New passenger electric vehicle market share in Europe by country 2023

Norway has the highest penetration of plug-in electric vehicles (PEVs) in Europe. Norway is one of the smallest car markets in the European free trade market: Norway's passenger car sales were around 127,000 units between January and December 2023. Some 114,100 plug-in electric cars were registered in 2023. One of the most popular car brands in the Scandinavian country is the American all-electric marque Tesla.

Norway’s electric mobility policy

Norway’s jump in electric mobility is due to the country’s high car import tolls being lifted for electric vehicles, with registration taxes also waived. Such incentives make an electric vehicle comparatively cheaper to the purchase of a combustion engine powered car. As of 2023, there were nearly 879,700 electric passenger cars on Norwegian roads. 

Leading EV models

2023 was a record year for electric vehicle sales in Europe. Topping the list of most-sold model of electric vehicles was the Tesla Model Y. European manufacturers have been sluggish to penetrate the EV market but are quickly emerging as key players. Germany-based Volkswagen, which recorded two of its models topping the EV sales in Europe, almost doubled its worldwide electric vehicle sales between 2020 and 2021. Foreign manufacturers, such as Tesla and Nissan still perform very well.