BYD has finished as China’s best-selling carmaker for the fourth year in a row, staying ahead of other major Chinese brands like Geely, Chery, GWM, and Leapmotor. However, it did not reach its ambitious global sales goal of ~5.5 million for 2025.
The BYD sales data trend also shows a decline in domestic sales and a not-so-promising 2026 due to a few market factors, like rising competition and government regulation.
BYD’s 2025 sales target and market performance
Despite being the top electrified vehicle seller (4,550,036 passenger vehicles) in the world in 2025, BYD still fell short of its 5.5 million unit sales target for 2025. This is also the first time BYD’s year-on-year overall growth sharply declined to 7.1% from the two-digit growth since 2021.
| Year | Total (BEV + PHEV) sales | Year-on-year growth | Milestones |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | 1,863,494 | 209% | Stopped making petrol-only cars in March 2022 |
| 2023 | 3,024,417 | 62% | BYD beat Tesla in quarterly BEV sales for the first time |
| 2024 | 4,272,145 | 41% | Overseas sales jumped by nearly 72% |
| 2025 | 4,602,436 | 7.7% | Became the world’s #1 BEV seller and exported 1 million+ vehicles |
Note: These sales numbers include commercial and other electrified vehicles also.
The 2025 car sales of BYD were almost evenly split between pure passenger EVs and PHEVs. A total of 2,254,714 BEVs were sold, representing a 27.9% increase from 2024. PHEVs sold were 2,228,709 units, a slight 7.9% decrease from 2024.
BYD sold 1,046,083 passenger vehicles outside China in 2025, a rough 150% increase year-on-year. As demand in China cooled, international markets became BYD’s most important growth driver.
BYD’s top-selling BEV and PHEV models, globally, were Sealion 6, Qin Plus and Qin L DM-i, Dolphin Mini, and Atto 3.
BYD’s key growth drivers are high-quality vehicles at mass-market prices with excellent driving range, especially for PHEVs, with in-house manufacturing. It also covers a wide range of car models for various buyer segments. These factors helped the brand beat Tesla in the number one spot for the number of EVs sold globally in 2025.
How does BYD compare to other car makers?
Tesla sold 1.64 million vehicles globally in 2025, an 8.3% decline from the previous year. BYD sold around 620,000 more BEVs than Tesla across the full year, becoming the world’s biggest EV seller.
Despite losing in the overall volume, the Tesla Model Y remained the world’s best-selling BEV, with over 800,000 deliveries by late 2025.
China has officially become the world’s number one car producer, market, and exporter. As of 2026, China maintains a dominant lead over other major automotive nations like Japan, the US, and Germany. Estimated sales numbers for the top-selling car makers globally in 2025 also suggest the domination of Chinese car makers, with the only exception of Tesla, which is US-based.
2026 may not look promising for BYD as local sales are falling and other Chinese rivals are pushing hard for higher sales. Moreover, Chinese car brands face tariffs in Europe and the US, along with heavy price cuts in China. These price cuts reduced profits for BYD and also led the government to intervene.
BYD’s market performance in Australia
BYD has grown exponentially in Australia since its mass-market entry in late 2022, with sales more than doubling annually. By November 2025, the brand had already recorded 45,672 sales, a 147.3% year-on-year increase (20,458 units in 2024). 2025 was a record-breaking year for the Chinese brand, driven by the expansion into plug-in hybrids (PHEVs).
The top-selling BYD car model in Australia year-to-date in November 2025 is the Shark 6 PHEV ute (with 16,398 units), followed by Sealion 7 (SUV), Sealion 6 (SUV), Atto 3 (SUV), Seal (sedan), and Dolphin (hatch).
BYD Australia continues to offer highly competitive pricing for its car models, a diverse model lineup, strong battery technology, and an expanding retail network, which makes it a tough contender in its segment.
BYD Australia’s upcoming plans and launches
By mid-2026, BYD plans to sell 10 different models in Australia, covering everything from low-cost city cars to large family SUVs and work vehicles. The major 2026 BYD launches are: Atto 1 Seagull (Australia’s cheapest EV at $23,990), Atto 2 SUV, Sealion PHEV SUV, Sealion 8 PHEV SUV, and Shark 6 Cab-Chassis PHEV ute. BYD has also communicated clear targets for 2026. The company wants to break into Australia’s top 3 car brands, grow dealerships, and test 1MW ultra-fast chargers.
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