V2H (vehicle-to-home) uses an electric car’s battery to power your house — for example during a power cut or in the evening peak. V2G (vehicle-to-grid) sends power from the car back into the electricity grid, usually in exchange for payment, to help the grid balance supply and demand. Both need bidirectional charging: a car and a charger that can move power in both directions. A simpler version, V2L (vehicle-to-load), powers appliances directly from the car.
Last updated: September 2026.
V2G vs V2H vs V2L at a Glance
| V2L (vehicle-to-load) | V2H (vehicle-to-home) | V2G (vehicle-to-grid) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Powers | Individual appliances plugged into the car | Your home’s circuits | The public electricity grid |
| Main benefit | Power for camping, tools or small appliances | Backup power and lower bills (e.g. using solar energy stored in the car) | Earning money for supporting the grid; a cleaner, more stable grid |
| Extra equipment | An adapter plugged into the charging port or a socket in the car | A bidirectional home charger or inverter setup and safe isolation from the grid | A bidirectional charger, a utility agreement and grid-approved equipment |
| Availability in India | Offered on several new EVs | Starting to appear on some models | Largely at pilot and policy stage |
What Is V2H (Vehicle-to-Home)?
With V2H, the car’s battery acts like a large home inverter battery. An electric car battery holds far more energy than a typical home inverter battery, so it can keep essential appliances running through long power cuts. Combined with rooftop solar, V2H can also store cheap daytime solar energy in the car and use it at night.
In India, some EVs now offer home-backup features — for example, the MG Hector Tomahawk EV can act as an inverter to power your home during an outage. A safe V2H setup needs equipment that isolates the house from the grid while the car is supplying power, installed by a qualified electrician.
What Is V2G (Vehicle-to-Grid)?
With V2G, many parked EVs together act like a large distributed battery for the grid. They charge when power is cheap and plentiful — for example during solar hours — and feed some energy back when demand peaks. The car owner is paid for this service. V2G needs bidirectional chargers, cars that support it, smart-charging software and regulatory arrangements with the DISCOM, which is why it is still at an early stage in India.
Time-of-day electricity tariffs, such as the lower solar-hour tariffs for charging stations in the Ministry of Power’s 2024 guidelines, are a first step towards the price signals that make V2G worthwhile. See our EV charging guidelines summary.
Is Bidirectional Charging Bad for the Battery?
Using the battery for V2H or V2G adds charge cycles, so it causes some extra wear. Well-designed systems limit this by using only part of the battery, keeping a minimum charge for driving, and avoiding deep discharges. The car’s battery management system and warranty terms set the limits — check your manufacturer’s guidance before using bidirectional features regularly.
What It Means for Charging Infrastructure
Bidirectional charging needs chargers and software that can control energy flow in both directions. Newer charging protocols such as OCPP 2.1 add support for it, and smart charging stations with dynamic load management are an important step towards it. Learn more in OCPP vs OCPI.
Related Reading
- Smart EV Charging and Dynamic Load Management in India: How Stations Can Reduce Peak Electricity Costs
- What Is an On-Board Charger (OBC) in an Electric Vehicle?
- How Are Electric Car Batteries Made? Materials, Chemistry and Process
- OCPP vs OCPI: What They Are and the Difference in EV Charging
Learn more about load management for EV charging.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between V2G and V2H?
V2H uses an EV’s battery to power your own home; V2G sends power from the EV back into the public electricity grid, usually for payment. Both require bidirectional charging.
What is V2L in an electric car?
Vehicle-to-load lets you power appliances directly from the car’s battery through an adapter or built-in socket — useful for camping, tools or emergencies.
Is V2G available in India?
Not yet for ordinary consumers. V2G in India is largely at the pilot and policy stage, while V2L and some home-backup (V2H-style) features are available on certain new EVs.
Can my EV power my house during a power cut?
Only if your car and charging setup support vehicle-to-home. Some newer models offer it; it must be installed with proper isolation from the grid by a qualified electrician.