Smart solar charging with evcc and Plugchoice
Evcc is a free, open source energy manager that charges cars on solar power and the cheapest grid hours. Connect it to Plugchoice and it works with every charger brand you have onboarded.
What evcc does and why it pairs with Plugchoice
Evcc is an open source energy management system built by a community of EV and solar owners. It watches your site's power flow in real time and decides when to charge. It soaks up solar surplus during the day, shifts to the cheapest hours on dynamic tariffs, and respects departure times so the car is ready when you need it.
Plugchoice gives evcc one consistent connection to your chargers. Every charger you onboard with Plugchoice speaks the same API, regardless of brand, so evcc can read and steer all of them without a separate driver for each manufacturer.
What you get when evcc and Plugchoice work together
Solar surplus charging
Evcc follows your PV production minute by minute and charges the car only with the power your site is not already using.
Dynamic tariff charging
On spot price contracts, evcc moves charging into the cheapest hours of the day and pauses when power is expensive.
Any charger brand
Because Plugchoice normalizes every OCPP charger, evcc treats a mixed fleet of brands as one. No per-brand setup.
Departure times and targets
Set when the car needs to be ready and how full. Evcc plans backward from there and still favors solar and cheap power.
Everything you get on Plugchoice
The moment your chargers run on Plugchoice, every one of these comes with it, instantly. Almost all of it is free, €0 forever. Only the few labelled add-ons cost extra.
Smart Charging and Billing are priced per charger. The Partner Program is only a flat platform fee per company, not a per-charger cost, and it unlocks everything in its column.
See complete pricingCharger Management
Locations & Teams
Charge Cards & Transactions
Interfaces
OCPP Proxy
Power Management
- Dynamic load balancing
- Solar balancingSmart Charging | €1.23/mo/evse
- Peak shavingSmart Charging | €1.23/mo/evse
- Power sharingSmart Charging | €1.23/mo/evse
- Start/stop schedulingSmart Charging | €1.23/mo/evse
- Wireless meter supportSmart Charging | €1.23/mo/evse
- Visual power configuratorSmart Charging | €1.23/mo/evse
Tariff Management
- Dynamic energy tariffsSmart Charging | €1.23/mo/evse
- Scheduled chargingSmart Charging | €1.23/mo/evse
Billing & Invoicing
- Automatic invoicing per charging sessionBilling & Invoicing | €5.95/mo/evse
- Reimburse employees for home chargingBilling & Invoicing | €5.95/mo/evse
- Per-user and per-card cost allocationBilling & Invoicing | €5.95/mo/evse
- VAT-ready invoices in your own brandingBilling & Invoicing | €5.95/mo/evse
- Accounting-ready exportsBilling & Invoicing | €5.95/mo/evse
Support
- In-app chat and email support
- Help center
- Priority responsePartner Program | €29/mo/account
- Custom SLACustom | Talk to us
Alerts
- Automatic alertingPartner Program | €29/mo/account
- Ticketing states, assignees and escalationPartner Program | €29/mo/account
- Automatic problem solvingPartner Program | €29/mo/account
Branding
- Whitelabel Web PortalPartner Program | €29/mo/account
- Custom domain with SSLPartner Program | €29/mo/account
- White labeled appCustom | Talk to us
Revenue & Commercial
- Revenue share on Smart ChargingPartner Program | €29/mo/account
- Revenue share on Billing & InvoicingPartner Program | €29/mo/account
- Revenue share on VPP and EREPartner Program | €29/mo/account
- Virtual shelf spaceCustom | Talk to us
- Joint marketingCustom | Talk to us
How to connect evcc to Plugchoice
evcc
Decides when to charge
Plugchoice
Connects every charger
evcc
Decides when to charge
Plugchoice
Connects every charger
Onboard your chargers
Add your chargers to Plugchoice. Any OCPP charger connects, and an existing backoffice keeps running through the OCPP Proxy.
Create an API token
In the Plugchoice portal, generate a REST API token for evcc to use.
Add Plugchoice in evcc
In evcc, add Plugchoice as your charger source and paste the token. Evcc discovers the chargers on your account.
Let evcc optimize
Pick solar, price or a departure plan per charger. Evcc takes over the charging power while Plugchoice keeps the connection and your data.
Frequently asked questions
Is evcc free?
Yes. Evcc is open source and free to run. You host it yourself on a small computer or server at the site. Plugchoice is also free to use for charger management.
Which chargers work with evcc through Plugchoice?
Any OCPP charger you have connected to Plugchoice. Evcc sees them through one API, so the brand does not matter.
Does evcc replace Plugchoice?
No. They do different jobs. Plugchoice connects, configures and monitors the charger. Evcc decides when and how fast to charge based on solar and price. They run side by side.
How does evcc connect to Plugchoice?
Through the Plugchoice REST API. You create a token in the portal and add it to evcc. No extra hardware is needed.
Can I use solar charging on a charger with no built-in smart charging?
Yes. The intelligence lives in evcc, not the charger. As long as the charger speaks OCPP and is connected to Plugchoice, evcc can modulate its power.
Do I need Plugchoice Smart Charging as well?
Not for evcc. Evcc handles the solar and price logic itself. Plugchoice Smart Charging is a separate option for load balancing and tariffs managed inside Plugchoice.
Booking service providers: customers, data, one connection
One integration with Plugchoice, not one per CPO or charger brand. Customers pick you through the platform and session data flows in a standardized format.
Customers via OAuth
End-users authorize you directly. Plugchoice handles consent and revocation.
Verification-ready data
MID meter data, EAN, session-level detail. One API, one format.
Normalized charging data
Plugchoice maps every OCPP brand to the same structure. No brand-specific parsers.
Existing customer base
Plugchoice exposes your service to charger owners on the platform. No cold outreach.
One connection, every CPO
No separate integrations per CPO or backoffice. Plugchoice sits in between.
Put evcc to work on your chargers
Connect your chargers to Plugchoice for free, then point evcc at them.
About this page
evcc and the evcc logo are trademarks of their respective owner. All other names, logos and trademarks are the property of their respective owners. This page is published independently by Plugchoice and is not affiliated with, endorsed by or sponsored by evcc. Every detail about evcc was taken from publicly available sources and was accurate to the best of our knowledge on the date shown. Specifications and features change often, so please confirm the current details with the manufacturer before relying on them.