A hybrid electric vehicle (HEV) includes: a battery, a hybrid starter generator (HSG) starting an engine, and a controller that identifies a state of charge (SOC) of the battery upon when a reverse gear input is detected, determines whether to charge the battery by the HSG based on the identified SOC of the battery. In particular, the controller controls battery charging in a charging control mode based on a SOC level of the battery when it is determined that the HSG needs to charge the battery.