China EV sales down 10.4% through May — but the decline is narrowing, and the challenger brands are on fire
China booked 4.16 million EV sales in January–May 2026, still over half the world market. The 10.4% YTD decline masks a clear recovery curve: May was down just 2.8%, and newcomers like Xiaomi and Li Auto posted breakout volumes.
EV sales in China totalled 4,162,853 units in the first five months of 2026, down 10.4% from a record-setting prior year, according to the evcount Research database. The monthly profile, however, tells a story of stabilisation: May sales of 1,076,306 units were only 2.8% below May 2025, the smallest year-on-year gap of 2026.
BYD leads a crowded field
BYD remained the clear domestic leader with 624,972 units year to date, followed by Geely (337,610), Changan (286,995), SAIC-GM-Wuling (222,097) and Leapmotor (187,819). Tesla ranked sixth at 186,033. In total, 287 OEMs recorded EV sales in China this year — the most competitive EV market in the world by a wide margin.
The challenger wave
The most striking feature of 2026 is the scale reached by the newer entrants:
- Li Auto i6 — 98,990 units YTD, the #3 model in the country
- Xiaomi YU7 — 90,234 units, with the SU7 adding another 60,082
- NIO ES8 — 69,652 units
- Fangchengbao Titanium 7 — 73,444 units
At the top of the model table, Geely's Star Wish (160,800) overtook the Tesla Model Y (133,857) as China's best-selling EV year to date.
Mix: plug-in hybrids hold one-third
BEVs took 68.4% of China's EV sales through May, with PHEVs — including extended-range formats — at 31.6%, the highest plug-in hybrid share of any major region. Hybrid (HEV) sales, tracked separately, added a further 294,656 units.
After a record 2025, China's EV market is digesting rather than retreating — volumes are consolidating at a level no other region approaches, while the brand ranking beneath BYD is being redrawn quarter by quarter.
Data through May 2026 · evcount Research database. EV = BEV + PHEV.