Polestar 5 vs Tesla Model S (2019-2020)

The Polestar 5 costs £7,150 more than the Tesla Model S. For that premium it adds 100 kW faster peak rapid charging and 205 kW more power. The Tesla Model S is not just cheaper - it also offers 380 litres more boot space and a 2.1s quicker 0-62mph time. On EVcarsguide's combined category scores, the Tesla Model S comes out ahead overall.

The Tesla Model S is £7,150 cheaper to buy. Running costs are almost identical - about £192 a year either way, at 8,000 miles on an off-peak home tariff. Add 5 years of charging and the Tesla Model S comes out roughly £7,150 cheaper overall. These figures cover list price and home charging only - insurance, servicing, tyres and depreciation will move the real total.

EVcarsguide estimates a real-world motorway range of about 309 miles for the Polestar 5 and 280 miles for the Tesla Model S - both below their WLTP figures, because sustained high speed is the hardest case for an EV. The Polestar 5 goes roughly 30 miles further between charging stops. A rapid charge to 80% takes around 22 minutes in the Polestar 5 and 30 in the Tesla Model S, so the Polestar 5 loses less time at each stop. That makes the Polestar 5 the stronger long-distance car.

The Tesla Model S is the easier car for tight UK car parks: it is 51 mm narrower than the Polestar 5. In a standard 2,400 mm bay that leaves about 436 mm of total clearance for the Tesla Model S and about 385 mm of total clearance for the Polestar 5. The Tesla Model S also turns in a 0.5 m tighter circle, which helps with U-turns and multi-storey ramps.

Over a 8-year ownership window EVcarsguide's degradation model projects roughly 84% battery health for the Polestar 5 and 84% for the Tesla Model S. That is close enough that capacity loss should not decide between them. Both use NMC-type cells, so for daily use keep the charge limit near 80% to slow degradation. Both batteries carry a 8-year manufacturer warranty.