U.S. EV and Hybrid Sales
Argonne monthly data through July 2026 · Updated August 31, 2026
Americans are buying the electric motor faster than the plug. In July 2026, plug-in vehicles (battery-electric plus plug-in hybrid) were 6.8% of new light-duty vehicle sales while conventional hybrids were 15.1%, and so far in 2026 hybrids have outsold plug-ins 2.2 to 1, a gap that pointed the other way as recently as 2023. Counting both, 22.5% of new vehicles sold in 2026 through July carry an electric motor, near the highest share on record, reached while the plug-in share was falling. Worldwide the picture differs sharply: electric cars were 24% of new-car sales in the first half of 2026 (global EV sales).
Hybrids and plug-ins are moving in opposite directions
Plug-in vehicles passed hybrids in 2022 and led through 2023. Hybrids retook the lead in 2024 and have widened it since: in July 2026, hybrid sales were up 19.6% against the same month a year earlier while plug-in sales were down 37.6% (computed from the Argonne series).
Share of total U.S. light-duty vehicle sales, computed from Argonne National Laboratory, Light Duty Electric Drive Vehicles Monthly Sales Updates (monthly unit sales and total light-duty sales in the same table), December 2010 through July 2026.
Monthly sales volumes
Monthly unit sales, same source. BEV = battery electric; PHEV = plug-in hybrid; hybrid = conventional hybrid (no plug). Argonne classifies mild hybrids separately from full hybrids and does not include them here.
Annual totals
| Year | BEV | PHEV | Plug-in total | Hybrid | Total light-duty | Plug-in share | Hybrid share |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 (through July) | 19 | 326 | 345 | 28,592 | 1,144,840 | 0.0% | 2.5% |
| 2011 | 10,092 | 7,671 | 17,763 | 268,749 | 12,778,949 | 0.1% | 2.1% |
| 2012 | 14,587 | 38,584 | 53,171 | 434,648 | 14,492,277 | 0.4% | 3.0% |
| 2013 | 48,094 | 49,008 | 97,102 | 495,535 | 15,581,565 | 0.6% | 3.2% |
| 2014 | 63,525 | 55,357 | 118,882 | 452,172 | 16,523,548 | 0.7% | 2.7% |
| 2015 | 71,064 | 43,008 | 114,072 | 384,400 | 17,468,935 | 0.7% | 2.2% |
| 2016 | 86,731 | 72,885 | 159,616 | 346,949 | 17,547,028 | 0.9% | 2.0% |
| 2017 | 104,487 | 91,188 | 195,675 | 370,680 | 17,241,387 | 1.1% | 2.1% |
| 2018 | 207,062 | 123,883 | 330,945 | 338,149 | 17,213,546 | 1.9% | 2.0% |
| 2019 | 233,822 | 85,791 | 319,613 | 399,444 | 16,952,912 | 1.9% | 2.4% |
| 2020 | 238,540 | 69,049 | 307,589 | 455,067 | 14,472,032 | 2.1% | 3.1% |
| 2021 | 459,474 | 176,117 | 635,591 | 799,046 | 14,946,973 | 4.3% | 5.3% |
| 2022 | 747,982 | 183,411 | 931,393 | 766,412 | 13,754,339 | 6.8% | 5.6% |
| 2023 | 1,164,638 | 293,578 | 1,458,216 | 1,175,456 | 15,502,479 | 9.4% | 7.6% |
| 2024 | 1,243,419 | 318,724 | 1,562,143 | 1,609,048 | 15,858,418 | 9.9% | 10.1% |
| 2025 | 1,240,040 | 268,897 | 1,508,937 | 2,070,038 | 16,230,606 | 9.3% | 12.8% |
| 2026 (through July) | 554,155 | 106,218 | 660,373 | 1,428,909 | 9,278,013 | 7.1% | 15.4% |
Annual sums of the monthly series. Shares are computed against the total light-duty column of the same table, so numerator and denominator share one source.
Last 13 months as a table
| Month | BEV | PHEV | Hybrid | Plug-in share | Hybrid share |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| July 2026 | 73,443 | 19,769 | 205,949 | 6.83% | 15.10% |
| June 2026 | 84,622 | 16,815 | 222,226 | 7.42% | 16.25% |
| May 2026 | 101,312 | 18,562 | 255,157 | 8.06% | 17.15% |
| April 2026 | 89,113 | 16,791 | 223,384 | 7.64% | 16.11% |
| March 2026 | 76,058 | 13,155 | 206,867 | 6.42% | 14.90% |
| February 2026 | 58,284 | 10,927 | 163,637 | 5.87% | 13.88% |
| January 2026 | 71,323 | 10,199 | 151,689 | 7.38% | 13.73% |
| December 2025 | 75,840 | 13,456 | 199,963 | 6.12% | 13.70% |
| November 2025 | 54,634 | 12,346 | 175,814 | 5.24% | 13.74% |
| October 2025 | 83,292 | 12,441 | 173,481 | 7.47% | 13.54% |
| September 2025 | 140,579 | 20,040 | 150,988 | 12.94% | 12.16% |
| August 2025 | 148,769 | 26,004 | 181,048 | 11.91% | 12.34% |
| July 2025 | 126,356 | 22,998 | 172,269 | 10.75% | 12.40% |
What happened in September 2025
The plug-in share peaked at 12.94% in September 2025 and fell to 5.24% by November, less than half, in two months. The federal credit of up to $7,500 for new clean vehicles (Internal Revenue Code section 30D) ended for vehicles acquired after September 30, 2025, under Public Law 119-21, signed July 4, 2025; the IRS treats a vehicle as acquired when a written binding contract is in place and a payment has been made (IRS FAQ on Public Law 119-21). The shape in the data is characteristic of a purchase deadline: sales pulled forward into the final eligible month, then a hole.
The move is in plug-in sales, not in the size of the market: total light-duty sales were 1,241,581 in September and 1,279,378 in November 2025, while plug-in volume fell 58%, from 160,619 to 66,980. Hybrid share did not move. This page reports the date the credit lapsed and the measured series; it does not estimate how many sales the credit caused or project a recovery.
What plug-ins Americans buy
| Size class | 2026 sales through July | Share of plug-ins |
|---|---|---|
| Two seater | 0 | 0.0% |
| Minicompact | 0 | 0.0% |
| Subcompact | 0 | 0.0% |
| Compact | 11,963 | 1.8% |
| Midsize | 99,845 | 15.1% |
| Large | 23,394 | 3.5% |
| Small Station Wagons | 7,883 | 1.2% |
| Standard SUV | 108,646 | 16.5% |
| Minivan | 31,680 | 4.8% |
| Small SUV | 353,403 | 53.5% |
| Pickup | 23,559 | 3.57% |
Argonne's plug-in sales by EPA size class, current year to date. This is the only vehicle-class detail Argonne still publishes; the lab stopped reporting sales by make and model in November 2019, so no model-level breakdown exists in this source.
Questions people ask
What percentage of new vehicles sold in the U.S. are electric?
In July 2026, plug-in vehicles (battery-electric plus plug-in hybrid) were 6.8% of new light-duty vehicle sales and conventional hybrids were 15.1%. Across 2026 through July, the shares are 7.1% plug-in and 15.4% hybrid, 22.5% combined (Argonne National Laboratory monthly sales data).
Do hybrids outsell electric cars in the U.S.?
Yes. In 2026 through July, hybrids outsold plug-ins 2.2 to 1 (1,428,909 hybrids vs 660,373 plug-ins). The lead has changed hands: plug-ins outsold hybrids in 2022 and 2023, hybrids retook the lead in 2024 and have widened it since.
Why did plug-in sales fall in late 2025?
The plug-in share of new sales peaked at 12.9% in September 2025 and fell to 5.2% by November. The federal credit of up to $7,500 for new clean vehicles ended for vehicles acquired after September 30, 2025, under Public Law 119-21 (IRS). This page reports the dated series and does not estimate how many sales the credit caused.
How many electric vehicles have been sold in the U.S.?
8,471,426 plug-in vehicles were sold from December 2010 through July 2026, summing Argonne's monthly table. The count starts with the first mass-market plug-ins in December 2010.
What share of cars worldwide are electric?
Electric cars were 24% of global new-car sales in the first half of 2026, and the IEA expects 29% for the full year. China is above 60%. See global EV sales (IEA, July 2026, CC BY 4.0).
About this data
Argonne National Laboratory compiles these figures monthly for the U.S. Department of Energy's Vehicle Technologies Office from commercial and trade sources that have changed over time. It is a compilation, not a government census, and recent months are revised; this page re-parses the entire published table on every update rather than appending. Sales are calendar-year, so they will not match EPA's model-year Automotive Trends figures. The table begins in December 2010 with the first mass-market plug-ins; hybrids had been on sale since 1999, so the hybrid column is not the full hybrid record. Fuel-cell vehicles are not included in this table.