Plugin Vehicles Pass 75 Million Cumulative Sales!

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One of our data-tracking, EV-focused readers, Madan Rajan, notified me this weekend of a big milestone. Cumulative plugin vehicle sales have surpassed 75 million units.

He points out that we were at 74.3 million cumulative plugin vehicle sales at the end of October 2025, and with 1.3 million plugin vehicles sold in China alone in November, that means we have surpassed 75 million.

Our most recent global EV sales report showed that the world reached 2.1 million plugin vehicle registrations in October, a new record. If this new record level was sustained, it would take another 3 years (36 months) to reach another 75 million. Will it take 3 years to reach 150 million cumulative plugin vehicle sales? I think not. What about two years?

Reaching a milestone like this, aside from making one wonder about the growth rate going forward and future milestones, triggers some reflection on what got us here. We’ve had a handful of different periods and key drivers. These are some that come to mind for me:

• There was the period with the original Nissan LEAF, Chevy Volt, and Mitsubishi i-MiEV.
• Then we got the Tesla Model S, and the much less exciting and less glamorous BYD e6 — the first fully electric BYD, which had its acceleration extremely limited and was used primarily by taxi companies, but which also led the way with LFP batteries.
• We got a Renault ZOE with about 200 miles of range, which snuck past the finish line ahead of two American models to become the first semi-affordable long-range electric car.
• Then, those two models that were in a PR battle for years, the Chevy Bolt and the Tesla Model 3, arrived. The Tesla Model 3 clearly ended up winning the long game and became the best selling electric vehicle in history once it passed up the Nissan LEAF’s cumulative sales. The Chevy Bolt, though, has had a fair showing as well. I imagine many people, like some of our writers, have had both models.
• Then, Europe and China really started growing their EV markets, introducing more and more models with better and better specs and regulations strengthened.
• Naturally, we also have to mention the new highest selling electric vehicle model of all time, the Tesla Model Y, which was the top selling vehicle model of any type for two years in a row.
• However, it doesn’t end there. Europe (to some extent) and China (much more so) have taken up the mantle of driving EV sales forward. A large variety of European and Chinese electric models are now growing EV sales more and more every year. They are working together like an ocean, flowing across the world and transitioning the auto industry.

Stay tuned for more soon. And thanks again to Madan Rajan, the best EV milestone tracker out there, along with José Pontes.

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