Plug-in car sales reported a notable 25% year-on-year growth in Europe in January 2024 despite the withdrawal of some electric vehicle incentives in the region.
More impressively, all-electric vehicle (BEV) sales enjoyed a whopping 29% YoY increase, exceeding the plug-in hybrids’ (PHEV) growth rate of 23%.
Plug-in car sales surged 25% in Europe in January 2024
Europe’s plug-in car sales reached a total of 198,993 units in January 2024, according to EV Volumes data. It indicates a roughly 25% YoY sales growth, enabling plug-in cars to account for about 20% of the market (up from just 17% in 2022).
Meanwhile, BEV sales reported a YoY increase of 29% to about 120,000. It accounted for a notable 12% of the overall auto market in Europe, while PHEVs grew 23% YoY.
Presented below are the sales breakdown in January 2024:
| Powertrain | Registrations | YoY Change | Market Share |
| BEVs | about *120,500 | up 29% | 12% |
| PHEVs | about *78,500 | up 23% | 8% |
| Total | 198,993 | up 25% | 20% |
FY 2023 record
For comparison, the European plug-in car market sold more than 3 million passenger EVs in the full year 2023, indicating a 16% YoY increase. Refer to the table below:
| Powertrain | Registrations | YoY Change | Market Share |
| BEVs | about *1.84 million | – | 16% |
| PHEVs | about *1.17 million | – | 8% |
| Total | 3,016,880 | up 16% | 24% |
Most popular plug-in models
As expected, Tesla’s all-electric crossover Model Y has once again dominated the European plug-in car market for the 15th consecutive month in January 2024.
Moreover, its sibling, the Tesla Model 3, snatched the second spot with 6,479 unit sales. As for the entire 2023 results, the two Tesla EVs remained at the top spots.
For reference, here are the top 10 most popular plug-in car models in Europe in January 2024 and in FY 2023:
| Ranking | Models | Sales | Ranking | Models | Sales |
| 1 | Tesla Model Y | 11,425 | 1 | Tesla Model Y | 255,062 |
| 2 | Tesla Model 3 | 6,479 | 2 | Tesla Model 3 | 101,313 |
| 3 | Audi Q4 e-tron | 4,979 | 3 | Volkswagen ID.4 | 83,033 |
| 4 | Skoda Enyaq iV | 4,816 | 4 | Skoda Enyaq iV | 78,739 |
| 5 | Volvo XC40 | 4,554 (4,371 BEVs + 183 PHEVs) | 5 | Volvo XC40 | 73,650 (50,839 BEVs + 22,811 PHEVs) |
| 6 | Volvo XC60 PHEVs | 4,075 | 6 | MG 4 | 72,421 |
| 7 | MG 4 | 3,544 | 7 | Audi Q4 e-tron | 69,529 |
| 8 | Ford Kuga PHEV | 3,496 | 8 | Fiat 500 electric | 64,579 |
| 9 | BMW i4 | 3,473 | 9 | Volkswagen ID.3 | 63,475 |
| 10 | Dacia Spring | 3,409 | 10 | Dacia Spring | 59,331 |
Top brands and auto groups
As for the top brands in Europe’s plug-in car industry, BMW beat Tesla with a dominant 10.3% share. Tesla closely followed with a 9.1% share of the plug-in car market. Refer to the table below:
| Ranking | Brands | Share |
| 1 | BMW | 10.3% |
| 2 | Tesla | 9.1% |
| 3 | Mercedes-Benz | 9.0% |
| 4 | Audi | 8.3% |
| 5 | Volvo | 7.8% |
| 6 | Volkswagen | 5% |
| 7 | Kia | 5% |
| 8 | Peugeot | 4.8% |
On the other hand, another German legacy brand, Volkswagen, led the ranking in top automotive groups by share in the plug-in car market in January 2024:
| Ranking | Auto Groups | Share |
| 1 | Volkswagen Group | 20.5% share (Volkswagen brand at 5%) |
| 2 | Stellantis | 12.0% |
| 3 | BMW Group | 11.0% share (BMW brand at 10.3%) |
| 4 | Geely-Volvo | 9.6% |
| 5 | Mercedes-Benz Group | 9.5% (Mercedes-Benz brand at 9.0%) |
| 6 | Tesla | 9.1% |
| 7 | Hyundai Motor Group | 8.7% |
The 25% YoY sales growth in Europe’s plug-in car industry is indeed remarkable, considering the recent withdrawal of some electric vehicle incentives in the region’s key markets, including Germany. As you can observe, America’s electric vehicle pioneer largely contributed to the region’s electric vehicle uptake.
