In January 2026, new EU car registrations fell by 3.9% compared to January last year, marking a second consecutive challenging start to the year for the market.
The battery-electric car market share reached 19.3%, highlighting the continued potential for further growth. Hybrid-electric vehicles lead as the most popular power type choice among buyers, with plug-in hybrids consolidating their position in the market, underlining the importance of a technology-neutral pathway to decarbonisation.
New EU car registrations by power source
Battery-electric cars accounted for 19.3% of the EU market share in January 2026, an increase from the low baseline of 14.9% one year earlier. Hybrid-electric car registrations captured 38.6% of the market, remaining the preferred choice among consumers in the EU. Meanwhile, the combined market share of petrol and diesel cars fell to 30.1%, down from 39.5% in January 2025.
Electric cars
In January 2026, 154,230 new battery-electric cars were registered, capturing 19.3% of the EU market share. The four largest markets in the EU, which together account for 60% of battery-electric car registrations, delivered mixed results: France (+52.1%) and Germany (+23.8%) recorded strong growth, while Belgium (-11.5%) and the Netherlands (-35.4%) experienced declines. (....)