EV connector types — J1772, CCS, NACS and CHAdeMO

North America is midway through a connector transition, which makes this more confusing than it needs to be. Here is the state of play.

The four connectors you will meet

J1772 — AC charging, everything except Tesla

The standard AC connector, used for Level 1 and Level 2 charging by every non-Tesla EV sold in North America. Teslas can use it with the adapter that comes with the car.

If a public charger is Level 2, it is almost certainly J1772.

CCS — DC fast charging, most non-Tesla EVs

Formally the Combined Charging System, and in North America specifically CCS1 or J1772 Combo. It adds two large DC pins below a standard J1772 socket, so one port on the car handles both AC and DC.

This has been the DC fast standard for non-Tesla vehicles, and most public fast chargers built in the last decade offer it.

NACS — Tesla’s connector, now the industry standard

Tesla’s connector, standardised as SAE J3400 and now generally called NACS. Physically much smaller than CCS, because it carries AC and DC through the same pins rather than adding a separate DC section.

Since 2023 essentially every major manufacturer selling in North America has announced adoption. New models are shipping with NACS ports, and adapters exist in both directions for older cars.

Important and frequently misunderstood: NACS does not mean fast. The same plug carries AC and DC. A Tesla Supercharger is DC. A Tesla Destination Charger — the ones at hotels and restaurants — is AC Level 2, typically around 11 kW. Identical connector, roughly twenty times the difference in speed.

This is why station pages on this site label a NACS connector’s speed from the site’s actual port counts rather than from the connector shape.

CHAdeMO — legacy DC

The older Japanese DC fast standard. Its main North American user was the Nissan Leaf, and newer models have moved away from it.

Still present at a meaningful number of existing stations, and worth checking if you drive an older Leaf. Not worth counting on at new installations.

What the transition means in practice

For the next several years you should expect mixed infrastructure, and adapters are part of normal EV ownership.

If you drive a Tesla: you can use Superchargers natively, J1772 with the included adapter, and CCS with a separate adapter that some models require.

If you drive a CCS car: your native network is the CCS fast chargers. Access to Tesla Superchargers has been opening up, generally requiring a NACS-to-CCS adapter and the relevant app.

If you are buying a new car now: it likely ships with NACS, and it likely comes with a CCS adapter, because the installed base of CCS chargers will take years to convert.

Reading the connector list on a station page

Station pages here list the connectors reported to the federal register, with a speed label derived from that site’s actual ports:

• J1772 · AC — Level 2 charging, fits any non-Tesla EV directly
• CCS · DC fast — fast charging for most non-Tesla EVs
• Tesla / NACS · DC fast — a Supercharger or equivalent
• Tesla / NACS · AC — a Destination charger, Level 2 speeds
• CHAdeMO · DC fast — legacy fast charging
• NEMA 14-50 · AC — a 240 V socket, bring your own cable
• NEMA 5-15 · AC — an ordinary wall outlet, Level 1

Where a site reports no DC fast ports, we say so plainly regardless of what connectors are listed.

The sockets that are not connectors

Two entries in the data are household outlets rather than EV connectors:

NEMA 14-50 is the 240-volt socket used for electric ranges and RV hookups. Charging from one requires the portable cable that came with the car. It is common at campgrounds and older installations, and gives respectable Level 2 speeds.

NEMA 5-15 is a standard wall outlet. Level 1 only.

Neither is a charging station in the sense most people mean, but both appear in the register and both will charge a car if you have the right cable in the boot.