For the first time in history, electric vehicles have surpassed gasoline car sales in Europe, revealed the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association (ACEA).
According to ACEA data, electric vehicle sales surpassed those of combustion vehicles for the first time across the 27 countries of the European Union. This milestone occurred in December 2025, when electric vehicles captured 22.6% of the market, 0.1% more than vehicles powered solely by gasoline.
When including the United Kingdom and the countries that are part of the European Free Trade Association (EFTA), which include Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, and Switzerland, the gap increases considerably.
Combining data from the EU with the United Kingdom and EFTA, electric vehicles held a 26.3% market share in December, while gasoline cars accounted for 21.7% of total volume.
Over the year as a whole, however, conventional gasoline cars still led, with a market share of 26.1%, compared to 19.5% for electric models in the EU + United Kingdom + EFTA region.
Even so, ACEA data showed that the market share of gasoline cars fell by 6.9% last year, while that of electric vehicles grew by 4.1% compared to 2024.
Diesel engines, on the other hand, continue to show sharp declines, with market share falling from 10.4% in 2024 to 7.7% last year.
Overall, hybrids remained at the top in the EU + United Kingdom + EFTA region last year, capturing a 34.4% market share. Plug-in hybrids, which surpassed diesel vehicles in sales for the first time in history, accounted for 9.6% of total volume.
As for the factors that drove the growth of electric vehicles in Europe last year, the Tesla Model Y remained in the lead despite a 28% drop in sales. In 2025, 151,331 units were sold, according to Dataforce data shared by Automotive News Europe.
Photo: Tesla. This content was created with the help of AI and reviewed by the editorial team.
