Europe is accelerating. 30% of electric vehicle registrations in August. Poland is falling behind

In short:

In August, electric vehicles accounted for 30.5% of new registrations in 16 key European markets

BEV sales are growing much faster than predicted

Poland lags significantly behind in terms of Europe’s transformation

The share of electric cars in our market remains one of the lowest on the Old Continent

Europe is outpacing forecasts

Electromobility is accelerating! According to the latest data from E-Mobility Europe, New Automotive, and FIER Automotive, 202,833 battery-powered vehicles (BEVs) were registered in August across 16 monitored markets, representing a year-on-year increase of 54.2%.

The share of fully battery-powered cars in new registrations reached 30.5%, meaning almost one out of every three new cars sold on the Old Continent was an electric vehicle. Moreover, since the beginning of the year, the number of BEV registrations has already exceeded 1.67 million units, representing a 33.1% increase compared to the same period in 2025.

The scale of this boom is even more significant given that the market is developing faster than earlier projections. The Transport & Environment organization estimated that electric cars would account for 23% of the market in the European Union by 2026, while the analytics firm Rho Motion predicted around 21% for Europe as a whole.

Meanwhile, battery electric vehicles alone are achieving results that exceed earlier forecasts for the entire plug-in vehicle market, which includes both BEVs and plug-in hybrids. In their latest report, experts at E-Mobility Europe emphasize that Europe’s electric vehicle market has “accelerated rapidly,” with BEVs accounting for 31.2% of the total market in the European Union.

The backdrop to these figures was the speech by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, who said during yesterday’s State of the Union address: “Let’s make Europe’s future electric.” The latest sales figures show that the automotive industry is moving in this direction at an increasingly fast pace.

France and Germany drive European growth

The largest markets remain the driving force behind electric mobility. In France, 36,159 electric cars were registered in August, accounting for 38.3% of the market share — a year-on-year increase of 72.2%.

Our western neighbors saw even higher figures. In August, 68,980 new battery-powered cars hit their roads, representing a 32.5% market share and a year-on-year rise of 34.5%. Meanwhile, smaller countries are attracting increasing attention as they surpass the largest European economies in terms of electric mobility adoption.

Norway – as always – remains a virtually fully electric market. In August, BEV vehicles accounted for 98.7 percent of all new registrations there. High figures were also recorded in Denmark (85.9 percent), Finland (52.3 percent), the Netherlands (48.9 percent), Belgium (46.2 percent), and Portugal (36.1 percent).

According to E-Mobility Europe’s Secretary General, Chris Heron: “Europe’s electric future is arriving faster than expected. Over 30 percent of new cars sold in the EU in August were fully electric, and BEV registrations rose by 33 percent this year, already exceeding key forecasts for the entire plug-in vehicle segment. The priority now is to combine stable regulations with their effective implementation to maintain this momentum and ensure Europe remains a leader.”

Poland at the Back of the Pack

Against the backdrop of a rapidly “electrifying” Europe, Poland remains one of the weakest markets. According to data from E-Mobility Europe, New Automotive, and FIER Automotive, 2,189 battery-powered cars were registered in Poland in August, representing an 8.4 percent year-on-year decline. BEVs accounted for only 4.8 percent of new registrations.

Since the beginning of the year, 23,655 new electric cars have been registered in the Polish market, accounting for a share of 5.2 percent. This figure is significantly lower than the European average and one of the lowest among the 16 countries under monitoring.

Only a few markets in Central and Eastern Europe show weaker results than Poland. For comparison, the Czech Republic achieved a BEV share of 8.4 percent, while Spain reached 14 percent. In Western European countries, the share of electric cars is often several times higher.

Conclusion – not everyone is moving at the same pace

Further data shows that the debate over whether electric vehicles will capture a significant share of the European market is becoming increasingly outdated. The question now is rather which countries will maintain their position as leaders in this transformation and which will fall behind.

BEV market in Europe. August 2026.

Country

BEV registrations (August)

BEV share of market

Registrations since year start

Share since year start

Growth rate since year start

Norway

13 274

98.70%

94 307

97.80%

0.80%

Denmark

13 887

85.90%

106 210

80.40%

40.90%

Finland

3 425

52.30%

24 327

49.20%

46.20%

Netherlands

12 925

48.90%

87 647

36.20%

-6.10%

Belgium

13 072

46.20%

108 953

37.50%

13.20%

Sweden

10,080

44.60%

62,455

39.40%

-0.30%

France

36,159

38.30%

323,389

29.70%

72.20%

Portugal

5,079

36.10%

43,638

27.40%

37.10%

Germany

68,980

32.50%

514,977

26.30%

34.50%

Switzerland

4,822

30.00%

37,446

24.70%

22.60%

Ireland

2,265

29.00%

32,188

26.30%

55.80%

Luxembourg

1,155

25.70%

10,336

29.80%

26.80%

Spain

9,589

14.00%

87,313

9.90%

28.60%

Czech Republic

1,495

8.40%

11,594

6.90%

31.50%

Italy

4,437

6.40%

91,165

6.50%

84.90%

Poland

2,189

4.80%

23,655

5.20%

-8.40%

Oskar Włostowski