Tesla’s Falling US Market Share Remains 10x Greater Than Rivals
Even When It's Down,Tesla US EV Market Share Dwarfs the Competition
Steve Birkett is an electric vehicle advocate based in Greater Boston, Massachusetts. He is a content creator and marketing professional who contributes written and recorded pieces to a wide range of media outlets. His analysis has been featured in Find The Best Car Price, WWLP TV, and Torque News, among others. He has also had video content featured on Inside EVs. Birkett was an EV Guide for Plug in America events in Massachusetts (Drive Electric Cambridge and Drive Electric Lowell) and Ohio (Earth Day 2019 at Cleveland Zoo). He participates in quarterly advisory panel meetings for EVolve New York (a state-level charging initiative) and has contributed to focus groups for prominent U.S. charging networks.
Birkett is a father-of-two who loves nothing more than packing up the family and hitting the road in their latest electric car, which is currently a 2022 Hyundai IONIQ 5. With multiple Chevy Bolts in his past, as well as a Chevy Volt and Tesla Model 3 LR in the extended family, plus various EV rentals when he ventures back home to his native United Kingdom, Birkett has more than 100,000 all-electric miles under his belt and is always ready to try out a new electric vehicle.
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As an increasing number of models are released to compete with the ever-popular Model 3 and Model Y, it was always inevitable that the Tesla US EV market share would decline, as it has in Europe. Nonetheless, as a result of consistent price cuts, renewed incentives, and its reliable Supercharger network, Tesla's share of the market remain ten times larger than its nearest rival.
- Steve Birkett, Senior EV Editor
November 6th, 2023 – Q3 sales data from KBB emphasizes the dominance of Tesla's electric vehicles in the United States, even as the Tesla US EV market share continues to be diluted.
The electric vehicle pioneer sold 156,621 cars in the third quarter of 2023, according to KBB's EV sales report, with the segment-leading Tesla Model Y leading the line despite recent competitor price cuts. That was enough to give Tesla exactly 50% US EV market share for the quarter, which is down almost 13% over the same period in 2022.
Despite this decreasing market share, there is no clear winner among competitors aiming to catch Tesla in the United States. Gains were spread across more than 20 legacy automaker brands and a few new EV-only names, including Lucid and Rivian, all of which remained stuck on single-digit EV market share. Tesla's nearest rival in the third quarter was Ford, with 6.7% of the EV segment.
For 2023 as a whole, Tesla's US EV market share reveals even more dominance than the quarterly numbers. With 57% of the segment's sales this year, Tesla has ten times more of the market than its nearest rival, Chevrolet, at 5.7%. When considered alongside the fact that Chevy's best-selling model by far, the Bolt EV, is being temporarily taken out of production in 2024, Tesla's position in its home market seems to be cemented for at least another 12 months.
Barring any major strides from the likes of General Motors and Ford, both of which have indicated that they will pump the brakes on EV plans in 2024, rather than ramp things up. Volvo and Hyundai are two brands that have shown both growth and ambition in the North American market, but a lack of qualifying for federal incentives and limited supply will continue to be a drag on EV sales in 2024.
With the refreshed Model 3 and the wildcard of Cybertruck production coming into play for the company as 2023 draws to a close, it seems likely that Tesla's US EV market share will continue to cast a shadow over competitors for the foreseeable future.
