Top 10 selling electric cars in Australia
If you’re looking to save on the price of fuel or be more green, this list of Australia’s top 10 best selling electric cars may help narrow down your search.
16 Apr 2025
If you’re looking to save on the price of fuel or be more green, this list of Australia’s top 10 best selling electric cars may help narrow down your search.
KEY POINTS
- Electric vehicles (EVs) are becoming increasingly affordable, although their share of the sales in the new car market has dropped compared to last year.
- BYD and Tesla models currently account for half of the top 10 best selling electric car models list.
- While the best selling electric cars in Australia list might show you what’s currently popular, there may be other models on the market that better suit your needs and preferences.
New data from the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries (FCAI) shows battery electric vehicles (EVs) currently make up 4.9% of market sales for March 2025. This is lower than the 9.5% in the same month of the previous year, suggesting the demand for EVs has lowered.
Although Australians aren’t moving to fully electric vehicles as quickly as they’ve embraced hybrid electric vehicles, the range and affordability of EVs in Australia has both increased over the last few years.
With 89 different models currently available, EVs are also closing in on price parity with their combustion engine equivalents, with the BYD Dolphin Essential being one of the first EVs to retail below $30k drive away in Australia—according to car review and news site Carsguide. There’s also the GAC Aion UT, which could retail at just over $15k before on road costs when it eventually enters the Australian market.
But what are the best selling electric cars at the moment and which EV could be right for you? While this will ultimately depend on your needs, preferences and budget, this list of the country’s best selling electric cars may help you narrow down your search.
Best selling electric cars in Australia
The best selling electric car in Australia is currently the Tesla Model Y at 21,253 models sold throughout the entirety of 2024, followed by the Model 3 at 17,094. Tesla and BYD models currently make up half of the top 10 best selling electric car model list. The full list is as follows:
Top 10 best selling electric cars in Australia
- Tesla Model Y (21,253)
- Tesla Model 3 (17,094)
- MG 4 (6,934)
- BYD Seal (6,393)
- BYD Atto 3 (5,751)
- BMW iX1 (2,618)
- Volvo EX30 (2,129)
- BYD Dolphin (2,116)
- BMW i4 (2,062)
- Kia EV6 (1,785)
Top 10 best selling electric cars brands in Australia
- Tesla (38,347)
- BYD (14,260)
- MG (8,239)
- BMW (7,787)
- Volvo (3,862)
- Kia (3,610)
- Hyundai (2,689)
- Mercedes-Benz (2,603)
- Polestar (1,713)
- GWM (1,225)
Source: Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries (FCAI) and the Electric Vehicle Council, based on the total sales of new electric vehicles in 2024.
If you’re not quite ready to commit to a 100% electric car, there are quite a few hybrid and plug-in vehicles available that may be better suited to your budget and needs.
Why are electric car sales decreasing?
There are a number of factors as to why sales of electric cars are decreasing in Australia. The increasing availability and competition of plug-in hybrid electric (PHEV) and conventional hybrid electric (HEV) vehicles, higher upfront purchase costs associated with EVs (e.g. a Tesla Model Y has a Manufacturer’s Suggested Retail Price (MSRP) of $58,900), uncertainty around EV resale value, paired with the relatively slow implementation of public charging facilities and ongoing cost of living crisis have all impacted the demand for electric vehicles in recent years.
Why Australians are buying electric cars
Many Australians, however, are still motivated to switch to fully electric cars due to climate concerns, with consumers desiring to be seen as helping the environment by buying an EV, while at the same time being able to reduce the costs that come with Australia’s fluctuating fuel prices.
Increasing petrol prices have given urgency to the overarching message that there’s potential savings to be had by using electric charging.The Electric Vehicle Council (EVC) states that the average Australian drives 12,000km per year and spends around $2,500 on petrol, which equates to about $0.20/km. An EV travelling the same average distance costs about $500 to charge (when using grid electricity). This equates to only $0.04/km. While this is just an example that doesn’t take into account factors like the make and model of a car, it’s still an interesting cost-saving statistic to consider.
Read More: How much does it cost to run an electric car?
If you’re interested in buying an EV there may also be certain government concessions available, such as rebates, discounted registration fees, lower stamp duty rates, Fringe Benefits Tax (FBT) exemptions (for those with novated leases) and luxury car tax discounts. Some car loan lenders may also provide discounts or lower interest rates for borrowers looking to buy ‘green’ cars using finance.
Are you in the market for a new car? You may like to compare car loans, green car loans, green personal loans and car insurance with Canstar. If you’re interested in car insurance in particular, you can also check out what car insurance deals and offers there are, which are updated monthly.
24hr approval available
Cover image source: Jonathan Weiss/Shutterstock.com
This article was reviewed by our Finance Editor Jessica Pridmore before it was updated, as part of our fact-checking process.
24hr approval available
Try our Car Loans comparison tool to instantly compare Canstar expert rated options.
