Europe electric car sales in January 2026: Skoda Elroq takes the lead

Electric vehicle sales growth slows in Europe

Electric vehicle sales across Europe continued to rise in January 2026, although growth was markedly slower than in 2025. ACEA figures show an increase of 13.9% (189,062 units), less than half the 29.7% growth recorded across 2025 as a whole, when more than two million units were sold.

This raises questions over whether the European Union’s 2027 average CO₂ emissions target of 93.6 g/km can be achieved. The target is calculated from the average emissions recorded in 2025, 2026 and 2027. Selling considerably more electric vehicles would be the quickest way to ensure compliance and avoid substantial fines. Industry representatives say electric vehicles should account for at least 22% of the market, yet their EU share stood at 19.3% in January.

Croatia (+100%) and Poland (+216.1%) were among the markets posting the strongest growth. All of Europe’s main markets - Germany, France, Italy, the United Kingdom and Spain - also reported increases, with France leading the way (+52.1%). The United Kingdom, however, recorded only a marginal 0.1% rise.

Skoda Elroq was the best-selling electric car

There was a new leader among the best-selling electric cars: the Skoda Elroq. It overtook last year’s leader, the Tesla Model Y, which was also surpassed by the Renault 5 E-Tech (+70.4%). This was despite the Model Y registering a 13.8% sales increase compared with January 2025.

These were the 10 best-selling electric cars in Europe in January 2026:

Changes among Europe’s top 10 electric cars

Another notable Top 10 development was the recently launched Mercedes-Benz CLA entering ninth place. Its sharp rise is explained by its launch at the beginning of last year. It joins the three podium models and the BMW iX1 (+9.9%) as the only cars among the 10 best sellers to increase their sales. Every other model, apart from the Volkswagen ID.3, which recorded no change, suffered a decline compared with 2025.

The Kia EV3, in 10th place, experienced the steepest fall, down 39.1%. Despite its recent update, the Skoda Enyaq (7th place) saw sales drop by 19.7%, continuing a trend seen over recent months. The Elroq’s success may be cannibalising sales of the larger Enyaq.

Volkswagen’s models - the ID.3, ID.4 and ID.7 -, which had frequently appeared on the podium of best-selling electric cars in previous years, slipped to fourth, fifth and sixth place respectively. Only the ID.3 held its sales level, showing no change. The ID.4 and ID.7, meanwhile, posted significant declines of 32.1% and 19.7% respectively, partly reflecting intense competition in the electric vehicle segment.

Which brands sold the most electric cars?

Despite a decline of 16%, Volkswagen remained the best-selling electric car brand in January, with 17,230 units registered. Renault ranked second with 14,447 units (+64%), supported by the success of the 5 as well as solid sales of the 4 and Scenic.

Skoda took third place with 14,022 units, representing substantial growth of 91% compared with January 2025. Tesla, meanwhile, fell to 10th place, selling 7,794 units, a drop of 17%.

Among the month’s surprises was BYD, which reached eighth place in the European ranking with 8,711 units sold, an impressive increase of 94% - the largest in the Top 10.