Montana electric vehicle fee
Montana charges $130 a year on an electric car, on top of everything a gas car pays.
How much is the Montana EV registration fee?
$130 a year. That sits on top of the ordinary $223.51 registration, so an electric car costs $353.51 a year to keep on the road where a gas car costs $223.51.
Hybrids pay less: a plug-in hybrid pays $70 a year, and a regular hybrid that does not plug in pays nothing extra.
Montana started charging a fee on electric and plug-in hybrid cars in 2024 to make up for the fuel tax they do not pay. A light electric car pays $130 a year and a plug-in hybrid $70, on top of the registration. source 4
| Fuel type | Extra per year | Total registration |
|---|---|---|
| Gas or diesel | Nothing | $223.51 |
| Plug-in hybrid | $70 | $293.51 |
| Electric | $130 | $353.51 |
What Montana's $130 adds up to
$130 once sounds minor. Multiply it by the years you will own the car and the Montana figure starts to matter.
| Years owned | Extra paid for driving electric in Montana |
|---|---|
| 1 | $130 |
| 3 | $390 |
| 5 | $650 |
| 10 | $1,300 |
The offset is fuel tax you no longer pay. A high-mileage driver easily spends more than $130 a year in gas tax, so they gain; a light-mileage driver in Montana can end up paying more through this charge than they ever would at the pump.
What the Montana charge is for
In Montana the charge is $130 a year, on top of whatever the registration itself costs.
Behind the number is a simple argument. Fuel tax funds the roads, an electric car pays none because it buys no gas, so Montana bills a flat charge in its place. More on why states charge it.
Whether the amount is a fair swap is where the states stop agreeing. New Jersey charges $270 and Hawaii charges $50 for the same car doing the same mileage. The reasoning and the full range are set out here.
When you pay it
In Montana it is charged from the first registration, so it lands in the bill on the day you buy the car rather than a year later.
The calculator on the Montana registration page applies that rule. Set the fuel type to electric and it shows you the figure in place, with everything else itemized around it.
How Montana compares
Montana is 26th highest of the 41 states that charge an electric car fee.
| State | Electric | Plug-in hybrid |
|---|---|---|
| New Jersey | $270 | Not charged |
| Idaho | $140 | $75 |
| Montana | $130 | $70 |
| Hawaii | $50 | Not charged |
Montana shown against the states next to it and the two ends of the range. All 51 side by side on the EV fee by state page.
Questions about the Montana EV fee
How much is EV registration in Montana?
$130 a year on top of the normal registration, so $353.51 in total against $223.51 for a gas car.
Why is EV registration so expensive in Montana?
Because the fee is meant to replace the fuel tax an electric car does not pay. Montana has set that replacement at $130 a year, which is towards the middle of the range. The states have landed on very different numbers for the same argument.
Do electric cars have higher registration fees than gas cars?
In Montana, yes, by $130 a year. Everything else on the bill is the same.
Is there a hybrid registration fee in Montana?
Yes. A plug-in hybrid pays $70 a year, and a regular hybrid that does not plug in pays nothing extra, less than the $130 charged on a full electric car. A hybrid still buys gas and pays fuel tax on it, so the charge is smaller.
Is there a federal EV registration fee?
No. There is no federal vehicle registration in the United States at all. Registration is run state by state, which is exactly why the charge on an electric car runs from nothing to $270 depending on where you park it.
Is the Montana EV fee ever waived?
Not as a general rule. Montana MVD publishes the fee as applying to electric vehicles at registration, and we are not aware of a published waiver. If you think an exemption applies to you, ask them directly rather than relying on a calculator.
More on registering a car in Montana
The electric vehicle charge is one line on a longer bill. These pages cover the rest for Montana:
Nearby states
Or see every state on the EV registration fee by state page.
Where these numbers come from
- Montana Motor Vehicle Division, Light Vehicle Registration and Fees, retrieved 2026-10-17
- Montana Code 61-3-321, registration fees by vehicle age, retrieved 2026-10-17
- Montana Code 61-3-537, county local option motor vehicle tax (up to 0.7% of value), retrieved 2026-10-17
- Montana HB 60 (2023), electric and plug-in hybrid vehicle fees, retrieved 2026-10-17
- Montana MVD, Frequently Asked Questions (40 days to title, notary dropped October 2, 2025, MV63), retrieved 2026-10-17
- Montana MVD, License Plate Information (plates stay with the owner, personalized plates), retrieved 2026-10-17
- Montana MVD, Forms: Title and Registration (MV118 State Parks fee waiver), retrieved 2026-10-17
- Montana MVD, Motorcycle and Quadricycle Registration and Fees, retrieved 2026-10-22
Not affiliated with Montana Motor Vehicle Division. Several states re-set this figure annually, so check the date above.