New data from the Electric Vehicle Council (EVC) highlights a sharply diverging performance among Australia’s electric vehicle brands in 2025, with Polestar recording strong growth while Tesla experienced a notable year-on-year decline.

According to the EVC’s Vehicle Sales Report for December 2025, Polestar (bottom) delivered 2,373 vehicles nationally across the calendar year, representing a 38.5 per cent increase compared with 2024. The result marks Polestar’s strongest annual performance in Australia to date, underlining growing consumer interest in the Swedish-Chinese brand’s expanding electric line-up.

Tesla, by contrast, saw its total Australian sales fall by 24.8 per cent year-on-year, with 28,856 vehicles delivered in 2025. Despite the annual decline, Tesla remains by far the country’s highest-volume EV brand, and its most popular model continues to perform strongly.

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The Tesla Model Y was the top-selling vehicle in Australia for December 2025, with 1998 deliveries recorded for the month. That figure represents a 7.4 per cent increase compared with December 2024, suggesting end-of-year demand remained solid despite broader sales headwinds. Across the full calendar year, Model Y sales reached 22,239 units, up 4.6 per cent compared with 2024, reinforcing its position as Australia’s most popular electric vehicle.

The December result highlight a contradiction within Tesla’s local portfolio: while total brand sales declined, demand for its core volume model remained resilient. Analysts have pointed to increased competition, reduced incentives in some markets and a growing number of alternative EV options as factors contributing to Tesla’s softer overall performance.

The Electric Vehicle Council cautions that its monthly sales report does not capture the entire Australian new-vehicle market. The data includes sales figures voluntarily provided by participating brands and therefore represents a snapshot rather than a complete industry total. The EVC continues to encourage all automotive brands to submit sales data for inclusion in the report.

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The council says its goal is to make comprehensive new-vehicle sales data publicly available in order to improve market transparency and boost consumer confidence. Participation in the report is free, public and non-exclusive.

With more brands entering the Australian EV market and sales results increasingly diverging between manufacturers, the December 2025 report reveals competition is intensifying – and how consumer preferences on EVs are continuing to evolve.

Data sourced from the Electric Vehicle Council’s Vehicle Sales Report, December 2025.