Electric Vehicle Sales Review Q1-2026

May 2, 2026

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Top findings

Top findings

Europe’s top five markets delivered a record-breaking quarter, with BEV sales up 36% YoY and BEV market share hitting an all-time Q1 high of 19%
France and Germany led the BEV surge with growth of 50% and 41% respectively, boosted by renewed government purchase incentives
The UK overtook Germany as Europe’s largest PHEV market, growing 47% YoY, while PHEV sales across the top five rose 42% year-on-year
China dragged global figures down, with BEV sales falling 20% and PHEV sales plunging 31% YoY, pulling total global EV sales down 10% to 3.5 million units

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Burger benchmark

The burger benchmark as a starting point for comparing global EV prices

The Big Mac Index offers a simple way to compare purchasing power across countries by looking at the price of the same product after currency conversion. As of April 2026, it suggests that general price levels in Germany are roughly 85% higher than in China, with a Big Mac costing €3.18 in China compared to €5.89 in Germany.

While this is only a rough measure, it provides a useful baseline: if EVs in Germany cost about 85% more than in China, the difference likely reflects broader economic conditions. If the gap is significantly larger or smaller, other factors are at play.

Unlike a burger, a vehicle is a heavily traded and regulated product. Its final price is shaped by far more than local cost levels, including:

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VAT and consumption taxes
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Customs duties and import tariffs
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Trade-defense measures (e.g., anti-subsidy duties)
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OEM pricing strategy and dealer discounts

This means that when German and Chinese EV prices differ by more or less than the 85% Big Mac benchmark, the gap likely reflects sector-specific trade and pricing effects, not just economy-wide cost differences.

Four pricing scenarios

To account for this complexity, our analysis examines four distinct scenarios based on where a vehicle is produced and where it is sold:

Scenario	Description	Key statutory charges
A	Produced and sold in Germany	Net price × 1.19 (19% VAT)
B	Produced and sold in China	Net price × 1.13 (13% VAT, 0% consumption tax)
C	Produced in Germany, sold in China	+15% customs duty, 0% consumption tax, ×1.13 VAT
D	Produced in China, sold in Germany	+10% import duty + trade-defense duty, ×1.19 VAT

Each scenario carries different statutory charges that directly impact the final list price, making direct cross-market comparisons far more nuanced than a simple burger-to-burger comparison.