Electric car sales surge 64% in July as petrol and diesel demand falls

New CSO figures show electric and hybrid vehicles powering Ireland’s car market, as petrol and diesel sales continue to decline

So far this year, there have been 17,075 new electric cars registered.

There was a 64% increase in the number of new fully electric cars registered during the month of July, with other more efficient vehicles, such as plug-in hybrid electric vehicles, also making strong gains, new data from the Central Statistics Office (CSO) shows.

In total, the number of new private cars licensed in July stood at 19,923 compared to the 18,512 registered in July 2024. Of these, electric cars accounted for 3,973, up from 2,421.

July is traditionally a strong month for new car registrations as it marks the beginning of the 252 licence plate. Between January and July, there have been 97,884 new cars registered, up 4% year-on-year.

The share of electric cars among new private cars from January to July 2025 was 17% compared with 14% in the same period of 2024.

CSO statistician Damien Lenihan said in the first seven months of 2025, “there was a rise of 34% in new private electric cars licensed when compared with the same period in 2024”.

“There were 26,454 new petrol cars licensed compared with 30,911 in the same period of 2024, a fall of 14%. The number of new diesel cars licensed decreased by 23%.” 

So far this year, there have been 17,075 new electric cars registered.

The most popular electric car in July was the Volkswagen ID.4, with 343 registered for the first time, followed by the Hyundai Inster at 325, and Kia EV 3 at 272.

Tesla sales, which have been falling significantly across the rest of Europe, continue to hold steady in Ireland.

During July, 101 new Tesla Model 3s were registered for the first time, up from 66 the same month last year, while 174 new Tesla Model Ys were registered, down from 190 last year.

In addition to strong fully electric car sales, the number of new plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) licensed in July grew by 56% to 3,080. This has increased the year-to-date share of PHEVs among new private cars from 9% to 15% in the same period of 2024.

There were also 4,598 hybrid cars registered during the month, up from 4,196 last year.

The combined share of petrol and diesel cars among new private cars licensed from January to July 2025 has fallen in comparison with 2024 (44% vs 56%).

Toyota was the most popular car brand during July, with 2,851 new cars registered, followed by Volkswagen at 2,358. Toyota is also the most popular car brand of the year, with 13,861 new cars registered during the first seven months of the year, again followed by Volkswagen at 11,130.

The number of used imported cars registered in Ireland increased by 17% during the month to 6,640.