Introduction
In a historic milestone for the automotive sector, sales of electric vehicles (EVs) in the UK have surpassed those of petrol cars for the first time over a 12-month period, according to analysis by Carbon Brief.
The Context
This news comes amid a battle over the future of the UK’s zero-emissions vehicle (ZEV) mandate, which the car industry and some unions are pushing to water down.
The mandate sets a rising target for the share of new car sales that must be zero-emissions vehicles each year – primarily pure or battery EVs that only run on electricity.
Data Analysis
Carbon Brief’s analysis of the latest data on new UK car sales shows that demand for EVs has consistently grown and has now overtaken demand for petrol cars for the first time.
In the 12 months to May 2026, UK consumers bought 516,490 new EVs, against only 504,010 new petrol cars.
Implications and Trends
The ACEA data also shows that hybrids are the most popular type of car in the UK, but their sales are relatively stagnant.
Furthermore, EV sales grew 34% to reach 43,931, while petrol cars were down 14% to 35,068.
Plug-in hybrids, which can be run on electricity from the grid or from a petrol engine, are also seeing relatively rapid sales growth, up 24% year-on-year in May 2026 to 22,167.
Conclusion
This analysis for the UK follows a similar milestone for the EU, with more EVs having been sold in the month of December 2025 than petrol cars.
Global EV sales grew 20% in 2025 and accounted for one in every four new cars sold, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA).
The agency said that global EV sales were set to grow by another 15% in 2026.