With gas prices remaining high, battery-electric vehicles offer one way to avoid pain at the pump. While charging infrastructure continues to improve gradually, a vast and inconsistent patchwork of charging stations spans the country, and some cities prove more accommodating than others.

According to a new iSeeCars study, the United States will have nearly 300,000 EV chargers by the end of this year, but they are not evenly spread across the country. The study breaks down which cities rank as the most and least EV-friendly communities in the nation by counting Level 2 and Level 3/DC public chargers.

What City Is Most Friendly To EVs?

It comes as little surprise that California leads the list of most EV-friendly cities. The state claims four of the top 10 spots, yet it stands far from alone. iSeeCars Executive Analyst Karl Brauer noted that California's EV-friendly weather and tech-oriented communities clearly contribute to the state's EV demand and aggressive charging infrastructure buildout, but high-ranking New York, Boston, and Denver reflect strong EV charging support outside the Golden State.

Los Angeles has the most chargers overall at 36,318, but that reveals only part of the story. San Francisco, along with surrounding Oakland and San Jose, ranks first with 334 residents per charger and 22,430 chargers available.

San Diego has 7,582 chargers, with 432 residents per charger. Los Angeles is third at 500 residents per charger. Nationally, the average is expected to reach 1,143 residents per charger by the end of the year, a 13.2 percent improvement.

Most Chargers

Los Angeles, CA - 36,318 Chargers
San Francisco, CA - 22,430 Chargers
New York, NY - 19,036 Chargers
Boston, MA - 12,017 Chargers
Denver, CO - 8,300 Chargers
Seattle, WA - 7,820 Chargers
Washington, DC - 7,667 Chargers
San Diego, CA - 7,582 Chargers
Sacramento, CA - 6,838 Chargers
Atlanta, GA - 6,794 Chargers

Least-Friendly Cities For EVs

Despite improvements, many major American cities fail to offer many charging locations. Louisville, Kentucky, has only 621, resulting in 2,904 residents per charger.

Milwaukee has just 852 chargers, with 2,716 residents per station. San Antonio (2,666) and Houston (2,453) also appear on the list, but Texas does not even make the top 10 states with the fewest chargers - that distinction goes to Alaska.

Other states with very few chargers include the Dakotas, Wyoming, and Montana. These are large states that experience harsh winters, which are not friendly to battery-electric vehicles. West Virginia, Mississippi, Nebraska, Delaware, and Idaho round out the states with the fewest chargers.

Fewest Chargers

Louisville, KY - 621 Chargers
Greensboro-Winston-Salem, NC - 700 Chargers
Milwaukee, WI - 852 Chargers
Birmingham, AL - 857 Chargers
Oklahoma City, OK - 867 Chargers
Harrisburg-Lancaster, PA - 935 Chargers
San Antonio, TX - 1,112 Chargers
Indianapolis, IN - 1,142 Chargers
Norfolk, VA - 1,148 Chargers
Cincinnati, OH - 1,165 Chargers