Automakers' NEV market share in China in 2023: BYD 35%, Tesla 7.8%, Nio 2.1%

BYD dominated China's new energy vehicle (NEV) market in 2023, while Tesla was No. 2, according to the latest rankings from the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA).

BYD's retail sales of NEVs in 2023 were 2,706,075 units, up 50.3% from 1,799,947 in 2022, according to the CPCA.

The NEV giant is No. 1 in China's NEV market with a 35% share in 2023, the only one with a share of more than 10%.

BYD released figures earlier this month showing it sold 341,043 NEVs in Dec and 3,024,417 for the whole of 2023. Those numbers are wholesale sales.

Tesla's retail sales in China were 603,664 units in 2023, up 37.3% from 439,770 units in 2022.

The US electric vehicle (EV) maker is way behind in 2nd place with a 7.8% share of the Chinese NEV market in 2023.

In China, NEVs include battery electric vehicles (BEVs), plug-in hybrids (PHEVs), and fuel cell vehicles. The CPCA only publishes NEV rankings, not BEV rankings.

About half of BYD's models are BEVs and the other half are PHEVs. In the fourth quarter, BYD's passenger BEV sales surpassed Tesla's worldwide sales for the first time.

GAC Alon ranks third in China's NEV market with retail sales of 483,632 and a 6.3% share in 2023. All of the company's models currently on sale are BEVs.

Li Auto had retail sales of 376,030 in 2023, ranking No. 7 with a 4.9% share, and it currently sells models that are extended-range electric vehicles (EREVs), which are essentially PEHVs.

Nio is ranked No. 9 in China's NEV market with a 2.1% share of retail sales of 160,038 units in 2023, and its models are all BEVs.

Leapmotor ranked 10th with 144,155 units sold and a 1.9% share of the market. The company's models include BEVs and EREVs.

In Dec, BYD was No. 1 with 300,215 retail sales and a 31.8% share in the NEV market, according to the CPCA rankings.

Tesla was second in the Dec NEV sales ranking with 75,805 retail sales, an 8 percent share. Li Auto was fifth with 50,353 sales, a 5.3% share.

In the overall passenger car market, which includes internal combustion engine vehicles, BYD had a 12.5% share in 2023, ranking first on the CPCA's list.

FAW-Volkswagen is second with 8.5% share and Geely is third with 6.5%.