What are the best EVs you can lease for £250 per month right now?
Lucas Cochrane
21 Oct 2026
Most of us buy our cars on monthly finance. You might buy on PCP finance, which gives you the option of buying the car at the end of the term having paid off some of the car’s value. Or there’s contract hire and leasing, which is basically a long-term rental – and is increasingly popular with retail buyers, so don’t go thinking that it’s only for business users.
“There’s a persistent assumption that EVs are only truly accessible to drivers inside company car or salary sacrifice schemes where the tax advantages are well documented,” says Matt Woodward, operations director at Carparison. “Our 2025 data tells a different story – 76% of everything we sold last year was fully electric and the majority of those were personal leases. The value is there for private customers and we’re only seeing their appetite grow.”
You can read our guide to the pros and cons of the different types of car finance right here. But in the meantime, we’ve picked a selection of the best EVs you can have on personal contract hire, for under £250 per month. Bargains, all round.
(Prices were accurate when we looked them up, honest)
Price from: £247 per month / WLTP range: 247 miles / Real-world range: 160–230 miles
As much as we love the Renault 5, even we have to concede that for some drivers, the wee 5 just isn’t spacious enough! Enter its big brother, the Renault 4. Equally cool to look at, the same battery and platform, just embiggened. You’ll happily fit two almost-grown kids in the back, with enough room for four six-footers for shorter journeys. The real difference is in the boot though. Where the Renault 5 gets 326 litres, the 4 gets 420l! For less than a Renault 5, at £244 per month, it’s a pretty tough deal to beat.
Best for
* Individuals or small families * Those who want a compact car with good interior space * Looking great and having fun while not spending much money
Price from: £233 per month / WLTP range: 190 miles / Real-world range (est): 100 - 170 miles
We’ve been big fans of the VW ID.Polo / Cupra Raval / Skoda Epiq trio. The Epiq takes a bit of a different approach to the platform when compared to the sporty Cupra or the middle-of-the-road VW, it’s taller and plastic-clad in an effort to look a little more SUV-ish. It’s even more spacious on the inside too, with up to 475-litres of boot space with the rear seats in place. Sure, 190 miles isn’t very far on a single charge but, for the money, this smaller battery Skoda Epiq is still great value and promises to be a fantastically practical family car.
Best for
* Fuss-free daily use * Families who don't need long range * Anyone who wants a big boot, but doesn't want a big car
Price from: £208 per month / WLTP range 165 miles / Real-world range: 140–180 miles
It’s no surprise to see one of the cheapest EVs to buy outright is also one of the cheapest to lease. The T03 is a joyful little city car from the Stellantis-backed Chinese venture Leapmotor. The T03 is a true city runabout with a mere 165 miles of WLTP range from a 37.3kWh battery. Its tiny 210-litre boot won’t fit much more than a couple of shopping bags and its intrusive driver assists make it a bit of a pain on the motorway. However, the cabin is more spacious than expected and you get a panoramic sunroof as standard, fancy.
Best for
* Loads of equipment * Super cheap * Good for around-town commuting
Price from: £237 per month / WLTP range: 261 miles / Real-world range: 150–230 miles
Leapmotor is a new Chinese brand that’s officially part of the Stellantis group – which also owns Citroen, Fiat and Peugeot, among many others. So it’s got backing from a European maker, and more to the point – the Leapmotor B10 is a perfectly decent car. Lots of space, a rather plush interior and loads of standard kit. It’s bland to drive, and you'll want to learn how to turn off the obtrusive driver assistance systems, but it’ll still be a great family EV. And at this price, do you really mind those niggles for this much space and equipment? Probably not.
Best for
* Families, or anyone who needs lots of passenger space and a big boot * Those who want maximum value for money * Anyone who likes a posh-feeling electric SUV
Price from: £192 per month / WLTP range: 140 miles / Real-world range: 100–140 miles
The car that the Leapmotor T03 has been trading blows with for the title of cheapest EV on sale in the UK is the Dacia Spring. The Spring packs a value punch too, whether you go for the Expression 70 or the hotter (less slow) Extreme 100 (£214pcm) both 24kWh Dacia Springs come in under the £250 mark. They’re far from the most luxurious EVs on the market, but the acres of hard plastic and featherlike weight of the Spring are its selling points at this end of the market. Either way, the cheapest EV to both buy and lease is an accolade unto itself. And even with the bigger, more grown-up new Dacia Spring about to arrive, this is still exceptional value.
Best for
* Low mileage small families * Brilliant school run / local commuter * Low lease and running costs
