Norway registered a record 179,550 new passenger cars in 2025, with battery electric vehicles (BEVs) accounting for 95.9% of total sales, according to official figures from the Norwegian Road Federation.
The total exceeded the previous annual high set in 2021.
Go deeper with GlobalData
Discover B2B Marketing That Performs
Combine business intelligence and editorial excellence to reach engaged professionals across 36 leading media platforms.
December registrations reached 35,188 units, a 157.7% increase year-on-year, although this remained below the monthly record of 39,495 vehicles recorded in December 2022.
Electric vehicles accounted for 97.6% of new registrations during the month.
Over the course of 2025, electric cars also overtook diesel vehicles to become the largest powertrain within Norway’s total passenger car fleet.
Petrol, diesel and hybrid vehicles combined represented just 4.1% of new registrations.
Pure diesel models accounted for 1%, petrol cars for 0.3%, while no hydrogen vehicles were registered during the year.
Electric vehicle penetration remained high across all counties, with several regions exceeding a 97% share of new registrations.
Finnmark (Norway’s northernmost and largest county by area) recorded the lowest proportion at 86%.
Total new car registrations rose sharply from 128,691 in 2024 to 179,550 in 2025, with growth almost entirely driven by electric vehicles.
Petrol-based technologies, including petrol hybrids and plug-in hybrids, continued to decline in both volume and market share.
Diesel vehicles, including plug-in hybrids, accounted for just over 1% of registrations.
Tesla remained the largest brand in Norway, registering 34,285 vehicles and securing a 19.1% market share.
At model level, the Tesla Model Y recorded 27,621 registrations, the highest annual total ever achieved by a single model in the country.
Volkswagen closed the year strongly, ranking second in December.
A total of 24,524 passenger cars of Chinese origin were registered in 2025, representing 13.7% of new car sales, up from 10.4% in 2024.
BYD led the segment, supported by demand for the Sealion 7 model.
Electrification also advanced across other segments.
Electric vans reached a record 45.2% share of 29,650 registrations, electric buses accounted for 56.3%, while trucks lagged behind, with only 17.3% of new registrations being electric.
Norwegian Road Federation director Geir Inge Stokke said: “2025 has been a very special car year. We see the effect of long-term and targeted electric car policy, and how specific tax decisions have immediate effects on the market.”
