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BEVs represented 37% of the total Chinese car market in November.
We saw plugins score another million-plus sales in November (1.3 million plugins in a 2.2-million-unit overall market, down 8% YoY), but growth has been slowing down, with November showing only a 4% increase over November 2025.
Digging deeper into the numbers, while BEVs continued to grow, going up by 9% to 827,000 units, or 37% of overall sales, PHEVs were down for the 5th time in a row, this time by 4% YoY to some 494,000 units.
Counting both powertrains together, we get over 1.3 million sales, which is a new record level.
With BEVs continuing to grow and PHEVs accumulating months in the red, have we reached a turning point in PHEV adoption?
This month’s result pulled the share to 59%, a 7 percentage point increase over the 52% share of November 2024, while the BEV share of the market rose to 37%. Expect to see plugins continue to grow their share in the final month of the year. For now, plugins have 54% of the total auto market this year (33% just for BEVs), which means that most new cars sold in China this year have a plug!
(Could China reach 55% plugin vehicle share by year end? And be fully electrified before 2035?)
In the overall ranking, in November, fully fossil-fueled models placed three representatives in the top 10. The best placed was the Nissan Sylphy in 4th, with the remaining ICE models being the #7 Geely Boyue (with the crossover profiting from a recent refresh) and the #8 Volkswagen Sagitar sedan.
Notice the fact that one of the ICE models in the top 10 belongs to Geely, more evidence that even the ICE market is slipping away from foreign OEMs.
Still, the highlights belonged to the BEV field, starting with the #1 spot of the tiny Wuling Mini EV and ending with the #5 spot of the new Xiaomi YU7.
And let’s not forget Tesla’s good score, placing both the Model Y, in 2nd, and the Model 3, in 9th, in the top 10.
Looking at the best sellers in several size categories, ICE models only managed to place two representatives in the C segment (compact cars).
Looking at individual models, the biggest surprise was the podium position of the tiny Bestune Xiaoma in the city car category, whereas November’s podium was entirely made of Chinese kei car–like models.
On the other size extreme, full size vehicles, there were no sedans, but there was variety nevertheless, with three different takes on the SUV body. 1) Xiaomi’s YU7 is a sports crossover that wouldn’t be out of place in the lineup of sports car brands like Aston Martin, McLaren or Ferrari. 2) BYD’s premium offspring Fang Cheng Bao Tai 7 SUV is a tough looking SUV that has more than a passing resemblance to a Land Rover Defender (just me?) for those drivers who wished they could adventure themselves into the Gobi desert but instead just climb sidewalks with their 2.5 tons vehicles. 3) Finally, the new AITO M7 is basically a minivan in an SUV’s body. At 5.1 meters, which is just a tad smaller than its siblings, the M8 and M9 (both measuring around 5.2 meters), the new generation M7 forgoes the more traditional SUV looks of the first generation for a softer, more rounded look in its second generation, following in the footsteps of its successful bigger siblings.
Here’s more info and commentary on November’s top selling electric models:
#1 — Wuling HongGuang Mini EV
This tiny EV is taking full profit from its generation change, which happened late last year. It is now back among the top sellers, and in November it collected 56,756 registrations, a significant 63% increase year on year, allowing it to snap up the leadership position in that month at ease. Thanks to a more rounded design, which kind of reminds me of the face of a Panda, and upgraded specs and interiors, SAIC’s smallest hatchback has lost its barebones feel. It now looks more car-like. Wuling even offers a five-door version! Despite all of this, the price hasn’t increased that much, with SAIC’s star model starting at $5,500.
#2 — Tesla Model Y
Tesla’s midsize crossover scored a positive 47,132 registrations, allowing it to win another podium presence. The addition of the three-row YL to the lineup and updates to the existing versions has allowed the midsizer to regain some protagonism on the table. But one wonders for how long…. Sure, December should be another good month, and the first quarter of next year will probably still benefit from the wind in its sails, but will the good results continue around Q2?
#3 — Geely Geome Xingyuan
Geely has struck gold with this one. After a number of failed attempts to launch models that would stay on the best sellers table (Galaxy L6, Galaxy E5, etc.), the Hangzhou make finally found the winning formula to not only beat BYD, but also win the leadership race in the fierce Chinese automotive market. With BYD owning most of the market segments, thanks to multiple popular models, the little Xingyuan profited from the fact that BYD was underrepresented in the lower segments, which had left a space between the A to B segment Seagull and the B to C segment Dolphin. With pricing and specs closer to the Seagull, but interior space and quality closer to the Dolphin, the small Geely carved out a space of its own. This November, the small hatchback was third, delivering 42,038 registrations. With volume exports now getting relevant, Geely hopes to maintain enough domestic demand for its small hatchback to not only win this year’s model title but also start next year as the strongest candidate for the 2026 title.
#4 — BYD Qin Plus (BEV+PHEV)
The old dog once again joined the top 5 in November, thanks to 35,368 registrations, a rather good performance. Its sales were down — although, by just 4% YoY, which allowed it to once again be the best selling BYD on the table. In the same period, its brother in arms, the Song, was down to less than half of last year’s sales! Troubles ahead for the Shenzhen make? Back to the Qin’s performance, this volume meant that it was the best selling sedan in China, all powertrains counted. The 7-year-old body might be showing some wrinkles, but the low prices still provide significant demand for the sedan.
#5 — Xiaomi YU7
This year’s most anticipated model, Xiaomi’s YU7, continues to ramp up, to 33,729 deliveries in November. The YU7 got hundreds of thousands of locked-in orders within hours. Those orders have to come from somewhere, and with the market already above 50% share, it won’t be just from ICE models…. Yep, all top EV players that have midsize to full size SUVs are feeling the gravitational force of the YU7, a model that should collect plenty of podium presences (and wins?) in the coming months.
Looking at the rest of the best seller table, despite not having the same peak form as it had a few months ago, the Shenzhen OEM still had ten representatives on the November table, with the highlight going entirely to the new Fang Cheng Bao Tai 7, which was 9th in only its third month on the market thanks to 20,019 registrations. Will the Land Rover–inspired SUV become a success story? With the BYD Song’s star player role now up for grabs, BYD could use an SUV that can sell by the boatloads, especially one like the FCB Tai 7 that has some really nice profit margins….
Elsewhere, we have a few fresh faces. The new Wuling Bingo S joined the table at #15, in only its third month on the market. Wuling’s answer to the BYD Dolphin/Geely Xingyuan is promising to be a regular fixture in the top half of the table. The Leapmotor C10 SUV profited from a recent refresh to win another top 20 presence, at #20.
Besides the Xingyuan, Geely placed a second representative on the best sellers table. The tiny Panda Mini joined the table at #18 with 17,301 registrations.
Last, but not the least, we have the AITO M7 — thanks to an all-new generation, it has seen its sales surge to 25,264 units. In fact, Huawei’s automotive crown jewel, AITO, even managed to place a second model on the table, with the slightly larger AITO M8 joining the table at #19.
Outside the top 20, we have a number of models ramping up. Great Wall’s WEY Gaoshan was the most surprising of them, with the distinctively designed minivan scoring a record 10,416 registrations. Is this the new star player in the MPV category?
Geely’s spaceship had plenty of models shining, like the Galaxy EX5 crossover (14,223 units, a new year best), Galaxy M9 SUV (10,639, a new record), and Starship 7 (12,001 units, best since January), something that is helping the brand’s surging sales, as we will soon see.
NIO saw its ES8 full size SUV sales surge, selling more in November (10,689 units) than it did in the whole of 2024! Sure, a new generation helps, but part of it is also the fact that it is likely benefitting from the current market’s shift into BEVs.
SAIC’s MG is experiencing unexpected success with its new generation-4 hatchback, with the compact model reaching a record 13,574 registrations in November. Meanwhile, Leapmotor pulled out another card from its already packed best sellers lineup, as the new Lafa 5 (B05 in export markets) hatchback scored an impressive 7,379 registrations in its first full sales month on the market.
Looking at the 2025 ranking, the Tesla Model Y returned to the 3rd spot, changing places with the BYD Song. With the BYD SUV in phaseout mode — in November the veteran SUV sold just a third of what it did 12 months ago — the US crossover managed to secure another podium presence in China, its fifth in a row.
It’s also interesting to see in the current standing that we have four models from four different brands in the top positions! Hurrah for diversity!
Further down, there were a few position changes. Profiting from the unexpectedly slow month of the Xiaomi SU7 (down 46% YoY in November!), the BYD Qin L climbed to 7th, while the Tesla Model 3 profited from a good month to jump two positions into 10th.
Further below, there was good news for the Geely Panda Mini, with the tiny hatchback going up two spots, to #13. Meanwhile, the AITO M8, despite having an average month (19th, with 16,284 registrations), benefitted from a cascade of horrible performances among its direct competitors (the BYD Yuan Plus was down 75% YoY, while the Wuling Bingo was down 73%). It therefore jumped two positions, into 18th, in November.
And neither the BYD Yuan Plus nor the Wuling Bingo can be safe from being surpassed in the last stage of the race, as the #21 Leapmotor C10 is just 3,000 units behind….
Looking at the overall manufacturer ranking (not just electrics), it seems BYD’s sales crash has no end, with the Shenzhen make dropping by a significant 35% YoY to some 259,000 units, marking the fifth month in a row of sales drops.
With several models losing sales bigly (Song, Song L, Yuan Plus), the BYD Seal 06 and Sealion 06 are doing their best to keep the ship steady.
On the other hand, #2 Geely is in the opposite dynamic. Having seen its sales jump 34% in November, it is now closer to the leader, BYD, than 3rd placed Volkswagen. Thanks to positive performances across the lineup, 2026 could be the year that Geely goes head to head with BYD.
All of the sudden, BYD doesn’t look so untouchable anymore….
This is while most foreign representatives are either stagnating or seeing sales drop. (Most, but not all. Nissan was 8th thanks to enviable 13% growth YoY.)
Even among Chinese makes, things do not look rosy, with the exception of fast-growing Leapmotor rising to #9 thanks to some 61,000 registrations. That’s a 57% jump YoY. The startup is currently at the top of its game, and now that it has become profitable, the Valley of Death is behind the 9-year-old startup. A top 5 position seems not only possible, but likely.
Auto Brands Selling the Most Electric Vehicles in China
Looking at the auto brand ranking for plugin vehicles, there isn’t much news. BYD (24.6% in November, down from 25.3% in October) continued its descent, but it has its leadership position secured this year. #2 Geely (10%) is just too far behind to bother it in any way.
#3 Wuling (5.7%, up 0.2% in November) gained an extra dose of advantage over Tesla (4.6% in November, up 0.1% compared to October), so the Liuzhou-based make has probably already secured the bronze medal, which would mean that the Texas-based carmaker would be left off of the Chinese podium for the first time since 2019.
Elsewhere, Leapmotor (4.2%) has not only secured its 5th position on the table, but can allow itself to dream of surpassing Tesla in 2026.
Auto Groups Selling the Most Electric Vehicles in China
Looking at OEMs/automotive groups/alliances, BYD is comfortably leading, with 27.4% share of the market, but has seen its market share slip by 0.6% in November.
#2 Geely is a distant runner-up, with 12.5% share, up 0.1% compared to October, but with #3 Changan having just 6.3% share, Geely is safe in the runner-up position.
As for #4 SAIC (6.1%, up from 6%), it might just have a chance to beat Changan in the last month of the year and take the bronze medal away with it.
Tesla (4.6%, up 0.1% in November) remained in 5th, but Tesla’s 2024 #3 spot in the OEM ranking is now impossible to achieve.
Fortunately for the US brand, #6 Leapmotor (4.2%) seems too far behind to become a real threat to its #5 position.
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