Turkey became Europe’s fourth-largest market for electric cars last year, the International Energy Agency (IEA) reported. Electric car sales more than doubled to nearly 240,000, passing 20% of new cars. Growth has cooled this year, though.
At a glance
- Market share: Electric cars rose from about 1% of new car sales in 2022 C.E. to more than 20% in 2025 C.E., said the IEA. Our World in Data put the 2025 C.E. share at about 22%.
- Tax cut: Battery electric cars paid a 10% registration tax, versus 45% to 80% for conventional cars, the IEA said. The rate rose to 25% for some models in July 2025 C.E.
- Togg: Togg, Turkey’s first homegrown electric car brand, sold 39,020 battery electric cars in 2025 C.E., the most of any brand, Daily Sabah reported.
How Turkey’s electric car sales took off
The key change came in 2023 C.E., when the government cut the registration tax on battery electric cars. Sales surged from that year onward, the IEA said.
Togg launched around the same time. Its models were about 20% cheaper than conventional cars in 2025 C.E., the IEA said. Togg sales rose 30% that year, though its share of electric sales fell from 30% to just over 15% as rivals entered.
Cheaper imports helped too. Chinese battery electric models were priced about 15% below conventional cars, the IEA said, and made up roughly 10% of battery electric sales. The average price premium for a battery electric car fell from over 30% in 2024 C.E. to around 10% in 2025 C.E.
How sales are holding up this year
Fully electric sales in the first half of 2026 C.E. were 81,331, down 5.3% from a year earlier, according to a law firm report by Erdem & Erdem. The electric share still rose to 18.5% of passenger cars, because the whole car market shrank more.
Early-year data looked stronger. Between January and April, electric car sales rose 28% to 54,463, AGBI reported, citing industry data. The comparison is tricky, because the IEA said sales topped 30,000 in June 2025 C.E. before dipping after a tax rise on some battery electric cars.
The charging network has grown too. Turkey had 45,660 charging points as of July 19, Erdem & Erdem reported. Charging sessions in the first half of 2026 C.E. nearly doubled from a year earlier.
What remains unresolved
The “one in five” figure includes plug-in hybrids. The IEA counts both battery electric cars and plug-in hybrids as electric. Industry data cited by Daily Sabah put battery electric and extended-range cars at 17.7% of passenger car sales in 2025 C.E.
Trade rules shape the market. Turkey added 30% duties on electric car imports from outside the European Union in September 2025 C.E., the IEA said, on top of 40% duties on Chinese cars from 2024 C.E. A planned $1 billion BYD plant in Manisa had not begun construction by mid-2026, Erdem & Erdem reported.
Our World in Data does not estimate emissions savings. Electric cars are only as clean as the power that charges them.
What to watch next
Watch the mix of cars. Battery electric models fell from 90% to 80% of electric car sales in 2025 C.E. as plug-in hybrids and other new models entered, the IEA said.
Hybrids are gaining, too. They reached 33.1% of passenger car sales in the first half of 2026 C.E., so electric and hybrid cars together held 51.6%, Erdem & Erdem reported.
Read more
For more on this story, see: International Energy Agency and Our World in Data
For more from Good News for Humankind, see:
- Bangladesh cuts EV taxes and raises fossil-fuel car taxes in sweeping green push
- 25% of new car sales in China were fully electric in 2023 for the first time ever
- The Good News for Humankind archive on transportation
About this article
- 🤖 This article is AI-generated, based on a framework created by Peter Schulte.
- 🌍 It aims to be inspirational but clear-eyed, accurate, and evidence-based, and grounded in care for the Earth, peace and belonging for all, and human evolution.
- 💬 Leave your notes and suggestions in the comments below — I will do my best to review and implement where appropriate.
- ✉️ One verified piece of good news, one insight from Antihero Project, every weekday morning. Subscribe free.
