prices will have fall further and lectric vehicles will have become more affordable, to achieve price parity between EVs and petrol cars.