Head to head
The two most-asked-about home chargers in Northern Ireland, and the two that pull in opposite directions. One is built for solar homes, the other for tariff savers. Here is how to tell which one is yours.
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The myenergi Zappi is the solar owner's charger: it can divert spare power from your panels into the car. The Ohme is the tariff saver's charger: it plugs deep into smart and dynamic electricity tariffs and charges when power is cheapest. Both are 7kW single-phase units, so they charge at the same speed. The winner is whichever matches how you plan to save.
The solar owner's favourite.
This is the reason most people choose a Zappi. If you have panels, its eco modes let you charge primarily (or only) from surplus solar, which is hard to beat for running cost. No panels yet but planning them? It future-proofs the driveway.
Read the full Zappi guideThe tariff-savings specialist.
This is Ohme's home turf. It supports smart and dynamic tariffs (the kind where the price changes every half hour) and reschedules your charging live to hit the cheapest slots. Paired with a good EV tariff it can be the difference between charging at peak rate and charging for a fraction of it.
Tight on wall space? The compact untethered Ohme ePod is the one to look at; it charges identically to the tethered Home Pro.
Read the full Ohme guideThe numbers and differences that actually decide it, checked against each manufacturer's own figures.
| Zappi | Ohme | |
|---|---|---|
| Headline strength | Charging from spare solar power | Squeezing a cheap overnight tariff |
| Charge power | 7.4kW single-phase (230V, 32A) | 7.4kW single-phase (230V, 32A) |
| Cable options | Tethered (6.5m) or untethered socket | Home Pro tethered (5m or 8m); ePod untethered socket |
| Connectivity | Wi-Fi and Ethernet, no cellular SIM | Built-in 3G/4G SIM, data covered 3 years |
| Solar surplus charging | Yes: Eco, Eco+ and Fast via a supplied CT clamp | No native solar matching (tariff-led) |
| Smart / dynamic tariff | Scheduled and tariff-aware via the myenergi app | Deepest integration, follows half-hourly pricing live |
| Size on the wall | Large (439 x 282 x 122 mm) | Compact (Home Pro ~170 x 200 mm; ePod ~230 x 140 mm) |
| Warranty | 3 years | 3 years |
| Best home for it | Has solar PV, or plans to | On, or moving to, a smart or dynamic tariff |
Specs are drawn from the full Zappi and Ohme reviews. Last reviewed: 11 July 2026.
Skip the agonising. Find your situation and follow it.
Choose the Zappi.
Its eco modes charge the car from surplus generation, which is the cheapest energy you'll ever put in it.
Choose the Ohme.
It follows half-hourly pricing live and charges in the cheapest windows without you touching anything.
Lean Zappi.
It future-proofs the driveway, and still handles scheduled overnight charging in the meantime.
Want both strengths? The nuance runs one way. A Zappi still schedules off-peak charging through the myenergi app, so a solar home keeps its cheap-tariff timing; an Ohme cannot divert solar at all, so it only earns its keep once a cheap tariff, not your panels, is the plan. If you are genuinely on the fence, note it on your quote and ask installers to price the Zappi against the Ohme for your exact setup.
The cleanest way to settle it is a real quote. Tell us your property and whether you have solar, and we'll match you with up to three vetted, NICEIC-registered NI installers who can price the Zappi and the Ohme for your driveway, with your OZEV grant checked and NIE Networks notification handled as standard.
Want the wider field first? See our best home EV charger shortlist. To weigh the two saving routes, read EV tariffs in Northern Ireland (where the Ohme shines) and solar EV charging (where the Zappi does).
No obligation. We match you with up to 3 NICEIC-registered installers covering your area.
It depends on how you plan to save. If you have solar panels, or intend to, the myenergi Zappi wins because it can divert spare solar into the car so you charge from your own generation. If your saving plan is a cheap overnight or dynamic electricity tariff, the Ohme wins because it plugs deeper into smart tariffs and shifts charging into the cheapest half-hourly slots automatically. Both are 7kW single-phase units, so they charge at the same speed.
Not the way a Zappi does. Ohme is tariff-led rather than solar-led; it optimises around electricity pricing, not around your panels' surplus. If charging from your own solar is the priority, the Zappi is the more direct choice. If your plan is a cheap overnight tariff, Ohme's lack of solar matching is a non-issue.
Yes, and this is the nuance that decides most close calls. The Zappi handles scheduled and tariff-based charging through the myenergi app, so a solar home does not give up cheap overnight charging by choosing it. The asymmetry runs one way: a Zappi can schedule off-peak charging and divert solar, whereas an Ohme can follow a dynamic tariff but cannot divert solar at all. So the Zappi covers both jobs, while the Ohme only makes sense once a cheap tariff, not your panels, is the plan. Where the Ohme pulls ahead is the depth of that tariff integration, following live half-hourly prices, so if tariff timing is everything and you have no solar, many drivers still prefer it.
They differ here. The Ohme range (both the Home Pro and the compact ePod) carries its own built-in 3G/4G SIM, with data covered for the first three years, so it stays online without your home Wi-Fi, which helps in a detached garage with weak signal. The Zappi has no cellular SIM: it connects over your home Wi-Fi or a wired Ethernet run, so plan the connection in if it will sit far from the router.
Neither unit's headline feature helps you much on a flat-rate tariff with no panels, so choose on cable style, app and looks instead, or consider the wider line-up. The moment you move to a smart or dynamic tariff, the Ohme starts paying off; the moment you add solar, the Zappi does. It is worth choosing with your next 12 months in mind.
Yes. Both are OZEV-approved smart chargers, so any grant you qualify for applies to either. And whichever you choose, a NICEIC-registered NI installer notifies NIE Networks for you, which is a legal requirement for every new home charger in Northern Ireland.
Zappi, Ohme, or let the installers weigh in. Either way you get vetted NI installers, grant checked, no obligation.
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