According to new data published by the Paris-based International Energy Agency (IEA), electric cars made up 25% of all new cars sold globally in 2025, with 20 million cars sold worldwide being electric vehicles. The IEA includes both battery-run and plug-in hybrid vehicles in its definition of electric vehicles. This global adoption rate significantly outpaces India's performance in the electric vehicle market.
Against this global benchmark, India's share was a mere 4% of all new cars sold in the country, according to IEA data. This limited market penetration was concentrated among just two large carmakers, with Tata Motors and Mahindra & Mahindra accounting for 60% of the 165,000 electric cars sold last year. The IEA data showed that electric car sales crossed the 10% mark in 23 countries apart from the European Union, highlighting India's lagging position in the global transition to electric mobility.
Several countries demonstrated significant progress in electric vehicle adoption compared to India. Vietnam achieved 41% electric car sales in 2025, up from zero in 2020, while Thailand recorded 23% and Indonesia reached 15% from zero in 2020. In Latin America, Brazil achieved 9% and Mexico recorded 7% electric vehicle sales. Notably, India's neighbour Nepal emerged as a success story with electric car sales hitting 68% in 2025 from 10% previously. Turkey surprised with its share jumping to 20% from just 1% in 2022.
The IEA study identified lack of charging stations as a key reason for India's sputtering EV performance. According to the IEA data, India ranked second from the bottom among 17 countries in the share of electric car owners who have home-charging facilities, with India's share at 55% compared to 80-90% in Norway, Switzerland and the US. As of 2025, India had 88,000 charging points, representing a minuscule share of the global stock of 7 million charging points. China controlled 65% of the world's public charging points, highlighting the infrastructure gap that continues to hinder EV adoption in India.
Norway remained at the top globally with 97% of its total new car sales being electric in 2025, while China achieved 53% and the US just managed to cross 10%, compared with 2% in 2020. The IEA data shows that electric car sales crossed the 10% mark in 23 countries, including the European Union, demonstrating the widespread global adoption of electric vehicles despite India's limited market penetration.
