BMW electric cars: Every model explained

The BMW iX1 is the brand's smallest electric SUV, but in reality it’s still a family car – it’s big enough for five but small enough to park easily. Based on the combustion-engined BMW X1, it looks reassuringly normal – no concept car flourishes or bizarre design experiments here. Just a smart-looking, premium SUV with a charging socket where the fuel filler usually lives.

Inside, it's every inch a modern BMW. The sweeping curved display dominates the dashboard, material quality is excellent and everything feels built to the same standard as BMWs with a bigger number in the name. The 490-litre boot is large and flexible, easily big enough to swallow a pushchair.

Available with either a single electric motor eDrive20 producing 204PS or a punchier twin-motor xDrive30 with 306PS, we’d stick with the cheaper model. It manages up to 318 claimed miles on a charge , supports rapid charging at up to 130kW and is quick, quiet and comfy.

The BMW iX2 is an iX1 underneath, but with some redesigned panels to make it look a bit sportier. It’s arguably the nicer looking car and now they're the same price, so there's no penalty for choosing the sleeker option.

The sloping roof doesn't ruin practicality, at least. In fact, at 525 litres the boot is bigger than the iX1's. Rear headroom takes a bit of a hit, mind, so if your kids are turning into adults, the iX1 might still be your best bet.

The interior is effectively identical, which is no bad thing: same curved digital display, excellent build quality and intuitive infotainment system. And as standard it gets heated front seats, wireless smartphone mirroring and a powered tailgate. The Parking Assistant is especially clever, because it'll squeeze itself into the sort of tight parking spaces you'd probably otherwise drive straight past.

Instead of reviving the quirky little carbon-fibre city car from 2013, this BMW i3 is essentially an electric BMW 3 Series. It’s therefore likely to become Britain's favourite electric BMW.

The first saloon built on BMW's all-new Neue Klasse platform, it doesn’t take a German speaker to figure out what that means. This has been designed as an electric car from the ground up and the result is loads of interior space, extremely fast charging and huge battery range.

The range claims are – and we don’t use this phrase lightly – game changing. This is the first BMW to claim an official battery range well beyond 500 miles: 562 miles from the i3 50 xDrive. In reality, that means a remarkable 400 miles plus without having to charge. And when you do, the 800-volt electrical system means you can theoretically get 250 miles into the battery in ten minutes. The complete electric car.

Also a Neue Klasse car, the new BMW iX3 is a night and day improvement over its predecessor. It looks cleaner, it's more spacious inside, it charges faster and it travels a lot further before needing to be plugged in again.

The design is a proper reset, inside and out. The enormous 'angry beaver teeth' grille has been calmed down considerably, while the interior has had a complete rethink. BMW’s clever new Panoramic iDrive display stretches across the base of the windscreen – a novel and intuitive way of displaying lots of information in the driver’s line of sight.

Depending on which version you choose, the iX3 can officially travel up to 500 miles on a charge. And as per the new i3 Saloon, if you find a quick enough charger you can put a couple of hundred miles into the battery in the same time it takes to buy an overpriced service station Mars Bar.

An electric version of the 4 Series Gran Coupe, the BMW i4 looks, feels and drives much like any other car from the brand. No bad thing – the 4 Series is one of the most fun-to-drive coupes on sale.

The interior doesn’t have the wow factor of the Neue Klasse cars, but it’s lovely and boasts one of the most intuitive infotainment systems anywhere. Despite appearances there's plenty of room for four adults, while the 470-litre boot accessed via a large tailgate makes for a flexible family car.

There are several versions to choose from. But with up to 380 miles of claimed range and sharp acceleration, the i4 eDrive40 is the one we’d recommend. The i4 M60 xDrive is hilarious – 0-62mph in 3.7 seconds – but it’s probably not worth the 20 grand premium over the £51,370 entry-level model. It’ll soon be overshadowed – and replaced by – the all-new i3 Saloon, but that doesn't suddenly make the i4 any less brilliant.

The BMW i5 isn't a bespoke electric car, but it does feel like it is, somehow. Maybe it’s because the BMW 5 Series itself still feels box fresh, boasting one of the best interiors in any car, at any price.

Beautifully put together and a fantastic blend of new technology and an old school luxury, the seats are superbly comfortable and refinement is outstanding. Alongside that is a twin screen display that feels totally cutting edge, some remarkable interior lighting and otherworldly sound design by Hollywood’s Hans Zimmer.

The i5 eDrive40 gets a 340PS rear-mounted motor and up to 382 miles of claimed range, making it the obvious choice for most buyers. The 601PS i5 M60 xDrive, though, is near enough supercar quick. Either way, if you spend long hours behind the wheel, few electric cars blend comfort, refinement and genuine driving enjoyment quite so convincingly. It's a proper BMW first and an electric car second.

If you don't need four-wheel drive or a tall driving position of an SUV, a car such as the BMW i5 Touring is the better buy. It does everything a big electric SUV can do, while being a less obvious choice in 2026. The estate body gives you a generous 570-litre boot, expanding to 1,700 litres with the rear seats folded. That's enough for bikes, dogs, flat-pack furniture… Every estate car norm you care to mention.

Mechanically, it's almost identical to the i5 Saloon, meaning the same choice of 340PS eDrive40 or 601PS M60 xDrive drive systems. We'd stick with the former as it's more than quick enough, offers up to 365 miles of claimed range and costs considerably less.

The i5 Touring isn't cheap, though, starting at £70,000, but few electric estates feel this complete. It's quiet, beautifully built and genuinely enjoyable to drive.

The BMW i7 is one of those cars that makes you want to sit in the back, even if you're the one paying for it. There’s masses of space, while the quality is exactly what you'd expect from a six-figure BMW. Rear passengers can recline, enjoy a seat massage and even watch films on an enormous 31-inch Theatre Screen that folds down from the roof. You'll never hear 'are we nearly there yet?' again.

Even the entry-level i7 50 xDrive model gets 455PS, while the range-topping M70 xDrive produces a frankly unnecessary 680PS. That’s enough to launch this 2845kg luxury limo to 62mph from a standing start in just 3.8 seconds. Completely ridiculous. Wonderfully so.

Prices start at around £104,000, so the BMW i7 is for the few rather than the many. But if you're after the last word in electric luxury, this is about as good as it gets.

The BMW iX was a hugely important car for BMW back in 2021, designed as a dedicated electric SUV from day one and showing the direction the company was about to go in. The iX’s technology, design and cabin layout would go on to influence every BMW that followed.

The interior, which BMW said was inspired by a luxury apartment, was a massive leap forward for the company. It’s tastefully designed, has some lovely material touches, such as crystal-effect controls and is minimalist in the luxury sense – as opposed to the iPad-glued-to-a-blank-dashboard vibe that some manufacturers go with.

Updated in 2025, battery range now stretches to 426 miles with the iX xDrive60, but the car is fundamentally unchanged: a refined, wallowy, design-led SUV that you’ll love spending time in. And like the i7, it’ll be tempting to get the mad, needlessly quick iX M70 xDrive version, but sensible money goes into the cheapest – as sensible as a £75,000-plus electric SUV can be.