Hybrid vs Electric Vehicles: Key Differences Explained

By now, someone in your neighborhood probably owns an electric vehicle. But wait… is that a Hybrid? Aren’t Hybrids a type of electric vehicle? Is there any difference between EV vs Hybrid?

If these questions are grinding the gears in your brain (or wearing down the battery, in this case), you’re not alone. It once seemed like ‘Hybrid’ just meant ‘going electric,’ but that’s no longer the case. Electrified vehicles are everywhere these days, but not all of them are the same.

Here’s the long and short of how a Hybrid Vehicle actually runs:

The 2026 Jeep_® Cherokee has a 1.6L Turbo I4 engine that powers two electric drive motors. The result is a combined 37 city/highway mpg, generally more than your average gas vehicle. These vehicles harness electricity either through the gas motor or through a process called regenerative braking.

It converts the kinetic energy of using your brakes into electricity. The vehicle then uses the electricity to help power itself.

Let’s break it down:

Instead of a gas tank or a traditional engine, a Battery Electric Vehicle has a lithium-ion battery that powers an electric drive motor. This motor uses electromagnetism to move the vehicle’s wheels, which allows you to drive it.

Like Hybrid Vehicles, Battery Electric Vehicles do use regenerative braking to help turn stopping power into electricity. But for the most part, a BEV is recharged by plugging it in, using either an everyday power outlet or a charging station.

There are different charging levels for your BEV. Level 1 charging is the slowest but most convenient and can be done from a home outlet. Level 2 charging, found at some public charging stations and in the home charging stations installed by our partners at Qmerit, are faster than Level 1. Level 3 charging, also called ‘DC fast-charging,’ is the fastest, but only found at public charging stations.

If you’re choosing between EV vs Hybrid, here are some things to consider:

Hybrid: While some Hybrid Vehicles have a battery, they’re very small, and don’t store enough energy for any all-electric driving. That means you can never drive on just electricity. That said, Hybrid Vehicles have an excellent maximum driving range.
BEV: Battery Electric Vehicles drive on just electricity at all times but have a shorter maximum driving range than gas vehicles.

Hybrid: No charging at charging stations; you just drive it and regenerative braking or the motor does the rest.
BEV: Can use regenerative braking but plugging it in is the only way to recharge the battery fully.

Hybrid: You’re always using gas in one way or another.
BEV: Drives solely on electric power, which means you never have to stop for gas and your vehicle creates barely any emissions.

We get it. You're heading out for a weekend in the mountains, you’re planning a trip to see family—you're not sitting around thinking about regenerative braking. But both Hybrids and Battery Electric Vehicles offer specific benefits to their drivers.

Now that you can confidently describe Hybrid versus Electric Vehicles and how each one works, let’s get even closer to figuring out which one is right for you. Here are a few things to think about before choosing between a Hybrid Vehicle and a BEV.