The numbers at a glance.
Pins, peak power, voltage range, and how many regions actually rolled this connector out.
What the plug actually looks like.
The mechanical design, pin layout, and the names this connector goes by in the wild.
Round connector with three rows of pins supporting single-phase and three-phase AC power
Also known as: IEC 62196 Type 2, Mennekes, EU plug
How fast it actually delivers.
Theoretical peaks vs. what you'll see at most public stations.
Regions running on Type 2 (Mennekes).
Geographies that adopted this standard, and the brands shipping cars with it from the factory.
BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Volkswagen, Audi, Porsche, Renault, Tesla (EU), Hyundai, Kia, BYD
How we got this connector.
The standards bodies, automakers, and political fights that shaped it.
Proposed by the German company Mennekes in 2009 as a universal charging connector, Type 2 was selected by the European Commission in January 2013 as the official EU standard. Its ability to handle both single-phase and three-phase AC power made it more versatile than the American J1772. Today it is the foundation of the CCS2 DC fast charging standard.
Where Type 2 (Mennekes) stands today.
Type 2 is the undisputed global AC charging standard outside North America and China. It is mandated across the EU under the Alternative Fuels Infrastructure Regulation (AFIR) and has been adopted by Australia, India, the UK, and most of Southeast Asia. Not expected to be displaced.
What every NACS driver actually deals with.
Type 2 is the AC charging connector for everywhere outside North America and China — Europe, the UK, Australia, India, the Middle East, most of Southeast Asia. It's the plug you'll use at home, at the hotel, at the supermarket parking lot. CCS2 (its DC fast-charging sibling) gets the headlines, but Type 2 does the real daily work — and the practical questions about it (tethered vs untethered, three-phase vs single-phase, do I need to bring my own cable) are what actually trip up new EV owners.
Cables & adapters you'll actually use.
Type 2 is mostly a "plug it in" experience, but a few cable-and-adapter scenarios come up often enough that travelers should know them by name.
Tethered or untethered.
The single biggest practical decision when buying a Type 2 home charger — and the question public stations answer differently. Tethered means the cable is permanently attached; untethered means there's a Type 2 socket and you bring your own cable.
Mennekes, the German company that won.
Mennekes Elektrotechnik — a 90-year-old industrial connector manufacturer from Sauerland, Germany — designed the connector as a proposal to the IEC 62196 standardization process in 2009. The competing proposals included a Yazaki design (which became Type 1 / J1772 in North America) and an Italian consortium proposal. The European Commission's 2013 announcement effectively ended the debate within Europe.
The choice mattered: the seven-pin design supports single-phase or three-phase AC, allowing 22 kW residential charging in any home with a three-phase supply (most of continental Europe). Type 1 / J1772 is single-phase only, capped at ~7.4 kW. That difference is why Europeans casually charge in 4 hours where Americans take 8.
Mennekes still manufactures connectors today and is the namesake people use for the standard, even though it's officially "IEC 62196 Type 2."
“Same plug. Up to three times the speed. Only if your home has three-phase power.”
A Type 2 plug carrying single-phase 230V at 32A delivers 7.4 kW. The same plug carrying three-phase 400V at 32A delivers 22 kW — three times faster, identical physical connector. Whether you can reach 22 kW at home depends entirely on whether your residential supply is three-phase. Most of continental Europe (Germany, France, Spain, Italy, Nordics) has three-phase as standard. The UK and Ireland are mostly single-phase. Australia is mixed. Check your fuse box before buying a 22 kW charger; on single-phase you'll only ever pull 7.4 kW from it.
Things travelers actually trip on.
What this means if you're abroad.
Practical advice for crossing borders with an EV — what works, what won't, and what to bring.
“If you rent an EV anywhere in Europe, Australia, or the UK, every public charger uses Type 2. Home chargers at Airbnbs and hotels will also be Type 2. No adapter needed within Europe.”
Questions readers actually ask.
The three things people Google about this connector — answered without the marketing spin.
What is Type 2 (Mennekes)?Open
Type 2 (Mennekes) is a AC only (DC via CCS2 add-on) EV charging connector with 7 pins. Round connector with three rows of pins supporting single-phase and three-phase AC power. It supports up to 43 kW (400V, 63A three-phase).
Which countries use Type 2 (Mennekes)?Open
Type 2 (Mennekes) is used in European Union, United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, India, Middle East, Singapore, Southeast Asia. Type 2 is the undisputed global AC charging standard outside North America and China.
Is Type 2 (Mennekes) still being used in 2026?Open
Type 2 is the undisputed global AC charging standard outside North America and China. It is mandated across the EU under the Alternative Fuels Infrastructure Regulation (AFIR) and has been adopted by Australia, India, the UK, and most of Southeast Asia. Not expected to be displaced.
The rest of the EV plug zoo.
Every other connector standard we've documented — at the speed of one click.
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Last verified: May 2026 · Verified by PlugHopper Travel Experts