Colorado, other wealthy states have high EV rates

A Tesla Model S, front, and a Model Y charge at a Tesla supercharging site outside Colorado Mills outlet mall late Monday, Dec. 21, 2020, in downtown Lakewood, Colo. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

by: DJ Summers

Posted: Apr 10, 2023 / 02:53 PM MDT

Updated: Apr 10, 2023 / 02:53 PM MDT

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DENVER (KDVR) — More money means more electric vehicles.

Colorado has been at the forefront of many pushes for renewable energy development and carbon offsetting programs – all the while maintaining its spot as one of the country’s biggest fossil fuel producers.

Electric vehicles are the same. Colorado has one of the nation’s highest adoption rates for electric vehicles, meaning one of the highest percentages of all drivers who have switched to EVs from gasoline-powered vehicles. Colorado has the fourth-highest EV adoption rate in the country (2.21%), according to an analysis from insurance brokerage QuoteWizard.

As one of the nation’s wealthiest states, it’s not shocking Colorado would have a high EV adoption rate. The states with the highest EV rates tend to be the states with the highest income levels.

There is a clear correlation between a state’s income levels and the state’s EV adoption rate.

The states with the highest EV adoption rates are California, Hawaii, Washington, Colorado and Oregon. Except for Oregon, each has a median household income of greater than $80,000 a year, well above the national average.

Conversely, each of the states with the nation’s lowest household income – Mississippi, the Dakotas, West Virginia and Alabama – also have the nation’s lowest EV adoption rates.