Which states have the fewest public EV charging locations?

The narrow answer: Alaska, then North Dakota

The US Department of Energy Alternative Fuels Data Center listed Alaska with 71 public electric charging locations, 206 charging ports and 100 DC fast ports. That was the smallest location and port inventory among the 50 states in the table checked on September 16, 2026.

North Dakota had the smallest inventory in the contiguous 48 states: 106 public locations, 279 total charging ports and 143 DC fast ports. South Dakota followed with 113 locations, while Wyoming listed 121. Arizona, where this directory currently has its deepest provider coverage, listed 1,530 locations and 4,722 ports.

The table was viewed with Public selected and temporarily unavailable stations excluded. Residential chargers are not included. Because one location can contain several plugs, locations and ports are separate measures.

Why “fewest chargers” does not mean “worst state”

Statewide totals cannot tell a driver whether a particular highway has a long gap, whether the next site accepts the vehicle, or whether another compatible fast charger is reachable if the first stop fails. A small state can have few chargers but short journeys; a large state can have more chargers and still contain difficult rural corridors.

The federal inventory status also is not a live success signal. It does not promise that a stall is working, vacant, accessible after hours or able to deliver the power shown on a network listing. That is why a practical travel guide should check the road route and a backup stop instead of treating the state total as a range calculation.

• Count compatible DC fast-charging locations, not only plugs.
• Measure driving distance along the intended road, not a straight line.
• Check whether a second compatible site is reachable if the first one is unavailable.
• Verify access hours, payment or app requirements and current network status before departure.

What the fresh EV-readiness index adds

HERE and SBD Automotive released their 2026 EV Index on September 9. Its infrastructure analysis covers June 2025 through June 2026 and its consumer survey was conducted in June and July 2026. It combines market and infrastructure signals rather than answering the narrow question of which state has the fewest listed chargers.

That distinction matters. The index is a timely view of EV readiness, while the DOE table is a current inventory snapshot. Neither dataset, by itself, measures the chance that a particular driver will become stranded.

The practical next step

North Dakota is the clearest first case study for contiguous-US scarcity because it has the smallest public inventory in that group. Its state transport agency says its infrastructure approach is being reevaluated after revised federal guidance, with I-94 and I-29 prioritized before other public roads.

Drivers should use the federal result as a prompt to plan, not a reason to avoid the state. The useful questions are route-specific: which compatible fast charger is first, what is the backup, and what recovery option is available if the car cannot reach either one?