Plugchoice is a charge point management system (CSMS) for EV chargers that speak OCPP 1.6j. The platform is free: no fee per charger, site or user at any fleet size, and no credit card at sign-up. Revenue comes from optional paid modules and a partner programme. It is not tied to any manufacturer, and 379 charger brands and 1,715 models have been observed connecting.
Plugchoice can be the only backend for a charger, or run next to an existing one. The charger opens a single OCPP connection to Plugchoice, which relays it onward to the backoffices the owner selects, so a charger can be managed by Plugchoice and by its existing operator at the same time without being reconfigured or taken offline. Each operator gets one of two roles: Billing, which holds transaction authorisation, or Data & Control, which reads everything and sends commands but cannot start or stop a session. Operators connect and disconnect individually, and OCPP messages are buffered and replayed if one drops. Profiles for 311 operators are included; others are added by entering a websocket address.
Three interfaces share the same data: a web portal, a mobile app for charger owners with an installer mode, and a REST API with public documentation at developer.plugchoice.com, OAuth 2.0 and bulk commands.
Chargers are organised as Teams, Sites, Chargers and Connectors, identically across brands. Management includes live status per connector in one vocabulary, remote configuration, remote start, stop and lock, firmware updates, the full OCPP 1.6j command set, vendor error codes mapped to plain language with a next step, and full OCPP logging with export. A site can be configured before the hardware arrives, and the charger pulls that configuration down on first connection. Cards, users, transactions and CSV export sit in the same place.
Load balancing against the main fuse is included. The paid Smart Charging module adds power sharing, per-phase allocation, solar surplus charging, dynamic tariffs, scheduling and peak shaving. The logic runs in the platform and reaches the charger over standard OCPP. Meters connect over P1, HAN, Modbus or CT clamps. A paid Analytics module adds allocation against actual draw, phase-level logging and per-session power graphs. Twenty energy management systems and twelve home automation platforms integrate over the API. In the Netherlands, verified MID-metered session data is forwarded to the energy certificate booking provider the owner chooses.
Hosting is in the EU, on data centres certified to DIN ISO/IEC 27001:2022 (the hosting provider's certificate). Data stays in the EU and remains the customer's. Availability is 99.98%, with a public status page.
Smart Charging costs 25 euro a year, 74 euro for five years or 165 euro once per AC EVSE. The Partner Program, adding white-label branding, a custom domain, priority support, alerting and revenue share, is 29 euro a month per company.
Who Is the Company Behind Plugchoice?
