According to registration data from 18 European countries in which BYD is present, the brand sold 26,265 hybrid and fully electric vehicles across the continent last month.
This is more than triple the 7,440 vehicles sold in December 2024, according to data compiled by EV.
The performance was largely driven by record sales in Germany, the Netherlands, and Norway, along with strong figures in the UK.
BYD’s growth in 2025 was fueled by the launch of multiple new models across Europe and a competitive pricing strategy, even in the face of import duties imposed by the EU.
From late 2024, BYD faces a 17% tariff on imported electric vehicles in Europe, in addition to the standard 10% base rate.
Following progress in China-Europe trade talks, however, the European Commission announced on Monday that Chinese EV makers can propose minimum price agreements for imported vehicles, which can reduce or replace last year’s tariffs.
Another way to bypass tariffs is local production, which BYD is already pursuing in Hungary and Turkey, with plans for additional factories under discussion.
Nordic Markets
Last month, BYD sales surged sixfold in Norway.
A total of 1,731 vehicles were registered, well above the monthly average of 400-500 units seen in the rest of the year.
The automaker sold 5,927 vehicles in Norway, the country with the highest EV adoption in the world, where 95% of all new car sales are fully electric.
This is more than double the 2,669 units sold in 2024. Unlike in other markets, BYD in Norway sells almost exclusively electric vehicles.
In Denmark, monthly sales in 2025 averaged 200–300 vehicles, except in March, when they peaked at 380 units.
Unlike its growth across the rest of Europe, BYD‘s sales in Denmark fell year-over-year, dropping from 2,766 units in 2024 to 2,429 in 2025.
The same was seen in Sweden, where December registrations totaled 33 vehicles for the automaker.
In 2025, a total of 1,019 BYDs were sold in the Scandinavian market, nearly 300 units below the prior year.
UK Sales
BYD entered the UK in March 2023. By the end of 2024, it had sold 8,788 vehicles in the country, mostly with its hybrid lineup.
Last year, its sales jumped nearly fivefold to 51,422 units.
Excluding legacy automakers and the originally British, now SAIC-backed MG, BYD was the best-selling new brand in the country.
In December, the company registered 7,682 units.
Its record monthly figures were achieved in September, when over 11,000 vehicles were sold in the country.
German and Dutch Markets
BYD achieved a new sales record in Germany in December with 4,109 units. The last month of 2025 marked a year-on-year 1,172% increase.
Surpassing November’s previously strongest-ever result — 4,026 registrations —, December was the fourth consecutive month of growth in monthly sales for the Shenzhen-based company.
Throughout 2025, BYD sold 23,306 vehicles in Germany, up 706.2% compared to the previous year, with a total of 2,891 units.
In the Dutch market, the two final months of 2025 were also the best-selling for the brand there.
BYD sold 597 vehicles in December, marking a 44% increase compared to the same month last year.
For the full year, the company sold 4,370 units, more than 1,000 units higher than in the previous year.
Southern Europe
BYD saw a mixed scenario in South Europe in December.
The company experienced a sales surge in Spain, selling 2,143 vehicles — more than double the total from December 2024 — and in Italy, where sales quintupled to 3,347 units.
However, it saw a 4% year-over-year sales decline in Portugal last month.
Still, it was the second-best-selling new energy vehicle brand in the Portuguese market in 2025, only trailing Tesla.
The Chinese giant sold 4,997 vehicles there, up from the 2,894 registered a year before.
In the Spanish market, its full-year sales soared from 3,801 units in 2024 to 15,857 vehicles last year.
In November, BYD officially launched the hybrid version of its Atto 2 model in Europe, nearly ten months after the local debut of the fully electric version on the continent.
The launch event was held in Spain, the first market to receive the model, with deliveries set to begin this quarter.
European Production
BYD‘s chief for the German and the Benelux markets announced late last week that the Shenzhen-based giant will begin vehicle production at its Hungarian factory before the end of March.
Speaking with the media outlet Euronews at the Brussels Motor Show, Lars Bialkowski also corroborated that the first units built in the Szeged-located plant will be completed and are set to be sold in the first quarter of 2026.
The debut vehicle will be the Dolphin Surf, the brand’s cheapest model which was launched in Europe last year. The small SUV Atto 2 will follow later in the year.
Last July, two sources close to the situation had told Reuters that BYD would delay mass production at the plant until 2026 and would operate it below capacity for at least the first two years.
In October, Reuters reported that the company was considering Spain for its third European factory, after Hungary and Turkey.
According to sources familiar with the matter, Spain was favoured due to its relatively low manufacturing costs and clean energy network.
A BYD Portugal executive revealed last year that Spain’s neighbor was also under consideration, for similar reasons.
