Nio Group registered just 56 vehicles across its European markets in January, with Germany posting its weakest month in three years as the Chinese EV maker struggles to gain traction on the continent.
The company sold only one vehicle in Germany last month, matching January 2023 when the brand had just entered Europe’s largest auto market, according to data from the German Federal Motor Transport Authority.
Nio currently operates four flagship showrooms in Germany, including locations in Berlin, Frankfurt, Dusseldorf, and Hamburg.
Norway, which was Nio‘s first European market when it launched there in 2021, saw registrations fall 71% year-over-year to just 8 units.
Scaled-back incentives caused a demand crash in the first month of 2026 in the country with the highest EV adoption.
In the Netherlands, Nio posted 17 registrations, up 21% from a year earlier.
Nio expanded to Germany, Sweden, Denmark, and the Netherlands in late 2022.
In Sweden, the premium brand sold four vehicles.
Austria registered 5 vehicles in its first full month since launching in November, Greece recorded 11 registrations including 7 Firefly units, 3 Nio EL6 SUVs, and 1 ET5 sedan, while Portugal had 7.
Registration data from the Hungarian market was not yet available as of Monday morning.
2025 Full-Year Sales
Despite expanding into new markets last year and introducing its more affordable Firefly sub-brand on the continent, Nio Group‘s overall European sales in 2025 were still 300 units below the prior year.
A total of 1,321 vehicles were sold across seven of its ten European markets in 2025, including the first vehicles registered in Belgium and Portugal.
The core Nio brand saw registrations fall 31% year-over-year across Norway, the Netherlands, Germany, Sweden, and Denmark — the markets it expanded to between 2021 and 2022.
The brand sold 1,129 vehicles in 2025 across these five markets, about 500 units below the 1,637 vehicles registered in 2024.
Firefly, which began deliveries in Europe — starting with the Netherlands and Norway — last August, has helped offset some of the decline but not enough to surpass the prior year’s total.
Export Slump
The weak European figures follow a sharp drop in exports from China. Nio Group shipped just 121 vehicles overseas in January, down 83.9% from 750 units in December, according to data from the China Passenger Car Association.
Last week, Nio announced a partnership with Deutsche Post’s logistics division DHL to handle aftermarket services across Europe.
DHL will manage storage, distribution, and customs clearance of parts and accessories for both the Nio and Firefly brands across Northwestern Europe.
Poland Expansion
Nio appears to be making progress toward entering its 12th European market.
The company has added Poland to its international mobile app, as reported by EV earlier this month, though Nio has not publicly announced a launch date.
The automaker announced in June 2025 its third European expansion wave, with seven new markets planned over 18 months: Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Hungary, Luxembourg, Poland, and Romania.
Both the Nio and Firefly brands were included in the expansion plans, with no mention of Onvo.
Since then, the company has not shared any public updates on the timing of its Polish launch.
Firefly as Global Pioneer
In an internal letter to employees earlier this month, revealed by local media outlet LatePost, founder and CEO William Li wrote that “Firefly serves as our pioneering brand for global market entry.”
The compact car brand launched alongside the main Nio brand in Austria in November and has since expanded to additional European markets including Greece.
