Charge off-peak and save with the Charge Ahead program

MGE uses a platform called ev.energy that allows us to connect to your vehicle and obtain your charging preferences (ready-by time) to optimize charging through the telematic system in your vehicle. MGE will primarily shift eligible customers' charging to times when the grid is less busy (off-peak), but may control vehicle charging during periods of high demand or high energy cost, when renewables are available and/or for testing purposes.

Learn more about how the algorithm works here.

Rewards depend on which MGE rate you are on:

Standard rate customers earn monthly cash rewards via PayPal or Venmo. To qualify, you must:
- charge at least 80% off-peak during the calendar month;
- have smart charging enabled in the ev.energy app throughout the month; and
- have no more than 3 unmanaged (non-smart) charging sessions in the month.

‍Time-of-Use (TOU) rate customers do not receive cash incentive payments. Instead, the app automatically shifts your charging to the cheapest times on your TOU rate, and the savings appear directly on your MGE bill.

To enter your PayPal or Venmo details, open the ev.energy app, go to Incentives > Get paid > Add a payout method.

The ev.energy app automatically picks the best time to charge your car within your schedule. Here is the order of priority it follows:

Your ready-by time comes first
‍The app always works backward from the time you have set to ensure your car is charged when you need it.
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Off-peak hours next
‍Within that window, charging is scheduled during MGE's off-peak periods. For standard rate customers, this is what qualifies you for your monthly reward.
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Grid-friendly timing
‍Where possible, charging is shifted to periods when the electricity grid is under less pressure, helping keep costs lower for everyone.
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Greener energy
‍Finally, the app favours times when more renewable energy is available on the grid.

You are always in control. If you need your car charged sooner than scheduled, tap the Boost button in the app to start charging immediately at maximum rate.

Note that Boost charges outside your smart schedule and counts as an unmanaged session — more than three of these in a calendar month will affect your monthly reward eligibility.

Off-peak is the time of day when demand on the electricity grid is at its lowest. MGE's off-peak hours are:

- Weekdays: 9 pm to 10 am
- All day weekends and holidays

For standard rate customers, charging during these windows counts toward your 80% threshold for monthly rewards. For TOU customers, off-peak charging reduces the electricity cost on your bill.

Maximize your off-peak charging with these helpful smart charging tips. Remember, in order to earn monthly rewards, you must have smart charging enabled in the ev.energy app

After downloading the ev.energy app and creating your account, you will be prompted to connect using your vehicle manufacturer's account credentials — for example, your Tesla account, BMW ConnectedDrive, Audi Connect, or Chevrolet OnStar login. The app exchanges these credentials for a secure token and uses it to communicate with your vehicle.

Read more here: How ev.energy connects to your vehicle

Yes — your car will always be charged by the time you need it. The app works backward from your ready-by time, calculating exactly how long your car needs to charge and scheduling it accordingly.

To set your ready-by time, open the app, go to the Smart tab, and tap Smart Schedule. You can set a default time for every day, or different times for different days of the week — useful if your routine varies.
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If your plans change and you need your car sooner than scheduled, tap the Boost button on the Dashboard to start charging immediately at maximum rate.
The app also monitors your battery level in real time. If there is not enough time to reach a full charge within the off-peak window before your ready-by time, it will extend charging into peak hours to make sure you are never left short.

Learn more about how the algorithm works here.

No. MGE only manages charging when your vehicle is plugged in at the home address registered in your ev.energy app. Public or workplace charging is not affected.

No — and this is the most common cause of smart charging not working. Car timers and smart schedule conflict with each other, and the car timer usually wins, causing charging to start at the wrong time or outside off-peak hours.
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Before using smart charging, disable all timers and schedules in: your vehicle's infotainment system, your EV manufacturer's app (e.g. Tesla, BMW, Chevrolet), and any other third-party charging apps.
Once those are off, the ev.energy app has full control to schedule charging optimally around your ready-by time and off-peak windows.

1. Open your EV manufacturer app and disable any charging schedule or departure timer.
2. Check your car's infotainment system for a built-in charging schedule and turn it off.
3. In the ev.energy app, go to the Smart tab and set your ready-by time.
4. Smart charging will now take full control — your car will be ready when you need it.

From the Dashboard
Tap the vehicle switcher above the status roundel, then tap Add a new vehicle. Follow the steps to select the make, model, and trim of your second vehicle and connect its account.

From Settings
Tap the cogwheel icon in the top left, then tap Vehicles, then Add a new vehicle. Once added, tap any vehicle name in the list to view its details or update settings.

The connection status and last updated time are shown on the Dashboard. If you receive a notification that we have lost connection, or the status is not updating after refreshing the app:

‍For a connected charger
Reboot it by switching the isolator off, waiting 30 seconds, and switching it back on. Then check your charger's own app for any WiFi setting updates that may be required.

‍For a connected car
Open the vehicle door or interact with your manufacturer's app to wake the car from sleep mode. If your car was in sleep mode, it can take up to 60 seconds to reactivate — tap Refresh on the Dashboard again after that time.

If you recently changed the password on your vehicle manufacturer account, tap the vehicle status on the Dashboard and select Reconnect to re-enter your credentials.
Read more: How to handle offline hardware

When we schedule the smart charging for your vehicle, we first optimize for getting your EV charged by your "ready-by time". This might not always mean that your vehicle will charge only during your off-peak hours.

Your car might charge outside of your off-peak hours in these situations:  

You have a timer or schedule enabled in your car
‍Because smart charging works backwards from your ready-by time to ensure your car is charged when you need it, having a timer set in your car can cause smart charging to not work as expected. For best results, please disable all timers and schedules in your car when using smart charging.

Battery preconditioning
If enabled in your vehicle settings, this feature runs a charge burst before your ready-by time to warm the battery. Disable it in your car's advanced settings if you want to keep all charging within off-peak hours.

Low battery pressure
‍If your battery is low and there is not enough off-peak time remaining to reach a full charge, the app will extend into peak hours to ensure you are ready on time, unless you turn on Only Charge Off-peak.
                                                             
Connection delay
‍A brief burst of charge may occur in the first few minutes after plugging in, while the app and charger or vehicle establish communication. The default mode of some chargers is to start charging as soon as they are connected. This is normal and typically lasts only a few minutes but as soon as our system communicates with your vehicle or charger, a stop charge command will be sent when appropriate.

You can request account deletion at any time from within the app:
1. Tap the cogwheel icon in the top left of the screen.
2. Go to Personal Details.
3. Tap Close my account, then Request account closure.

You will have a 7-day grace period to cancel the request. After that, your account and all associated charging data will be permanently deleted and cannot be recovered. Before deleting, consider downloading your charging history from the app.

For assistance, email mgecharge@ev.energy.

Yes. ev.energy never stores your vehicle manufacturer account username or password. When you enter your credentials, they are immediately exchanged for a secure access token — a standard security method used by services such as Google and Facebook. This token is what the app uses to communicate with your vehicle going forward.

Check out ev.energy's privacy policy.

The following data is collected from your vehicle and used to run the programme:
- Battery level and state of charge
- Charging history, including kilowatt-hours (kWh) delivered per half hour
- GPS coordinates for your home charging location

This data is used to calculate your off-peak charging percentage, confirm reward eligibility, and help MGE manage grid demand. It is not used for any other purpose.

Once you connect your vehicle account, ev.energy uses it in two ways:

‍Reading your car's status
‍The app checks your battery level, state of charge, and charging speed to calculate how long your car needs to charge before your ready-by time.

‍Controlling charging
‍Based on your schedule and MGE's off-peak windows, the app sends start and stop commands to your vehicle or charger to shift charging to the most cost-effective and grid-friendly times. You can override this at any time using the Boost button.

The full Participation Agreement is available at mge.ev.energy/participation-agreement