India overtakes US in electric car penetration for the first time

India has finally raced ahead of the United States in electric car penetration for the month of April 2026. However, India still lags behind the US in battery electric vehicle sales.

Electric vehicles accounted for 5.8% of all new car sales in India during April, buoyed by new model launches, according to VAHAN registration data. This compares with 5.1% EV penetration in March 2026 and 3.7% in the same month last year.

While India’s EV penetration rose, the share of battery electric vehicles in new car sales fell to 5.1% in the US, the world’s second-largest car market by volume after China.

India, however, accounted for far less electric car sales than the US in April. That’s because the US sells three times more cars than India, the world’s third-largest car market by volume. About 23,500 electric cars were sold in India last month compared to 70,000 electric cars sold in the US during the same period.

Tesla continues to be the top-selling EV maker in the US, followed by General Motors, Ford and Hyundai.

In India, Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles is the best-selling electric car manufacturer. The company clocked sales of 8,543 units in April, up 92% year-on-year. Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) was the second-largest EV producer with retail sales of 5,413 units. JSW MG Motor India stood at the third spot, registering sales of 5,006 units. VinFast and Maruti Suzuki India Ltd sold about 1,232 units each.

India’s record EV penetration in April comes as car buyers anticipated fuel price due to the West Asia war.

EV demand is expected to see an uptick in India after state-run oil marketing companies hiked fuel prices for the fourth time in May.

Tata Motors and M&M are already seeing a jump in EV demand due to the West Asia war.

Tata Motor EV demand surged 20-25% after the West Asia war, Shailesh Chandra, the managing director and CEO of Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles, had said in April.