Ukrainians set a record for electric vehicle purchases in 2025: which models were bought most often

Electric cars in Ukraine are no longer the future — in 2025, they became the new norm. The market showed record growth, and drivers' preferences changed dramatically: Chinese brands and new models, which until recently were a rarity on the roads, came to the fore. Find out which electric cars Ukrainians chose most often and who became the main winner of the electric year

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2025 was truly a turning point for the Ukrainian electric vehicle market. Over the course of 12 months, 22,809 new electric passenger cars were registered in the country, which is 122.9% more than a year earlier. Such growth rates made 2025 an absolute record-breaker in the history of observations.

Experts from the Automotive Market Research Institute note that electric vehicles have finally transformed from a niche product into a mass choice for Ukrainian drivers.

An explosive end to the year

Activity was particularly high at the end of the year. In December 2025, 5,846 new electric cars were registered. This is:

- 84.9% more than in November;

- 852.1% more than in December 2024.

Against the backdrop of this surge, the share of electric cars in the new passenger car market structure grew to 29%. For comparison, at the beginning of 2025, it was about 15%. In fact, every third new car in Ukraine is electric.

Incidentally, this may be due to the fact that on 1 January, Ukraine ended a seven-year period of tax breaks for electric vehicle owners. For the first time since 2017, VAT and customs duties will again have to be paid on the import of electric cars.

Chinese dominance and a change in leadership

A key feature of 2025 was the almost complete dominance of Chinese-made electric vehicles. 94% of all new electric cars purchased in Ukraine were manufactured in China.

BYD became the absolute market leader. Volkswagen took second place, but most of its electric vehicles for the Ukrainian market are also manufactured in Chinese factories. Zeekr confidently took third place, transforming itself from a niche brand to one of the key players in just one year.

Stable interest in Honda electric vehicles also remained. Audi, BMW and Mercedes-Benz also made it into the top ten most popular brands, increasingly competing with new Chinese brands Denza and Xiaomi. MG closes out the top 10.

Interestingly, Tesla only registered a few dozen new electric vehicles. The reason for this lies in logistics and customs nuances. Cars from the US are more often imported after auctions as used vehicles, and European Teslas are often registered as used due to VAT payment peculiarities. Formally, such cars are not included in the statistics for new cars, although in fact they could add about 2,000 registrations per year to the brand.

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The most popular models of 2025

The Volkswagen ID. Unyx took first place in the model ranking, managing to surpass the long-time favourite Volkswagen ID.4 and the BYD Song Plus crossover.

The new Zeekr models, especially the Zeekr 7X, as well as the new BYD Leopard and BYD Sea Lion lines, also showed significant growth. The Honda e:NS1 and Zeekr 001 remained in the top ten.

The Audi Q4 e-tron and BYD Yuan UP also made it into the top 10 for the year, once again confirming the shift in buyer interest towards compact and mid-size electric crossovers.

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Reminder! More and more Ukrainians are switching to electric transport, considering the purchase of electric cars abroad as a way to save money and get modern technology. Find out which models are chosen most often and from which countries Ukrainians prefer to order such cars.

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