Europe Hits Milestone: EV Sales Surpass Gasoline Cars for First Time

In January 2025, electric vehicles (EVs) outsold pure gasoline-powered cars for the first time across the 27 European Union countries—a historic turning point. According to data from the European Automobile Manufacturers' Association (ACEA), EVs captured a 22.6% market share in the EU that month, slightly surpassing gasoline cars at 22.5%. When including the United Kingdom and European Free Trade Association (EFTA) countries—Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, and Switzerland—the EV market share rose to 26.3%, significantly ahead of gasoline cars at 21.7%. For the full year, however, gasoline vehicles still led overall with a 26.1% share compared to EVs’ 19.5%. Nevertheless, gasoline car sales declined by 6.9 percentage points year-on-year, while EVs gained 4.1 percentage points. Diesel vehicles saw their market share drop further to just 7.7%. The Tesla Model Y was the best-selling EV model for the year, followed closely by the Škoda Elroq and Tesla Model 3. With automakers like Volkswagen, Renault, and Dacia launching more affordable new EV models, the adoption of electric vehicles in Europe is expected to accelerate.