BEV sales in the US reach record high

Specifically, a total of 607,089 electric cars were sold in the US between January and June this year, an increase of 1.5 per cent compared to the same period last year, according to Kelley Blue Book. The US has never seen such a strong first half of the year in terms of electric car sales, and it may not happen again anytime soon. As previously reported, the federal tax credit of up to $7,500 will be scrapped earlier than anticipated at the end of September. How the discontinuation will affect the market in Q4 and 2026 remains unclear.

Although the second quarter, perhaps due to uncertainty around the future of the purchase incentive, saw sales of 310,839 vehicles, 6.3 per cent down on last year, Kelley Blue Book expects EV sales to rise in the third quarter as customers rush to take advantage of the expiring subsidy.

“Lower EV sales last quarter underscore the market’s ongoing challenges, as growth in the auto business ebbs and flows on consumer demand,” said Stephanie Valdez Streaty, senior analyst at Cox Automotive. “The year-over-year decline in Q2 was only the third decline on record, and a sign of a more mature market. The increase from Q1 may well be the start of a rush ahead of the federal incentive phase-out, offering a short-term boost in an otherwise uncertain landscape.”

Record forecast for Q3, slump expected in Q4

The second half of the year will be heavily influenced by the one-off effects surrounding the discontinuation of the tax credit. “TQ3 will likely be a record, followed by a collapse in Q4, as the electric vehicle market adjusts to its new reality,” said Valdez Streaty. The analyst did not make any prediction on how the market might develop after the expected Q4 downturn next year.

Looking at some figures, the two biggest US players were General Motors and Tesla. GM managed to more than double its EV sales from the first half of 2024, selling over 78,000 electric cars. “Chevrolet was the No. 2 best-selling EV brand in the U.S. at the end of the first half, charging past both Ford and Hyundai and helping grow GM’s share of total EV sales to 12.9%, placing GM firmly as the No. 2 EV player and behind only Tesla,” Cox Automotive writes.

Tesla remains the largest EV brand in the US but has lost some ground: while GM gained over six percentage points in market share (with Honda, Stellantis and VW also posting EV gains), Tesla lost a similar amount. However, Tesla still tops the list with its 44.7 per cent share of the US EV market. The trend is downwards, but its lead over GM and the rest remains substantial. “By volume, Tesla’s sales fell by more than 12% year over year in Q2, following a decline of nearly 9% in Q1. The EV pioneer’s share of total U.S. sales (3.4%) and share of the EV market (44.7%) have both declined year-to-date in 2025. Tesla’s many issues do not require a full rehashing here: Suffice it to say, the hyper-competitive EV market is providing the troubled automaker no relief,” the statement reads.

In absolute terms: Tesla sold 143,535 BEVs in Q2 (down from 164,264 in Q2 2024) and 271,635 in H1 (H1 2024: 304,451). Chevrolet sold 28,453 (Q2) and 47,639 (H1) BEVs, while Ford sold 16,438 (Q2) and 38,988 (H1). Hyundai, Cadillac, BMW and Rivian also recorded five-figure BEV sales in Q2, while mass-market brands such as Nissan (9,073 EVs), Toyota (3,639) and Kia (4,975) were in the four-figure range.

A quick look at the German brands: BMW led in Q2 with 11,094 electric cars sold, despite being down 21 per cent year-on-year. Audi followed, slightly increasing sales by 4.6 per cent to 5,654 EVs. Mercedes saw a sharper decline of 52 per cent to 4,611 EVs, while VW, with 2,556 EVs (+55.1 per cent), was even outperformed by Porsche (2,833 EVs, +251 per cent) – apparently thanks to the arrival of the first batch of the electric Macan.

coxautoinc.com (press release), coxautoinc.com (PDF)