Nissan LEAF (2018-2023) vs VW e-Golf

The VW e-Golf costs £4,355 more than the Nissan LEAF. For that premium it adds lower energy use, 150 versus 171 Wh/km. The Nissan LEAF is not just cheaper - it also offers 50 miles more WLTP range, 94 litres more boot space and a 2.5s quicker 0-62mph time. On EVcarsguide's combined category scores, the VW e-Golf comes out ahead overall.

The Nissan LEAF is £4,355 cheaper to buy. Running costs are almost identical - about £168 a year either way, at 8,000 miles on an off-peak home tariff. Add 5 years of charging and the Nissan LEAF comes out roughly £4,275 cheaper overall. These figures cover list price and home charging only - insurance, servicing, tyres and depreciation will move the real total.

EVcarsguide estimates a real-world motorway range of about 109 miles for the Nissan LEAF and 71 miles for the VW e-Golf - both below their WLTP figures, because sustained high speed is the hardest case for an EV. The Nissan LEAF goes roughly 38 miles further between charging stops. A rapid charge to 80% takes around 40 minutes in the Nissan LEAF and 22 in the VW e-Golf, so the VW e-Golf loses less time at each stop. So the Nissan LEAF stops less often while the VW e-Golf stops for less time - pick on which you would rather do.

The two are within 11 mm on width, so neither is meaningfully easier to thread into a tight space. In a standard 2,400 mm bay that leaves about 612 mm of total clearance for the Nissan LEAF and about 601 mm of total clearance for the VW e-Golf. The Nissan LEAF also turns in a 0.3 m tighter circle, which helps with U-turns and multi-storey ramps.

Over a 8-year ownership window EVcarsguide's degradation model projects roughly 76% battery health for the Nissan LEAF and 84% for the VW e-Golf. That gives the VW e-Golf a modest edge in retained real-world range. Both use NMC-type cells, so for daily use keep the charge limit near 80% to slow degradation. Both batteries carry a 8-year manufacturer warranty.