Key Takeaways
EV sales grew by 20% in 2025, with 20.7 million electric vehicles sold worldwide.
The European EV market grew the fastest, but China’s EV sales were the highest by volume.
China’s domestic EV manufacturing industry expanded to the point that price wars erupted and auto manufacturers had to turn to the export market to reduce inventories, making inroads particularly in Southeast Asia, South America, and Europe.
U.S. EV sales grew by only 1% in 2025, primarily due to the elimination of the federal tax credit and other policies that weakened the domestic market.
EV sales in Canada dropped by 41% with the removal of subsidies, while EV sales in Mexico grew by 29% due to low-cost imports from China, prompting a 50% tariff imposed on those imports to protect domestic manufacturing.
Global electric vehicle (EV) sales grew 20% in 2025, with 20.7 million EVs sold. According to Benchmark, the European EV market grew by 33% compared with 2024, with strong growth in Germany (48%), and the UK (27%). U.S. EV sales grew by only 1% in 2025, primarily due to the elimination of the federal tax credit and other policies that weakened the market. EV sales in Canada dropped by 41%, while EV sales in Mexico grew by 29% as the country received low-cost imports from China. The Chinese EV market grew by 17% in 2025 due to domestic competition among automakers. This competition resulted in price wars and the availability of additional EV models. Elsewhere, the EV market grew by 48%, with a strong presence of Chinese EV imports in a number of markets, including Southeast Asia, where EV sales almost doubled.
Europe
As reported by Benchmark, Europe recorded the fastest growth in EV sales in 2025, with volumes rising 33%. Battery electric vehicle sales increased 31%, while plug-in hybrid sales climbed 38%. Germany and the United Kingdom posted strong gains of 48% and 27%, respectively, although France lagged, with EV sales up just 2% after a weak performance for much of the year before a late boost from subsidies. During the year, Europe softened its tailpipe emissions targets by shifting compliance to an average of 2025–27 emissions rather than a single 2025 benchmark, though most automakers had already prepared for the stricter rules. The European EV market is forecast to grow by 14% in 2026, driven by the revival of consumer incentives, with countries including France, Germany, and Sweden announcing support targeted at low- and middle-income households.
China
Despite Europe having the largest growth rate in EV sales in 2025, China had the most unit sales last year, growing by 17% in 2025. With few oil resources of its own and a very large coal-generating fleet, China prefers its residents to purchase EVs and provides incentives to do so. Sales of its battery electric vehicles increased by 26%, and sales of its plug-in hybrid electric vehicles increased by 6%.
China does not impose any limitations on EV sales and has a number of incentives and subsidies to promote EV adoption, including purchase tax exemptions and a mandate that requires automakers to produce and sell a certain number of EVs each year, or face penalties. In contrast, several cities in China have a lottery system to limit new gas-fueled vehicle registrations or to allocate licenses for gas-fueled cars, making a limited number of plates available each year. As a result, in just a few years, China’s EV industry captured half its domestic market, crushing sales of gasoline-powered vehicles.
China’s growing EV manufacturing industry resulted in a domestic price war, forcing Chinese car manufacturers to turn to overseas markets. BYD more than doubled its EV exports, rising from 0.4 million units in 2024 to over one million in 2025, and overtaking Tesla in global EV sales. Chinese‑produced EVs accounted for 19% of total EV sales in Europe in 2025, and strong Chinese EV sales were also found in South America and Southeast Asia. This also resulted in Chinese internal combustion engine vehicles being dumped on the world market.
In 2026, China’s EVs will be assessed 50% of the purchase tax, after being fully exempt previously, and the new trade‑in subsidy scheme will be proportional to vehicle price, rather than the flat‑rate subsidy applied in 2025 that favored smaller vehicles, reducing average EV subsidy levels.
North America
According to Benchmark, President Trump’s policy changes toward auto manufacturing, vehicle fuel economy standards, and EV tax credits resulted in EV sales in the United States only increasing 1% in 2025, with the majority of those sales occurring just before the EV tax credit expired at the end of September. During the fourth quarter of 2025, EV sales fell by 49% compared with the third quarter. The U.S. EV market in 2026 is expected to be weak due to a lack of consumer incentives and supportive legislation, and investment favoring internal combustion engine production. EV sales in the United States are expected to decline by 29% in 2026.
In Canada, the government removed subsidies early in the year, causing EV sales to fall by 41% in 2025. EV sales in Mexico grew by 29%, with the majority of the growth driven by imports of EVs from China. Mexico placed a 50% tariff on EVs imported from China beginning January 1, 2026, up from the 20% duty imposed in 2025, to protect the domestic industry. President Trump urged these tariffs, worrying that Mexico’s imported EVs would find their way into U.S. markets.
Rest of the World
Benchmark reports that the EV market grew by 48% in the rest of the world in 2025. Southeast Asia’s EV sales almost doubled in 2025. In the final three months of that year, the EV market averaged over 55,000 EVs sold per month compared with an average of 32,000 per month in the final three months of 2024. EV sales in South & Central America grew by 49% in 2025, with Chinese-made electric vehicles accounting for over 85% of EV sales in the region. China’s automakers have been partnering with local importers in South America to offer more affordable models that are tailored to regional preferences, selling their EVs at 60% of the cost of a Tesla.
Analysis
EV sales grew significantly across the world in 2025, while growth declined in the U.S. due to the removal of subsidies. Subsidies have played a significant role in increasing the prominence of EVs globally, and data indicate that EVs become less popular when subsidies are removed. To ensure consumers have access to the cars that best suit their needs, governments should step out of the way by cutting subsidies and regulations promoting certain vehicle types over others, allowing price signals to guide market decisions. As we explain in When Government Chooses Your Car, “Consumer choices serve as signals to producers about what to supply. High demand for a product indicates its desirability, prompting businesses to produce more, while low demand can lead to reduced production and further innovation.”
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