A charge point charges one vehicle, a station carries several.

A charge point is a cable or a socket. Exactly one car can charge there. Once a car is plugged in, that point is taken. In daily life the charge point is what a driver is looking for: a free plug.

The charging station is the housing on the wall, on a pedestal or as a pillar in the car park. A wallbox with one socket is a station with one charge point. A twin wallbox is a station with two. A public pillar usually carries two, a rapid charger often three.

An example: a depot installs eight twin wallboxes. That is eight charging stations and sixteen charge points. Sixteen vehicles can charge there at the same time. The delivery note lists eight devices, the charging software sixteen points.

In the OCPP standard the station is called a ChargePoint and each charge point inside it a connector. The station registers once and then speaks for all of its charge points. It carries one identifier and one password; the charge points inside are simply numbered. Every status message and every session carries the number of the charge point it refers to.

Two charge points on one station often share a single supply. With two cars plugged in, each gets half the power. The number of charge points tells you how many cars can be connected at once. Charging speed is the second figure, and planning a site needs both.

Count the plugs, not the housings. Tenders, grant applications and the price of charging software almost always count charge points. Eight twin wallboxes count as sixteen single ones. A quotation priced per station can be converted on that basis and compared.