Annual electric car and SUV sales cross 300,000 units for the first time in India

Proof that the once-nascent electric passenger vehicle industry in India has come into its own is the fact that retail sales have surpassed 300,000 units for the first time in a calendar year.

Between January 1 and November 9, as per Vahan, 304,701 zero-emission cars, SUVs and MPVs have been delivered to customers, making for 66% YoY growth. With 52 days still to go before CY2026 ends, this segment has already exceeded CY2025’s 195,571 units by 109,130 units and 56 percent.

The surge in monthly sales has come from June when e-PV deliveries crossed 30,000 units for the first time and have continued for five months on the trot (see retail sales table below).

While Q1 (January-March) saw sales of 63,370 units, up 66% YoY, then Q2 (April-June) was 39% better than Q1 with 88,040 units, up 40% YoY. Q3 (July-September) has been the best this year with 104,744 units, up 87% YoY and 19% better than Q2.

The highlight of Q3 was September which logged the e-PV segment’s highest monthly sales yet – 38,440 units, up 108% YoY. Q4 (October-December) has begun on a strong note with 37,516 units in October and 10,031 e-PVs sold in the first nine days of festive November.

If Q4 maintains the same strong growth momentum, and there is little reason to doubt that, then India e-PV Inc will close CY2026 with estimated record retail sales of 350,000 to 360,000 units.

Monthly sales, which crossed 30,000 units for five months running from June 2026, hit a new high in September with 38,440 units. India e-PV Inc is likely to wrap up CY2026 with 350,000-360,000 units.

In terms of its contribution to overall EV industry sales of 2.97 million units, the 304,701 e-PVs sold this year to date give the e-PV segment a 10% share in CY2026 YTD versus 8% in CY2025.

Currently, the high-volume e-2W segment has a 62% share with 1.85 million units, followed by e-3Ws (785,965 units and 26% share) and e-CVs (28,865 units, 1% share).

Tata Motors, with 120,895 EVs sold this year, is the first electric carmaker to register sales of over 100,000 units in a calendar year. Tata, M&M and JSW MG Motor command 81% of the e-PV market.

Tata EV and Mahindra command 62% of e-PV sales this year

Tata Motors, which became the first Indian electric car and SUV manufacturer to sell over 100,000 units in a calendar year at the end of September, has sold 120,895 units in the past 10 months and nine days of November.

This is a 58% increase over its CY2025 sales (76,644 units) and gives it a 40% share of the 304,701 EVs sold this year. Tata EV clocked its highest monthly retails of 15,719 units in September and accounted for a 41% share of the record 38,440 e-PVs sold in India that month.

Of its six-model portfolio, the Nexon EV remains its biggest-selling electric model, while the updated Tiago EV and Punch EV are also seeing higher demand.

Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M), with 69,660 e-SUVs sold, has a 23% e-PV market share compared to the 19% share it had in CY2025 with 37,247 units when it was ranked third after JSW MG Motor.

M&M recorded its highest monthly electric SUV sales in October (8,702 units). Mahindra’s EV line-up includes the BE 6, XEV 9e, XEV 9S and XUV 3XO EV. The company has also extended its Battery-as-a-Service (BaaS) programme to the XEV 9S and XEV 9e.

Third-ranked JSW MG Motor has sold 56,988 EVs in this year to date and has a 19% market share. It needs to sell another 252 EVs to go past its CY2025 sales of 57,239 units when it had a 29% e-P V market share but has ceded its No. 2 spot to an aggressive M&M this year.

The Windsor EV continues to be its highest-selling model, while the recently launched Hector Tomahawk EV adds another model to its electric line-up. MG also has introduced a battery-as-a-service (BaaS) scheme for the Cyberster and M9 EVs.

Vietnamese EV OEM Vinfast, which entered the Indian market 15 months ago, has grabbed fourth position with a strong performance. Vinfast, which currently sells three electric passenger vehicles in India – the VF6, VF7 and VF MPV 7 – and the Limo Green fleet taxi – has sold 15,867 EVs this year for a 5% market share. September with 3,305 units is its best month to date.

Maruti Suzuki with 12,390 e-Vitara SUVs and a 4% e-PV market share this year is ranked fifth. The e-Vitara’s highest sales were in June: 2,010 units. Maruti is expected to increase domestic production with the start of operations at its new manufacturing line at the Hansalpur plant in Gujarat.

Kia, which went ahead of Maruti Suzuki in September (1,440 units) and October (1,413 units), is ranked No. 6 with 7,612 units and a 2.49% market share. The last two months are the only ones when Kia has surpassed 1,000-unit sales. The increase follows the launch of the Syros EV in August.

Kia also sells the Carens Clavis EV in India, while the EV6 and EV9 are sold as fully imported models. In CY2025, Kia had sold 3,094 EVs and was ranked seventh.

Chinese EV maker BYD is ranked seventh amongst 19 OEMs with 6,755 units this year, which gives it a 2% market share. June remains its bestselling month so far this year, with 940 units. BYD’s India line-up includes the Atto 3, eMax 7, Seal and Sealion 7. In CY2025, BYD India had sold 6,458 units which gave it No. 5 rank.

Hyundai Motor India with 6,013 units and a 2% market share, is at No. 8 position, down four ranks from its No. 4 in CY2025 (7,376 units). The carmaker currently sells the Creta Electric and Ioniq 5 in India. August (845 units) and September (844 units) have been its best months this year.

Toyota Kirloskar Motor has sold 762 units of the Urban Cruiser Ebella between January 1 and November 9, which gives it 12^th position amongst 19 e-PV OEMs. The Ebella competes with models such as the Mahindra BE 6, MG ZS EV and Hyundai Creta Electric.

Stellantis India, which markets the e-C3 hatchback and is the last of the mainstream manufacturers, has sold 436 units in this year to date.

Luxury EV sales cross 7,000 units in CY2026 YTD

In tandem with the strong increase in demand for mainstream EV models, customer offtake for luxury EVs is also on the upswing this year. As per the latest retail data, 7,323 units have been sold by nine manufacturers.

This is an additional 1,654 units and marks a 29% increase over the 5,669 units sold in CY2025. In terms of penetration level, luxury EVs have a 2.40% share of the 304,701 EVs sold in India this year till November 9.

BMW retains the top position in the luxury EV segment, selling 4,273 units and has a 58% share of this sub-segment. This is a smart increase over the 3,481 units BMW India sold in CY2025. In September, BMW added the i5 Long Wheelbase to its electric line-up. The carmaker has also updated the 7 Series and i7 sedans.

Mercedes-Benz, with 1,416 units is currently ranked second with a 19% share of luxury e-PV retail sales. In CY2025, the German luxury carmaker had sold 1,455 units which gave it a 26% share.

Tesla, which currently sells the Model Y and Model Y L in India, is the only other luxury EV OEM with 1,000-plus units. The 1,153 units sold this year give it a 16% share and catapults it to third rank, ahead of Volvo India. September (300 units) has been its best month to date, with the American EV maker going ahead of Mercedes-Benz now for two months running.

Swedish OEM Volvo with 383 units and a 5% share is ranked fourth amongst the luxury EV OEMs, followed by Porsche (83 units), Rolls-Royce (6 units), JLR (4 units), Lotus (3 units) and Audi (2 units).