Synergi smart charging – spot-price control for electric vehicles

Charging is one of the biggest expenses of owning an electric car, especially with fluctuating energy prices. Whether you primarily charge at home or rely on public stations, costs can vary significantly. However, with the rise of automated tools that optimize charging for off-peak hours, EV owners now have more control over their expenses.

In this blog post, we at Synergi will walk you through our free-to-use smart charging feature—how it works, the benefits it offers, and everything you need to know. Let’s dive in!

What is Synergi smart charging?

Synergi smart charging ensures your EV charges when electricity is cheapest—typically overnight. Our system optimizes charging by using market energy prices, published 24 hours in advance, and your driving habits. With this data, Synergi automatically determines the most cost-effective charging times to ensure your car is ready when you need it.

While some EV manufacturers allow scheduled charging via their apps, manually adjusting the schedule daily can be a hassle. Setting charging between 1 AM and 7 AM can lead to savings, but most drivers don’t want the hassle of doing it every night.

That’s why EV drivers love Synergi smart charging. You set it up once, and it takes care of the rest—saving you money effortlessly. Just tell Synergi when you plan to leave in the morning, and it will automatically allocate charging between the time you plug in and your departure.

How does Synergi smart charging work?

Once you've specified the desired charging time and we have considered the upcoming energy prices, most of the smart charging puzzle is complete. The final step is determining how quickly the vehicle can reach the target charge, such as 80%. To do this accurately, Synergi makes a quick test: the vehicle is programmed to charge for a few minutes while we monitor charging power and battery metrics. This data allows us to simplify the equation into four variables:

1. The amount of energy needed (kW)
2. The time available (h)
3. The electricity prices (€/kWh)
4. The charging speed, affected by both the vehicle and the charger (kW/h)

What are the benefits of Synergi smart charging?

Synergi smart charging comes with several benefits for you as an EV driver. Here are the top ones:

• Cheaper charging costs: With a spot-priced electricity contract, you could save up to 70% on your annual charging expenses. For example, our top EV smart charging user in 2024 saved €292 by completing 255 smart charging sessions.
• Efficient energy use: Intelligent charging optimizes charging so that you waste less energy during charging.
• Reduced carbon emissions: Charging during off-peak hours not only saves money but also reduces energy demand, resulting in lower carbon emissions. With Synergi Smart Charging, you could charge 15-18% more cleaner.
• Earn Rewards (coming soon): We're enhancing our smart charging feature to consider not just pricing, but also grid congestion. While Synergi currently charges your EV when prices are low, in the future, you'll be able to earn rewards by allowing us to pause your charging temporarily to help ease strain on the grid.

Who is Synergi smart charging for?

Anyone with an electric car at home can use smart charging. However, it's especially valuable for drivers with a spot-price contract, as it maximizes savings by charging when electricity prices are lowest.

That said, fixed-price EV drivers can also benefit from Synergi’s easy-to-use app for effortless charging. And soon, they’ll gain even more advantages—both spot and fixed-price users will be rewarded for charging when it benefits the grid.

Where does Synergi smart charging work?

Smart charging should be used at home. With Synergi app, you can add several locations. The feature can be used all over Europe in the following countries: Finland, Austria, Belgium, Estonia, France, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Sweden, Denmark, Spain and United Kingdom.

What car brands does Synergi smart charging support?

At Synergi, we currently support most EV brands out there. If you want to check the full time head over to our supported EV brands page.

We are constantly adding EV brands, so if your brand needs to be listed and you want to see it there, please let us know.

What personal information does Synergi smart charging gather?

All smart charging services out there collect and store customer data. It's super important for you to read the fine print in every smart charging service privacy policy. At Synergi, we have a privacy policy that details what data we collect from each user and how we use it to deliver an excellent service. In principle:

• We do not collect data on individual use unless necessary
• We encrypt all personal data collected

We have an in-depth blog post about data privacy in smart charging services, which you can read to get a clearer view of what you should pay attention to. It would be best to familiarize yourself with Synergi's privacy policy and  terms of use.

Why is Synergi smart charging important?

Synergi smart charging benefits not only individual users but also national energy grids. Many EV drivers tend to charge their vehicles right after work, coinciding with peak electricity demand. As EV adoption grows, this surge in demand can put significant strain on the grid.

To prevent overload, energy companies recommend shifting high-energy activities like EV charging to off-peak hours, typically later in the evening. Synergi smart charging makes this effortless by automatically scheduling charging during periods of lower demand.

The graph below illustrates this in action. While most drivers plug in their EVs between 18:00 and 20:00, Synergi delays charging by about four hours—aligning with lower electricity prices and greater grid capacity.

Got any other questions?

Our knowledge base covers a wide range of frequently asked questions. If you need further assistance, feel free to contact our customer support at support@synergi.so. We’re here to help in English, Finnish, and Swedish.