In December 2025, Norway's plug-in electric vehicle market share reached 98.5%, showing a significant increase from 89.8% in the same period of 2024, with battery electric vehicles (BEVs) accounting for 97.6% of that share. Full-year data shows Norway's electric vehicle market share was 97.5% in 2025, up from 91.3% in 2024, with all growth coming from BEVs. Total car sales in December 2025 reached 35,188 units, a new historical high and an increase of approximately 2.6 times year-over-year, mainly due to consumers purchasing cars ahead of a VAT increase. Full-year car sales for 2025 were 179,547 units, a 53% increase from 2024. The Tesla Model Y became the best-selling passenger car in both December and for the full year of 2025.
In December 2025's car sales, plug-in electric vehicles collectively held a 98.5% market share, with BEVs accounting for 97.6% and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) for 0.9%. Compared to the same period last year, these shares were 89.8% combined, 85.5% BEV, and 4.3% PHEV. The December 2024 data itself was an anomalous month, with sales pulled forward due to impending tax increases on non-BEVs.
For the full year 2025, the plug-in electric vehicle market share was 97.5%, higher than the 91.3% in 2024. The BEV share continued to grow, increasing from 88.4% in 2024 to 95.9% in 2025, gradually replacing other powertrains. The high sales volume in December 2025 was due to another pull-forward of car sales, this time more evenly distributed across all powertrains, as the VAT on all cars increased from January 2026. Consequently, January saw a notable sales drop, but the market is expected to restabilize within two to three months.
The Tesla Model Y was the best-selling BEV in December, with 5,064 units sold, setting a new annual record. The runners-up were the Volkswagen ID.4 and the Toyota bZ4X. In the fourth quarter of 2025, the Tesla Model Y similarly dominated, selling almost three times as many units as the second-place Volkswagen ID.4, with the Tesla Model 3 taking third place. Turning to the full-year ranking, the Tesla Model Y again led overwhelmingly, with its sales exceeding the combined total of the next four models.
In fact, the Model Y's sales saw a substantial increase from its 2024 total (16,832 units) and expanded its lead in the Norwegian market. This differs from the broader trend in Europe, where the Tesla Model Y, while still the best-selling BEV in 2025, saw its 2025 sales decline compared to 2024.
The latest BEV fleet share at the end of Q4 2025 was 32.1%, up from 30.6% at the end of Q3. This is a larger-than-usual quarterly increase, typically around 1%, because December was an exceptionally high-sales month. It is estimated that the diesel fleet share should now have dropped to about 31.5%, and the gasoline fleet share to 24.1%. Hybrid and plug-in hybrid vehicles combined hover around 12.5%, both having now peaked and are slowly declining.
In terms of new car sales, Norway has effectively reached the finish line of its EV transition. While there are still some market segments and price points to improve, it can be expected that BEVs will consistently average over 98% of sales from now on. Norway remains the most dynamic market in Europe for new BEV models, often seeing them before other European countries. Therefore, it is worth watching Norway's developments, as the transformation of its fleet share remains a valuable benchmark for others, even though all other countries still lag far behind.
