State of EVs 2026: An EV bought every 100 seconds as car choice, charging and innovation accelerate
Now in its 10th year, the annual health check of Australia’s EV transition shows 157,957 EVs were sold in the first six months of 2026. That’s equivalent to one EV being bought every 100 seconds.
Government policy through the National Vehicle Efficiency Standard has driven stronger competition which, alongside an expanding charging network and the Electric Car Discount, has fuelled this growth.
Key findings
● Record EV sales: 103,716 BEVs and 54,241 PHEVs were sold in the first half of 2026, a 117% increase on the same period last year
● Increasing EV share: EVs accounted for 25.8% of all new car sales in H1 2026 or 1 in every 4 new vehicles sold, up from 12.1% in H1 2025
● Growing EV fleet: Australia hit 500,000 EVs in March 2026 and expanded to 612,000 EVs in the national vehicle fleet as of June 2026
● More choice: Model availability expanded to 196 total EV models (125 BEVs and 71 PHEVs) in 2026, up from 153 models in 2025
● Expanding charging infrastructure: Australia’s public charging footprint expanded to 4,268 public charging locations (+235% from June 2025) and 11,602 public connectors (+175% from June 2025).
Julie Delvecchio, Electric Vehicle Council CEO said the figures showed how EVs have moved decisively into the Australian mainstream in the past 12 months.
“The pace of EV sales growth reflects a powerful combination of greater vehicle availability, improved affordability and a growing awareness that EVs provide one of the best ways to cut the cost of living right now,” Delvecchio said.
“Most EV drivers cut their annual fuel bills by more than 60 per cent according to the EV Ownership Survey from March this year. Against the backdrop of extreme fuel volatility this year, more and more Australians are voting with their wallets by switching to an EV.”
Need to continue NVES post-2029
The key to this growth is the National Vehicle Efficiency Standard (NVES) which has driven choice in EVs and affordability across all vehicle segments allowing Australians to dodge the fuel crisis by switching to electric cars. The Government needs to begin a legislative review of NVES by the end of this year.
Delvecchio said the review will show the benefits of NVES in cutting the cost of living and that the Government must extend NVES beyond 2029 to continue giving Australians the option of cheaper cars and taking back control over their fuel bills.
“The last six months has shown us the crucial importance of a vehicle efficiency standard that has given Australians the option of getting into cheaper to run cars. Now we must extend it beyond 2029 so that Australians don’t have to pay hundreds of dollars a week for petrol and diesel.”
Significant challenges remain for electric trucks
Despite the strong progress, the report finds Australia’s EV transition is happening at a crawl for electric trucks. Electric truck and van sales continue to represent less than 1% of their respective markets.
At a time when our economy’s reliance on expensive, imported diesel has been exposed, there is no financial support from any government to help small freight operators move off diesel and onto electric trucks. In comparison, the UK offers up to $250,000 per electric truck and countries such as New Zealand, India and France offer more support to electrify.
Federal, ACT and NSW Governments leading while other jurisdictions fall behind
State of EVs annually ranks all jurisdictions on how well their policy settings and implementation is supporting the EV transition. For 2026, the Federal, ACT and NSW governments received an overall score of 7/10. These jurisdictions have married their ambition with strong policy and programs across passenger and freight vehicles, busses and charging infrastructure.
Disappointingly, the other states and territories have continued their poor performance in recent years with scarce ambition, policies or new funding. Western Australia, Queensland, Tasmania, South Australia and the Northern Territory all failed on this year’s scorecard with Victoria getting a bare pass mark.
Policy Asks for the year ahead
As we look to build further momentum in the year ahead, the EVC’s Policy Asks include:
● The Federal Government to implement an updated post-2029 New Vehicle Efficiency Standard that aligns with the Government’s 2035 emissions reduction target
● Targeted equity-based policies to help economically disadvantaged Australians access the cost savings from EV adoption
● Financial incentives and regulatory reforms to accelerate electric truck and van uptake.
● A nationally coordinated charging roadmap and scaled infrastructure deployment.
● Consistent national settings for vehicle-to-grid technology and right-to-charge rules.
● A federal road-user charge that does not deter EV adoption with revenue reinvested into the EV ecosystem