A Shift at the Top of Europe’s EV Market: Volkswagen Takes the Lead as Tesla Falls Behind
The balance of power in Europe’s electric vehicle market changed significantly in 2025. After years of dominating the segment and setting the pace for competitors, Tesla lost its leadership position to the German automotive giant Volkswagen. While Tesla experienced a noticeable decline in sales across Europe, Volkswagen surged ahead, claiming the top spot in the fully electric car market.
According to figures reported by Autonews, based on Dataforce data, Volkswagen sold 274,417 fully electric vehicles in Europe in 2025. This represents a 56% increase compared to its 2024 sales of 175,654 units, making Volkswagen the best-selling electric vehicle brand on the continent.
Tesla, on the other hand, faced a challenging year. The company’s European sales dropped by 27%, falling from 326,714 units in 2024 to 238,765 units in 2025. Despite this decline, the Tesla Model Y remained Europe’s best-selling electric car with 151,331 units sold. However, even this figure reflects a 28% decrease compared to the 210,265 units sold the previous year. The Skoda Elroq emerged as a strong contender, securing second place with 94,106 units sold in 2025.
One of the key reasons behind Volkswagen’s success is its broad and diversified electric vehicle lineup. The VW ID.4 recorded sales of 80,123 units, marking a 23.8% increase, while the ID.3 reached 78,667 units, up by 44.4%. The ID.7 showed particularly strong growth, with 76,368 units sold and an increase of more than 137%. Although the Tesla Model 3 outperformed each individual VW model with 86,261 units sold, it still suffered a 23.6% year-on-year decline.
In terms of brand rankings, Volkswagen was followed by Tesla with 238,765 units, BMW with 193,186 units, Skoda with 172,100 units, and Audi with 153,848 units. Skoda’s remarkable 117% growth highlighted its rising influence in the European EV market.
Volkswagen’s dominance extended beyond fully electric vehicles. The brand also led the plug-in hybrid segment, selling 159,173 units, a staggering 205% increase compared to the previous year. Additionally, Volkswagen maintained its leadership in both petrol and diesel vehicle sales across Europe. Although diesel demand continued to decline, Volkswagen narrowly stayed ahead of Mercedes-Benz.
The only segment where Volkswagen did not claim the top position was the conventional hybrid market, which was dominated by Toyota with 626,675 units sold. However, the upcoming launch of Volkswagen’s new hybrid-powered T-Roc could potentially reshape the competitive landscape in the near future.
