Electric car sales: Tesla exceeds expectations despite a slight decline in deliveries

Tesla delivered 486,532 electric vehicles worldwide in the third quarter of 2026. This represents a slight decline from the previous year, but it far exceeded analysts’ expectations. More importantly, the American automaker delivered significantly more vehicles than it produced, indicating that it continues to reduce its inventory.

Tesla has just released its delivery figures for the third quarter of 2026. From July to September 2026, the company delivered 486,532 electric vehicles globally. This is more than in the previous quarter and significantly better than what analysts had predicted.

2.1% decline year-over-year

In detail, the Model 3 and Model Y still account for the overwhelming majority of deliveries with 478,237 units shipped. The other vehicles from the brand total only 8,295 units. It should be noted that aside from the sedan and SUV, only the Cybertruck and Semi remain now—the Model S and Model X have been removed from the lineup.

In the third quarter of 2025, Tesla delivered 497,099 cars. With 486,532 units this year, the manufacturer saw a decline of 2.1%. However, this comparison is misleading. In the United States, many buyers rushed to purchase cars in 2025 to take advantage of the $7,500 federal tax credit before it expired.

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Tesla is showing improvement compared to the second quarter of 2026, when 480,126 vehicles were delivered. The increase remains modest, around 1.3%, but it allows the manufacturer to stay close to the symbolic threshold of 500,000 cars per quarter. This is encouraging for the end of the year.

Tesla significantly reduces its inventory

The main surprise comes from the discrepancy with forecasts. The consensus estimate compiled by Tesla from 24 analysts was 461,974 deliveries. The manufacturer thus delivered about 25,000 more units than expected. It’s rare for things to turn out this way!

Another interesting statistic is that Tesla produced “only” 464,391 cars during that period. It thus delivered 22,141 more vehicles than it manufactured. This is the second consecutive quarter in which deliveries exceeded production. This strategy allows the manufacturer to sell off previously accumulated inventory.

But after the concerns raised by some markets in recent months, this third quarter shows that at least global demand is holding up better than expected. In France, the Model Y has even become the best-selling electric vehicle again.

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