What is EV charger management? (2026)

We wrote an article on charger management a couple years back, focused on its relevance in fleet electrification. While much of that article still rings true, the space has moved fast, and charging management is more important than ever in applications beyond fleet (like multifamily and business charging). Thus, we present our updated guide to charger management (2026), generalized for any kind of charging site operator.

What is charger management?

EV charger management (or charging management) is the control and management of EV charger functionality and behavior. It’s the cornerstone of running reliable charging operations while managing costs.

While its definition is pretty self-explanatory, charger management can encompass many different ways of controlling functionality, including:

• Charger status monitoring: available / occupied, online / offline, which vehicle is charging at each charger, vehicle SOC (state-of-charge)
• Charger maintenance: error alerts / notifications, charger health reports, remote start / stop / reset
• Charger access: which people can charge, ie. resident-only vs. publicly accessible
• Charger scheduling: which vehicles charge when
• Energy / load management: how power is distributed across the site
• Payments configuration: what drivers pay to charge, can vary by TOU (time-of-use) or be a flat-rate

How does charger management work?

Charger management is made possible through a connection between the physical charger and the backend management platform, called the charging management software (CMS).Chargers communicate with the CMS bidirectionally, via WiFi, cellular, or Ethernet connectivity. The charger transmits data to the CMS, and the CMS transmits commands back to the charger.

Note that some chargers are incompatible with software. These are often called “dumb” chargers: examples include ClipperCreek, J+ Booster, and Grizzl-E. You usually see these in residential settings where only one person is using the charger, which reduces the need for management.

Furthermore, for chargers that are compatible with software, some of these are only compatible with one software platform. Usually, the provider of these single-compatibility chargers also makes the software, and thus they’re often referred to as “closed ecosystem” providers. Examples include ChargePoint, Blink, and Enel X (now defunct in the US).

The rest of software-compatible chargers are usually Open Charge Point Protocol (OCPP)-compliant and can be managed by most CMS.

The importance of charger management

Across these capabilities, effective charger management solves key challenges for charging site operators, namely:

1. Maximizing charger uptime
2. Minimizing operational costs (usually maintenance and energy costs)
3. Ensure reliable revenue generation (in business charging use cases)

In other words, charger management makes effective and profitable charging operations possible for site operators. Without it, operators cannot understand charger behavior, much less do anything about it when something goes wrong.

Real-world examples

Site operators ranging from major fleet managers to single property managers benefit from the control and visibility made possible by effective charger management.

Purolator, one of Canada’s largest couriers, used energy management to lower peak demand costs (a key component of the utility bill) by 60%, saving nearly $3,000 a month.

The Dutton, a 544-unit property managed by Greystar, restricted charger access to residents-only and easily configured pricing to make charging a revenue-generating amenity.

Audi Marin, a dual Audi and VW dealership in San Francisco, created easy-to-update pricing tiers for customers, employees, and public charging in each of their charging zones (customer parking and main charging zone).

Interested in learning more about the possibilities with charger management? Let’s chat!

About Flipturn

Flipturn is the leading EV charging and energy management platform for businesses and fleets, helping organizations maximize charger uptime, process charging payments, and scale operations efficiently. Backed by leading investors including CRV and Accel, Flipturn serves Fortune 500 companies, commercial property owners, and major fleet operators across North America.

‍