21 July 2025
Strong performances in the global battery-electric vehicle (BEV) and plug-in hybrid (PHEV) markets shook up the leaderboard in May. But which countries came out on top? Autovista24 special content editor Phil Curry examines the numbers.
Global sales of both BEVs and PHEVs continued to grow during May, according to the latest data from EV Volumes.
BEV deliveries rose 26.3% year on year, with 1,077,790 units. This equated to a rise of 224,170 units compared to May 2024.
Meanwhile, the global PHEV market improved by 42.7% in the month, as 649,387 deliveries were made to customers. This was 194,445 units higher than the same period last year.
Across the first five months of 2025, BEV registrations jumped by 36%, with just under 4.87 million units. The PHEV market improved by 33.5% in the same period, with nearly 2.76 million models registered.
China dominates global market
China continued its domination of the BEV and PHEV markets in May. The country was responsible for 59.5% of all-electric registrations, while its PHEV deliveries made up 72.1% of global sales
The US continued to trail behind, with 8.8% of BEV and 4.7% of PHEV registrations in the month. Germany ranked third, with 4% of BEV totals and 3.9% of PHEV figures. Then came the UK, with 3% of BEV and 2.7% of PHEV deliveries.
This mirroring trend was broken by fifth position. South Korea placed behind the UK in the BEV market, with 1.9% of the global share. Spain took fifth place in the PHEV market, recording a 2.1% share. This comes after a strong rise in registrations in the country.
In the first five months of the year, China led the way in both BEV and PHEV tables. It held 58.1% of all-electric registrations and 70.1% of PHEV deliveries. The US was next, with 9.5% of BEV totals, and 5.2% of PHEVs.
Germany was next in both markets. The country saw its BEV deliveries make up 4.1% of the total, while its PHEVs also accounted for 4.1% of volumes. The UK was fourth, with 3.6% of the all-electric market and 3.1% of PHEV registrations.
Again, fifth-place differed between the two EV sectors. France ended the month behind the UK in the BEV market, with 2.5% of the global total despite declines in the market. Spain’s strong PHEV showing saw it take 1.6% of deliveries in the first five months of the year.
Tesla leads in May
The world’s best-selling BEV in May was the Tesla Model Y. In total, 77,622 units were delivered globally. However, this was a decline of 15.1% year on year. Its 7.2% share of the market was down by 3.5 percentage points (pp).
Following a strong performance in China, the Geely Geome Xingyuan was second in the month, with 38,715 units. It achieved a 3.6% market share in its ninth month on the market.
Rounding out the top three was the BYD Seagull, known in some markets as the Dolphin Surf. It achieved 36,048 registrations in May, with a small drop of 0.5% year on year. However, its market share fell further due to increased competition, down 0.9pp to 3.3% of the BEV total.
Fourth place went to the Tesla Model 3, which secured 30,046 global deliveries. However, this was a drop of 35.9% year on year. Its market share almost halved, dropping from 5.5% in May 2024 to 2.8% in the same month of 2025.
The Xiaomi SU7 saw its year-on-year numbers rocket, with 28,033 registrations giving it fifth place in the table. This was an improvement of 224.2%. Its market share jumped by 1.6pp, ending May at 2.6%.
Chinese brand influence
The BYD Dolphin took sixth place in the May, as 20,314 units were delivered to customers. This represented an increase of 40.7%, and a market share up by 0.2pp, to 1.9%.
Seventh place went to the BYD Yuan Plus, known as the Atto 3 in some markets. It ended the month just 598 units behind its stablemate, with 19,716 registrations. This was a year-on-year decline of 34.3%, with its market share falling by 1.7pp, to 1.8%.
A further 694 units back was the Wuling Mini. This model had a poor month in the Chinese market, although its total of 19,022 units was 15.7% up compared to May 2024. Yet, with increased competition, the Mini’s market share fell by 0.1pp, as it also achieved a 1.8% hold.
In ninth was the Geely Panda Mini with 17.155 deliveries and a 106.3% jump year on year. It held 1.6% of the market, a 0.6pp rise. Finally, 10th position went to the BYD Song L with 16,109 registrations. This was an increase of 323.7% compared to lower figures one year ago. Its 1.5% market share was up 1.1pp against May 2024.
Global lead for Tesla
The top three positions in the BEV table across the first five months of the year remained the same from April.
Tesla dominated all-electric registrations between January and May 2025. Leading the way was the Model Y, with 334,066 deliveries and a 6.9% market share. This is despite the model seeing volume declines in the first five months of the year.
The Tesla Model 3 was second, with 174,615 deliveries, and a 3.6% market share. This was 159,451 units behind its stablemate, meaning attention must turn to the BEVs behind, which are slowly catching the US car.
In third was the BYD Seagull, with 164,256 registrations in the first five months of the year. It was just 10,359 units behind the Model 3, having closed the gap by 6,002 deliveries in May alone.
Thanks to its strong result in May, the Geely Geome Xingyuan jumped one place to fourth. With 164,200 registrations in the five-month period, it was just 56 units behind the BYD city car. It too held 3.4% of the market.
Dropping a position to fifth was the Wuling Mini, with 144,548 deliveries between January and May. It held 3% of the world’s total BEV registrations.
Global BEV stability
After five months of 2925, a stable trend emerged from sixth to ninth position. The Xiaomi SU7 remained in sixth, with 132,569 deliveries and a 2.7% market share.
The BYD Yuan Plus ended the period in seventh with 105,001 registrations, equating to a 2.2% hold of total BEV deliveries. It was followed by the BYD Yuan Up, with 89,713 units. Despite not placing in May’s top 10, it stayed eighth in the annual table claiming a 1.8% market share.
The Wuling Bingo also failed to make the top 10 in May, maintaining ninth place. It achieved 81,626 registrations, closing the gap to the BYD Yuan Up by 1,437 units. Its market share in this period was 1.7%.
Having dropped out of the table in April, the Geely Panda Mini returned in May, securing 10th position thanks to 77,778 deliveries between January and May. This was enough for a 1.6% share of the BEV total in the period.
BYD top of the PHEVs
China again dominated the global PHEV market in May. However, for the first time this year, purely domestic brands did not lock out the top 10.
The BYD Song Plus, known as the Seal U in some markets, led the way. The model recorded 32,578 registrations in the month, equating to a 14.5% year-on-year increase. This gave the crossover a 5% market share. However, with increased competition, this declined by 1.3pp compared to May 2024.
In second was the BYD Song Pro, which lost 27.2% of its deliveries year on year. In total, 19,331 units made their way to customers, a 3% hold of the PHEV total. This was down by 2.8pp, as the model faces increasing internal competition.
For only the second time this year, a non-BYD model made the top three. Thanks to a strong performance in China, the Li Auto L6 took third, with 18,781 units. This was a 44.9% rise compared to May 2024, while its 2.9% market share was up by 0.1pp.
The BYD Qin Plus ended the month in fourth, with 17,147 deliveries. Having led the market 12 months prior, its total fell 51.3% year on year. This led to a dramatic 5.1pp drop in market share, to 2.6% in the month.
In fifth position was the BYD Seal 06, with 16,746 global registrations. The model, which only came to the PHEV market in May 2024, made up 2.6% of total PHEV deliveries.
Record global results
Sixth place went to the Chery Fengyun T6, known as the Tansuo 06 or the Jaecoo J7 in some markets. It amassed 16,268 deliveries, its best-ever monthly total. This equalled a 2.5% market share.
The BYD Song L ended May in seventh. It achieved 16,147 global deliveries, having only started achieving significant volumes in July 2024. The model also ended the month with 2.5% of the PHEV market.
Aito took eighth and ninth positions in the month. The M8 was the brand’s leading model, with 14,471 deliveries. It achieved this in only its second month on the market. It held a 2.2% market share in the period.
Meanwhile, the Aito M9 achieved 14,000 registrations, a 4.9% year-on-year decline. This was also enough for a 2.2% share, dropping 1pp compared to May 2024.
Rounding out the top 10 was the Buick GL8, the product of a joint venture between GM and SAIC. The model gained 12,388 registrations, its best-ever monthly total since entering the market in June 2024. It ended May with a 1.9% share of the global PHEV market.
BYD fights amongst itself
BYD’s domination of the PHEV market continued after five months of 2025. The Chinese carmaker took the top three spots, and placed seven models in the top 10 global PHEV chart.
Leading the way was the BYD Song Plus. Between January and May, it reached 142,471 registrations, giving it a 5.2% share of the global market. The model was 34,178 units ahead of second place, increasing its lead by over 13,000 deliveries in May alone.
Second place went to the BYD Song Pro. The model maintained its place despite having lost volume in four out of five months in 2025. Only February saw strong growth. This meant it recorded 108,293 registrations in the first five months of the year, giving it a 3.9% market share.
In third was the BYD Qin Plus, with 88,832 deliveries to customers. This was enough for a 3.2% hold of global PHEV registrations in the five-month period.
There was a change in position for fourth, with the Li Auto L6 jumping two spots from its April position. This was thanks to its strong May performance, as it ended the period taking 79,883 registrations. This was enough for a 2.9% share of the PHEV total.
Maintaining fifth place was the BYD Seal 06. It was just 379 units behind the L6 in fourth, with a total of 79,507 deliveries. This also meant it took a 2.9% market share.
Drops and new entries
The BYD Qin L dropped two positions to sixth place, with 78,296 registrations between January and May. This was a 2.8% hold of the global PHEV total. The model has been losing volume all year, and its heavy drop in May was enough to see it tumble down the order.
Seventh went to the Galaxy Starship 7, which maintained its position despite not featuring in May’s top 10. It ended the five-month period with 63,451 deliveries, a 2.3% share of the total.
BYD’s Song L also maintained its position in eighth, with 59,445 registrations, and a 2.2% market share. It closed the gap to the Galaxy Starship 7 by over 6,000 units in May and sat 4,006 units behind its competitor.
The Chery Fengyun T6 jumped into the chart in ninth at the end of May, with 56,824 units. This translated to a 2.1% share of the market. Rounding out the top 10 was the BYD Han, which dropped one position. Its 48,806-unit total was enough for 1.8% of the total PHEV volume.
