EV Sales Australia 2025: Full Year Data, Market Share, and What the Numbers Mean

Australia’s EV market in 2025 hit meaningful scale for the first time. Registrations approached 90,000 battery electric vehicles for the year, pushing market share above 8% - a figure that would have seemed ambitious just three years ago. The market is no longer niche, but it’s also not yet mainstream: 8% share means 92% of new cars bought in Australia in 2025 were still petrol or diesel.

Here’s a detailed look at what the 2025 numbers show, what drove them, and what they mean for where Australian EV adoption goes next.

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2025 EV sales totals

Australia’s Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries (FCAI) publishes VFACTS monthly sales data covering all new light vehicles. For 2025:

Battery electric vehicles (BEVs): approximately 87,000–92,000 units

This represents approximately 8.0–8.5% of total new light vehicle sales of around 1.05–1.08 million units for the year.

For context, the prior years:

Year	BEV sales	BEV market share
2022	~33,000	~3.1%
2023	~99,000	~8.4%
2024	~91,000	~7.2%
2025	~87,000–92,000	~8.0–8.5%

Note on 2023 anomaly: 2023 saw a spike partly driven by pent-up demand from 2022 allocations clearing and Tesla’s dramatic price cuts. 2024 experienced a slight pull-back as that pent-up demand was satisfied. 2025 returned to growth on a more sustainable base.

Plug-in hybrids (PHEVs): Adding PHEVs brings the total plug-in vehicle share to approximately 11–12% of new sales. PHEVs have grown strongly due to the FBT exemption extension and increasing model availability from Toyota, Mitsubishi, Kia, Ford, and BMW.

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Top selling EVs in Australia 2025

Top 5 BEV models (estimated full year)

Rank	Model	Estimated registrations
1	Tesla Model Y	~20,000–22,000
2	BYD Atto 3	~9,000–11,000
3	MG4	~8,000–10,000
4	Tesla Model 3	~8,000–9,500
5	Hyundai IONIQ 6	~5,000–6,000

The Tesla Model Y’s continued dominance reflects the strength of the Supercharger network, Tesla’s fleet sales through novated lease programs, and competitive pricing on the RWD variant ($58,900 drive-away).

BYD’s growth in 2025 was notable. The Atto 3 established itself firmly in second place, and BYD’s overall brand - including the Dolphin, Seal, and Sealion 7 - made it the second-largest EV brand by volume in Australia. The MG4 remained a volume seller at the under-$45,000 price point.

Notable new entrants in 2025

• Kia EV9: Full-size electric SUV, $93,000–$105,000, carving out the premium family SUV segment that was previously untouched by EVs at volume
• BYD Sealion 7: Mid-size SUV competitor to Model Y at lower price; strong second-half volumes
• Volvo EX30: Compact premium SUV under $60,000; strong demand from younger urban buyers
• Tesla Cybertruck: Ultra-niche volumes in Australia; more brand halo than volume driver

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Market share by brand (2025)

Approximate BEV brand share:

Brand	Est. BEV market share
Tesla	~32–35%
BYD	~15–18%
MG	~10–12%
Hyundai / Kia (combined)	~12–15%
Mercedes-Benz EQ	~3–4%
BMW i-series	~3–4%
Polestar	~2–3%
Volkswagen ID series	~2–3%
Others	~10–15%

Tesla and BYD together account for roughly half the market - a concentration that reflects the lack of compelling mass-market options from legacy European and Japanese brands below $70,000.

The Japanese brands - Toyota, Honda, Nissan, Mazda - remain notable by their near-absence in Australian BEV sales. Toyota’s BZ4X had modest volumes; Honda’s e:Ny1 barely registered. Japanese brands dominated Australian car sales for decades and are materially behind in EV product availability.

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What drove 2025 EV growth

1. FBT exemption and novated leasing

The single largest driver of Australian EV adoption since 2022 has been the Fringe Benefits Tax exemption for eligible EVs. Employees using a novated lease to salary-package an EV under the FBT threshold ($91,387 in 2025–26) pay zero FBT on the vehicle - a saving of thousands of dollars annually for employees in higher tax brackets.

Industry estimates consistently point to novated leases accounting for 30–40% of EV transactions. This is a structural tailwind unlikely to disappear: the FBT exemption is policy, not a temporary subsidy, and employees have strong financial incentive to use it.

2. Price competition at the volume end

The sub-$45,000 segment grew meaningfully in 2025. The MG4 Excite 51 at $32,990 drive-away is the entry-level EV purchase for buyers who would otherwise be in the $25,000–$35,000 petrol car segment. The BYD Dolphin (around $38,000–$42,000) competes for the same buyer.

As Chinese manufacturers continue to compete on price, the floor of EV affordability has dropped. The psychological barrier of “$50,000 minimum for an EV” is now clearly broken.

3. Infrastructure growth

The national CCS2 fast charging network passed a meaningful density threshold in 2025. Major highway corridors - the Pacific Highway, Hume Highway, Bruce Highway - now have chargers at intervals that make interstate travel practical without anxiety. The Chargefox network expanded significantly, BP Pulse and Evie Networks continued rollouts, and Tesla opened Superchargers to non-Tesla vehicles at most Australian sites.

Infrastructure anxiety - historically one of the top cited reasons for not purchasing an EV - is no longer a rational barrier for most Australian driving patterns.

4. State incentives (residual effect)

Most state-level EV purchase rebates expired or significantly wound down by 2025. Victoria’s $3,000 rebate, Queensland’s $3,000 rebate, and NSW’s stamp duty exemptions largely concluded. The absence of these subsidies likely moderated growth versus what 2023 showed, but the underlying demand held.

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State breakdown

Highest absolute EV sales:

1. New South Wales (~30,000 BEVs in 2025)
2. Victoria (~25,000)
3. Queensland (~18,000)
4. Western Australia (~10,000)

Highest per-capita adoption rate:

1. ACT - consistently the highest in Australia, driven by federal government fleet electrification, high household income, and the territory’s Zero Emission Vehicles Strategy
2. Victoria - strong state policy framework and Melbourne’s relatively long commute distances support the business case
3. New South Wales - volume driven partly by the size of Sydney’s market; per-capita adoption is more modest than VIC or ACT

WA growth accelerated in 2025 partly due to high electricity price increases for petrol vehicles (high fuel prices in Perth) and the relative strength of the WA economy enabling higher new car spend.

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What the 2025 numbers mean going forward

8% is an inflection point - not an endpoint

The global pattern in EV adoption tends to follow an S-curve: slow growth below 5%, acceleration through 5–15%, then rapid mainstream uptake above 20%. Australia at 8% in 2025 is arguably at the bottom of the acceleration phase.

Two factors are likely to accelerate this further:

1. The New Vehicle Efficiency Standard (NVES), which came into effect in January 2025, penalises manufacturers for selling high-emission vehicles. This creates direct financial incentive for manufacturers to bring more EV models (and fewer high-emitting vehicles) to Australia, broadening choice and increasing marketing investment.

2. Battery cost trajectory. Industry consensus expects BEV purchase price parity with equivalent petrol vehicles in the Australian market to arrive between 2027 and 2030 for most segments. When total-cost-of-ownership parity occurs - it already does for many buyers including running costs - and purchase price parity follows, the adoption argument becomes very simple.

What’s holding back the other 92%

The remaining hesitation among non-EV buyers in 2025 was not primarily range anxiety - survey data consistently shows this has faded. The main barriers reported:

• Upfront purchase price premium - still 10–25% more than equivalent petrol for most models
• Apartment and rental charging - buyers without a garage or dedicated parking remain genuinely underserved
• Lack of affordable utes and large vans - the tradesperson and small business segment is waiting for products that don’t exist yet or are very new (BYD Shark, LDV eT60, upcoming Ford Ranger EV)

The apartment/rental charging problem is structural and unlikely to be resolved quickly. An estimated 30–35% of Australian households don’t have access to private off-street parking. For these buyers, home charging - the primary reason EV economics work - is unavailable unless adequate public charging or destination charging at apartments is in place.

Chinese brand growth

BYD’s trajectory in Australia is the most significant medium-term story. In 2023, BYD was a curiosity. By 2025, it’s the second-largest EV brand with a full model range from the Dolphin ($38k) to the Tang ($90k+). BYD’s manufacturing cost advantage - enabled by vertical integration across battery cells, motors, and electronics - means it can sustain aggressive pricing while maintaining healthy margins.

The response from European brands has been tariffs (EU tariffs on Chinese EVs don’t directly affect Australia) and slow, premium-priced alternatives. How much longer European brands can command a $10,000–$20,000 premium over equivalent Chinese products is a question the 2026 and 2027 sales figures will answer.

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Key takeaways

• Australia sold approximately 87,000–92,000 BEVs in 2025 - market share of ~8%
• Tesla and BYD together account for roughly half the BEV market
• Novated leasing remains the dominant EV purchase mechanism for buyers who qualify
• The sub-$45,000 segment is growing and broadening the buyer base
• Public charging infrastructure is no longer a rational barrier for most Australian driving patterns
• The New Vehicle Efficiency Standard will push more models and marketing investment into EVs from 2025 onward
• 8% share is likely to be seen in retrospect as the start of mainstream adoption, not a peak