Hybrid vs. Plug-in Hybrid: What’s the Difference & Which One Is Right For You?

Plug-in hybrids are becoming more and more popular, but how are they different from regular hybrids? Edmunds’ Nick Yekikian tells you all about the differences between hybrid and plug-in hybrid powertrains in this video.
00:00 Intro
00:39 What's The Difference?
01:49 Cost Benefits
03:07 Tax Incentives
03:38 Our Favorite Hybrids
04:31 Our Favorite PHEVs
05:24 Edmunds' Take
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[@edmundscars]

We get that EVs aren’t for everyone, but there are plenty of good options for electrified cars without having to go full on into the world of an EV. Which would you choose?

[@codincoman9019]

A self-charging hybrid, obviously. The SCH is the MOST RELIABLE car segment, unlike the BEVs = the LEAST RELIABLE car segment. Also, the SCHs have the lowest TCO (Total Cost of Ownership), despite the 2-3k battery replacement cost, while the BEVs have the highest TCO, due to the very expensive (~20k) big battery replacement cost. The PHEV are just slightly better than BEVs, thus even from the economic perspective, the SCH are a better alternative than PHEV or BEV, even without talking about the BEV huge pollution, unreliability, high TCO, dangerousness, impracticality, controlability etc.

[@trickyow8328]

So what do you think is better kia spportage hybrid or phev? Or tucson?​@@codincoman9019

[@user-zd4re9gw4w]

Hybrid is obsolete... especially with modern battery chemistries. Hybrid is better than ICE, however... The question should be, PHEV vs. EV. I had both. ICE to PHEV, to EV. sooo... PHEV is good for 18-30 miles range, a bit less in winter. Enough for getting to and back from work. In a large metropolitan city... EV is better. 200+ miles can go far. Unless you have to do cross-country coast to coast... then PHEV become ordinary hybrid refuelable in seconds.

[@chadhaire1711]

@@user-zd4re9gw4w BULLSHIT..you left out that PHEV even if charged for 50% of driving will take 250,000 miles to pay for itself, and by then the battery will be dead. Did you people ever go to school and learn math?

[@graftedfan]

Hybrid all the way. Saving my THOUSANDS

[@A861967]

Hybrid any day. EVs are just not reliable due to the support that is available, nor infrastructure available and unpredictable range depending upon use. Especially in Australia where we don’t have a good supply of electric.

[@ourpatrondotnet]

Ignored in this video is the fact that battery packs do not last forever, and to replace one ain’t cheap. It can completely wipe out any savings versus a gas powered vehicle. I drive a hybrid, and I am very mindful of this.

[@vevenaneathna]

130k miles on my 13 year old chevy volt. getting 50-55 miles of range. you must be talking about another car with a poorly designed cooling system lol

[@chadhaire1711]

@@vevenaneathna Sorry you cant afford a real car Goober

[@vevenaneathna]

@@chadhaire1711 okay. i own all my cars cash unlike you. my weekend car is a porsche... you got that car note and are mad bitter

[@chadhaire1711]

@@vevenaneathna I drive over $2 million in factory supplied cars every year goober...I don't need to pay for anything. And sure as hell don't need to embarrass myself by being seen in a fairy ride like a Chevy volt.

[@chadhaire1711]

@@vevenaneathna I see we have another brainwashed dude thinking Russia started this war in Ukraine........LOL......NOT.

[@Molishious]

I drive a PHEV which covers 100 % of my driving most days. It’s more efficient than its ICE or hybrid equivalents and has more horsepower and torque than they do. On long trips it’s an efficient hybrid vehicle that I don’t have to charge. I don’t have to compromise on range and slow refueling like an EV does and I don’t have to compromise on efficiency like the ICE vehicle. Consumer reports has it ranked higher for reliability than any EV. There is maintenance and I do burn gas. That’s the decision I made to not have to compromise on range and efficient refueling. Three years in I have had no problems and I still enjoy driving it every day. It has held its resale value than any EV. My next car will be a full EV, but I have no complaints. A lot of the anti phev comments that I’ve read in comments sections like this are based on what people think will happen rather than any actual data.

[@chadhaire1711]

Here is some data....at 50% EV driving it will take 250,000 miles for that PHEV to pay for itself and by then another $4K to replace the battery destroying any savings. You should have paid more attention in school when they were teaching math.

[@KealeyOnCars]

Put Nick in more videos!

[@JamaicanMeCrazy]

I think a regular hybrid seems to be the set spot

[@beautyofgrace3915]

Just bought a 2018 Chevy Volt Premiere, get 51 ev miles, it’s great on gas as well, but it’s been a month and I haven’t gone to the gas station yet, so I have the best of both worlds. It’s not complicated, you just decide if you want to use the battery or gas, it’s one of the best cars that I ever had😊

[@chadhaire1711]

Guess you never learned math.....it takes from new 250,000 miles for that EV mode to pay for itself if you charge 50%., 125,000 miles at 100% then plan on replacing that battery at another $4K.

[@manuelferreira4622]

@@chadhaire1711 Bingo! 👋👋👋👋👍👍👍👍

[@chriswf]

Dude, the only difference really is phevs (should) have bigger batteries. If you don't live in an apartment, this is GREAT opportunity to daily drive your car for very cheap, maybe even free if you have solar. And never have to visit a gas station. However the combustion engine is there, so no range anxiety. Regular hybrids use braking and the gas engine to spin a shaft going through the electrical motor(s) to recharge it. You're still 100% required to buy gas.

[@chriswernke4824]

Recently purchased a new 2024 Ford Maverick hybrid and I really enjoy the seamless use of both electric and gas. Outstanding MPG with no drawbacks.

[@shawnhill4779]

I only wish that Ford made it available with AWD and/or 4k towing.

[@chadhaire1711]

Will be drawbacks when you have to replace that battery Gomer

[@flashsushi1843]

Besides Toyota PHEVs, which other makes make reliable ones? A few months, there was a study suggesting HEVs (Toyota sells the most) are more reliable than PHEVs, which are more reliable than BEVs. I guess there's more reliance on and complexity to PHEVs and BEVs' software and BMS.

[@codincoman9019]

Yep, Consumer Reports annual reliability survey revealed that hybrids > PHEV > BEV in reliability (and similarly is with the low TCO ranking), not only economically, thus my choice for a Lexus hybrid (0 issues in 5 years, not even recalls, minimizing thus the car total costs).

[@tocreatee5736]

@@codincoman9019 because most of hybrids on road are Toyota or honda. thats why they are reliable. there are a lot of hybrids just nightmare to own. my brother in law own Hyundai HV SUV for 3 years and got rid of it.

[@richardloh-qs2nx]

well done video

[@Hi-how-are-you-today.]

Now phevs can get 50 to 60 miles on a charge like a Mercedes-Benz GLE 450e …

[@stephenwinter8892]

geetings from southern Ontario Canada and i agree with you phev and a ev both need level 2 charge and most apartments dont have this feature but hybrids are easier to get a hold of depending upon the manufacturer my sister lives in Vancouver and she is enjoying her mitsubishi outlander phev and gets 60 kms on a charge

[@codincoman9019]

Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV is one of the best in the category (one of my friends has one), but the calculation vs. my Lexus hybrid went to my advantage.

[@carlodeguzman683]

I didn't know there was phev with dc fast chargers (lvl 3). What phev brands have those?

[@carlbillingsley2060]

The Mitsubishi outlander PHEV can charge on L3, it’s silly for a secondary engine but it’s there

[@PresidentJackBauer]

A Tuscon hybrid limited, vs a Tuscon hybrid plug in limited have a 5k difference in price. It would take nearly 15 years to make up that price in gas savings if you drive 15k miles a year.

[@ALMX5DP]

All depends on how many pure EV miles you’d drive in a given year. It would still take years to recoup, but there are also incentives and even convenience considerations which need to be taken into account.

[@codincoman9019]

Add the much higher cost for the plug-in battery replacement vs. the small hybrid battery replacement. You'll never recover that price difference, thus the self-charging hybrid is a far better choice. And the right choice is Toyota, not a Korean clunker.

[@chadhaire1711]

@@ALMX5DP bullshit

[@ALMX5DP]

@@chadhaire1711 what part?

[@chadhaire1711]

@@ALMX5DP where are the incentives and convenience considerations? Not there which is why you did not list

[@graftedfan]

suv hybrid yesterday was 52mpg. since refueling is 42mpg. pluggable version can't get close to that.

[@CadetKinslow]

kislux versace bag is so cute

[@stefantakacs]

Lol no mention of the Sienna!?

[@scottmccullo]

The 2025 Lexus UX300h AWD should be mentioned take a ride in one

[@g7003041]

Hybrid is always better than pure EVs. You don’t have battery levels anxiety, don’t have to look for dedicated charge stations. Don’t need to wait for charging time if you are on the go. If you mostly working from home even better, mean you mostly used electric, and if you travel far or night you don’t worry to charge especially late night and alone at the charge station. No EV infrastructure yet in your area? No problem. I can go for gas station. ..etc

[@codincoman9019]

Plus that hybrids are the MOST RELIABLE car segment, unlike the BEVs that are the LEAST RELIABLE car segment. Plus the hybrids have the lowest TCO (Total Cost of Ownership) despite the hybrid battery replacement cost, while the BEV's have the highest TCO because of the big battery replacement cost. A PHEV are a little bit better than a BEV, but clearly below a (self-charging) hybrid.

[@graftedfan]

my suv hybrid was 52mpg yesterday and since refueling 42mpg. pluggable version would be $5000 and takes YEARS for the gas engine to recover that cost. this is the problem with pluggables. there's always a massive up front premium and dupe people into buying them under the guise of never having to spend a precious 5-10 minutes at a gas station.

[@lazziebardakos2956]

My personal pick would be a range extender.

[@audio_tron]

Or get a used Chevy Volt, if you can plug in at home.

[@graftedfan]

You can change the car or change the driver. Former is VERY expensive. Latter costs NOTHING

[@jhonnypusong6906]

I driven full hybrid for 8 years now. The new full hybrid I own has a 25-30miles range and have a better economy. New tech auto pilot cruise that can save you a lot of petrol. From 55mpg to 65mpg or even 70mpg. If use you use the auto cruise control in the highway. Engine and battery alternating power. If you control it or by you self of everything ( acceleration brakes speeds) And your foot is heavy. You can’t get a better mpg. You’re not a modern professional driver( old school driving)😁 I experienced that to my previous one( hybrid)55mpg down to 35mpg or 45mpg. ( harsh acceleration undesirable speed hooligans driving habits)😁 We want performance but in hybrid cars they have limits Not quickest or so speedy. But have enough speed and power to take into your journey. If rushing or not. Not suits for hooligans poor gangsta drivers. Loves sporty fast cars)😁 Top speed of a a hybrid from 85-145. It’s depend the size of the engine. We know the max speed limit in highways motorways is 70mph or 80 mph but not more than 100mph. Which is hybrid is in the right vehicle for both world safety ( cities and countrysides). Mine has a 135 top speed. 55-65 mpg But I was surprised sometimes in the highways driving 65-70mpg range of 520 miles. Never had plug in hybrid before. But conveniency practicality in my opinion full hybrid is better than plug in. If you run out of battery in highway on long distance drive. Is pointless. Not like the full hybrid. When the battery is low back to the engine then recharge: If you use the auto pilot cruise control. Much better. On and off. Engine and battery can rest and cool down( by alternating)What a genius engineering. I save a lot since im driving a full hybrid. Less maintenance and efficient From £180 month of petrol plus maintenance and yearly service of my previous petrol ICE car(2.5L) now £45-47 per month plus yearly service for my hybrid ( 2.0l) Most of all reliability or life span of modern hybrid is better than the normal ICE now( old school design turbo engines )😁

[@vevenaneathna]

put 30k miles on my $7,000 phev last year. got about 150mpg. saved 2k in gas lol. why would anyone in their right mind buy a full hybrid and catch all that deprecieation. my 7000$ phev is now worth $9000 :p

[@antonizvekov1]

The plugin cars are much heavier than the regular car, and when you're out of "juice" their gas mileage is terrible.

[@PGHGEOLOGIST]

That simply isn't true. My PHEV drives great, gets over 30 miles on a charge and when in hybrid mode gets over 50 mpg.

[@chadhaire1711]

@@PGHGEOLOGIST Guess you didn't learn math is school. Using EV 50% of the time it will take 250,000 miles for the system to pay for itself, 500,000 if EV is used 25%. Then plan on replacing the battery at another $4K. Let us know how that works in 10 years.

[@PGHGEOLOGIST]

@@chadhaire1711 Your math is pretty close to mine. We probably differ in cost of gas and the amount of EV usage, so yes, it will take a long time for the added cost of the PHEV over an HEV Niro to pay for itself. If we assume that they both get about the same 50 MPG in hybrid mode (which, at least in my experience, they do), and you assume 14,000 mi. traveled per year, gasoline costs $3.78 per gallon (current average gas price in PA), electricity cost 1/3 less than gas when using electric mode (calculated empirically), and electricity is used 75% of the time, then the cost savings over just gasoline is $270 per year. The Niro PHEV costs $4000 more than the HEV so it would take 15 years to pay off the difference. That is 210,000 miles. Do I plan on keeping my car for 15 years? Probably not, but in addition to the cost savings by using electricity, my at home electricity is purchased from a company that generates electricity exclusively from wind and solar and sells it to me at a cost less than the other available suppliers using gas and coal. So, I'm helping to encourage the switch to renewable resources while saving a little bit of money for transportation.

[@chadhaire1711]

@@PGHGEOLOGIST If I win the lotto I will buy you a 800 horsepower Hellcat to replace that wimpy hybrid and see if you drive it

[@PGHGEOLOGIST]

@@chadhaire1711 I've had cars with powerful engines, never 800 HP though. A big engine is unnecessary. It seems like you just don't like the idea of a practical fuel-efficient car.

[@vevenaneathna]

if you want to actually save money, buy an older chevy volt. i paid 7k for mine, cash, which means my insurance is 21$/month. I upgraded the battery and added 200w of solar which gives me 50-55miles of EV only range each way. with me and my partner sharing the car, we saved $2k in gas this first year. the car will be free in another 18months lol. you cant say that about any phev on the market. if youre curious about my modifications, you can find a post i made in the gm-volt forums under the 1st gen volt modifications section. dont kid yourself youre saving money with a new phev. once you factor in the opportunity cost of buying a used, perfectly reliable chevy volt, youre wasting a ton of money for a car with about half the battery and half the range. womp womp. if you are the type of person that needs to buy a new car, i get it. i just cant burn money like that. thats why i bought an older chevy volt. zero range degradation. gm accidently built the perfect car 15 years ago and everyone ignored it because they were too dumb and thought it was a knockoff prius

[@chadhaire1711]

Here is an idea..try getting a real job that pays more goober

[@vevenaneathna]

@@chadhaire1711 guessing i make more than you. plus i net what i gross. no car note

[@tocreatee5736]

its not Hybrid or Plug-in Hybrid. its all depended on who are making system. you should ask toyota and honda or all other brand.

[@boost331]

PHEV to me is just a giant PITA. I don't mind putting gas in an ICE vehicle. I dont mind charging and EV. I sure as heck dont want to deal with doing both in order to to come close to the rated efficiency numbers. In which case a regular hybrid that requires nothing more than filling up with gas is the best choice in my book. Things like the Camry, Prius, and even new Civic can get 50mpg (even more in real world tests) with ease all without the hassle of plugging in and filling up.

[@justinbecker4772]

I view it more like being able to own 2 cars at once. Most days, I don't drive more than 25 miles. I'd rarely use the gas engine and basically have an EV. When I need to travel long distances, I get most of the efficiency of a regular hybrid, plus the ability to get a few extra EV miles when I stop.

[@boost331]

@@justinbecker4772 My solution to that is to just own 2 cars at once. Well 5 actually. 3 for me. 2 for my wife.... And a motorcycle. Options are great.

[@justinbecker4772]

@@boost331 I'd agree, but some of us don't have space for that.

[@PGHGEOLOGIST]

For most of my driving, I use electricity charged at home, saving about 30% over gas. When on a trip, I run in hybrid mode and get 50 mpg. In today's world, PHEVs are a good solution. Perhaps in ten years, when I get my next car, perhaps the charging infrastructure will make all electric practical for me, but for now, I think PHEV is the way to go.

[@rp9674]

Even better, EV

[@mikexia7711]

Ehhh, Old outdated plug in hybrid in US. 100~120miles for PHEV In China now.

[@chadhaire1711]

and they make a great campfire weenie roast

[@TheEelnoraa]

Cali PGE, $0.55-$0.6/kWh. EV is more expansive than ICE to operate by 50%

[@0ttoman]

SCE is $0.37/kwh and gas is over $4… plus many public L2 chargers are $0.25/kwh. I even see free ones at some malls…

[@TheEelnoraa]

@@0ttoman that is delivery rate, right? There is another component, generation rate. Together it comes $0.5. Also don't forget, there is a at least 15% charge lost with L2 charging. L1 is even higher at 21%. Mall and public L2 are different story. Even I get free charging at office. But the fact is, counting on always getting free charging, especially L2 is not realistic. It just take too long. Most people with EV and a home, charge at home

[@codincoman9019]

@@TheEelnoraa, true. Plus the additional depreciation coming from a bigger price than for an equivalent ICE or HEV, the necessary investment in a carport (it's better not to risk burning your house/garage), the more expensive tyres (due to the bigger weight of the BEV), insurance etc. And if you get some minor accident denting the battery support, your BEV gets totaled or very expensive repair and that is a loss (money + time) etc.

[@jtomtl]

ICE is better, just drive less, save a lot money

[@uludak8468]

phev combine all negatives in one car. home charging required, slow DC, poor fuel economy on highway, least practical, cost as much as full BEV

[@CL-nj3zs]

Dont knock it til you try it. I love my Honda Clarity. Of course home charging is required same as EV. It takes 2 hours to fully charge the Clarity from empty. Free BTW bc i have solar. I get about 50 miles per charge. Highway is about the same as my 2010 Prius if I don't charge it or 65mpg if I charge it before road trip. 100% of my local driving is electric only. Only time I fill up is for road trips. Dont need to wait for rechargjng. As for cost, a decent used Clarity cost about 20-25k. A brand new Rav4 prime is 20k more.

[@codincoman9019]

​​​​@@CL-nj3zsnot very smart to say you charge it for free - like the photovoltaic panels and the necessary inverters don't have a cost and a depreciation. Or comparing the cost of a used PHEV with the MRSP of a new PHEV etc. Plus all the (BEV style) inconveniences mentioned in the first comment of this thread, caused by stupidly carrying a big additional weight (vs. the far smaller additional weight of a self-charging hybrid battery). Btw, comparing your Clarity mpg with that of a Prius on long trips is dumb, Prius wins by a lot, there are reviewers' measurements of that.

[@electricandlspower]

Ev is the way to go if u can plug in at home. Period

[@ALMX5DP]

I think it's much more nuanced than that.

[@CL-nj3zs]

Nah. Phev is the way to go. Wtf wants to wait an hour to recharge while on road trips? Just 10 minutes to gas up to add 400-600 mile range. I would never take an ev on road trips.

[@codincoman9019]

@@CL-nj3zs, yes, PHEV > BEV, clearly But HEV > PHEV also clearly - I wrote the details in other comments. That's why Toyota is winning and Tesla is going down.

[@irishmick6709]

Life is never this simple. We all need to suit ourselves and but what is needed. I do my own research on anything that costs more than a few hundred dollars. I almost wish I needed a new vehicle because I have learned so much about BEV's, Hybrids, and PHEV's over the years.Fortunately, I own two perfectly good Pickups that I have always maintained well.

[@nektarios7029]

I don’t understand why do we want a little electrification? We have had electric cars for the mass for over 10 years. Come on people, we all need to do better. And the media needs to do better too!!

[@chadhaire1711]

and they all suck

[@weroliera]

Easy hybrid. I prefer full electric over phev

[@manuelferreira4622]

None, ice all the way!

[@zlozlozlo]

Plug in hybrids are overly complicated and just unnecessary. They are timid half-step in the right direction. Just go pure EV. Regular hybrids were the way to go, 25 years ago when they started.

[@ALMX5DP]

I think the first mass produced PHEV suited for NA was only about 15 years ago with the Volt.

[@zlozlozlo]

@@ALMX5DP if you're referring to my "25 years ago" comment, I clearly stated I was talking about regular hybrids. Not plug-in hybrids.

[@ALMX5DP]

@@zlozlozlo oh gotcha, sorry misread that second part.

[@flashsushi1843]

And battery costs can also be astronomical compared to fuel saved over a HEV. BMX X5 45e pack replacement is $20,000 USD. The ICE definitely complicates things. I will skip PHEVs and likely go BEV down the road, from an ICEV and HEV.

[@codincoman9019]

Not yet, you'll have to wait with the BEV... The self-charging hybrids are far above the BEV/PHEV - I gave statistics in other comments from here. And statistics trump opinions.

[@samusaran7317]

Neither. PHEV was viable for a couple years around 2012 and that was about it. 😂

[@MikeJohnson-nr4yo]

EVs are trash, stick to hybrid or Plug in hybrid. Way better reliability and no range issues.

[@chadhaire1711]

LOL..you left out that PHEV takes 250,000 miles to pay for itself IF you can charge 50% of the time......at 25% 500,000 miles. Try it and tell us how that works Goober.

[@sambaise1007]

C'mon dude, who wants a Prius?

[@codincoman9019]

BS. There is a full range of hybrids beside Prius, there are at least 10 from Toyota/Lexus.

[@mrmawson2438]

Pure EVs good hybrids are dump