China’s best-selling electric car Is the Geely Galaxy Xingyue
While the Wuling Hongguang Mini EV was no longer China’s best-selling electric car last year, the compact battery-electric vehicle has not fallen far behind. In 2025, the model from SAIC-GM-Wuling secured second place—behind the Geely Galaxy Xingyue and ahead of the Tesla Model Y.
The new bestseller among New Energy Vehicles (NEVs) is also an affordable, battery-electric model: the compact car Xingyue is priced from 68,800 yuan (currently around 8,500 euros) and is available in two battery variants. At the base price, the Xingyue offers a range of 310 kilometres under the CLTC standard, while the larger battery, which provides 410 kilometres in the Chinese test cycle, is priced from at least 81,800 yuan (approximately 10,100 euros). The model was previously marketed under the Geely Geometry brand. However, as the Geometry subsidiary was merged internally with Geely’s premium Galaxy brand, the Xingyue is now sold as the Geely Galaxy Xingyue.
That the model topped the 2025 ranking with 465,775 units sold in the Chinese retail market (vehicles actually sold in China) came as no surprise: the Xingyue had already led the charts in many months. With 435,599 sales, the Wuling Hongguang Mini EV remains a bestseller—though this result was only good enough for second place in 2025.
With 425,337 units sold, the Tesla Model Y completes the podium. Tesla’s mid-size SUV is the best-selling model from a foreign brand, though it is not considered a foreign car in China, as Tesla manufactures the Model Y and the Model 3 at its Giga Shanghai facility. The Model 3 ranks ninth with 200,361 sales. Notably, the Model Y and Model 3 are the only two models from a foreign brand among the top 20 best-selling New Energy Vehicles.
All other 18 models in the top 20 are from Chinese brands. Unsurprisingly, the market leader BYD is the most represented, accounting for nine of the top 20 BEVs, PHEVs, and FCEVs. However, none of BYD’s models made it into the top three, which can be attributed to the company’s model strategy: BYD has an extensive portfolio, where very similar models are offered under different labels, such as the ‘Dynasty’ or ‘Ocean’ series, targeting various customer groups. Even within these series, closely related vehicles are sometimes counted as separate models in the statistics. Additionally, unlike many of the automakers mentioned here, BYD offers both battery-electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids, further expanding its model range. For example, the BYD Qin Plus ranks fourth with 387,315 sales, while the Qin L is sixth with 264,671 sales. The BYD Song Plus (200,276 units, 10th place) is not significantly different from the BYD Song Pro (180,661 units, 12th place).
Alongside established manufacturers like Geely, Tesla, and BYD, NEV startups are also gaining ground and significantly increasing their sales volumes. The Xiaomi SU7 secured seventh place among all New Energy Vehicles in its first full year of sales, with 258,164 units sold, while the Xiaomi SUV YU7 debuted directly in 18th place (153,673 units). Other models from smaller companies that made it into the top 20 include the Xpeng Mona M03 (13th place with 175,345 vehicles), the Li Auto L6 (14th place with 166,516 vehicles), and the Aito M8 (19th place with 150,420 units).
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