The number of new private electric cars licensed in June 2026 rose by 26% when compared with June 2025 (1,539 vs 1,225). This means the share of electric vehicles (EVs) among new private cars from January to June 2026 was 24% compared with 17% in the same period of 2025.
The total number of new private cars licensed in June 2026 declined by 3% when compared with June 2025 (5,123 vs 5,259).
The number of used (imported) cars licensed grew by 42% in June 2026 when compared with June 2025 (7,714 vs 5,448). The share of electric vehicles (EVs) among used (imported) cars from January to June 2026 was 11% compared with 4% in the same period of 2025.
The number of new plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) licensed in June 2026 increased by 23% in comparison with June 2025 (752 vs 609). The year-to-date share of PHEVs in 2026 among new private cars was comparable with 2025 at 15%.
The combined share of petrol and diesel cars among new private cars licensed from January to June 2026 was down in comparison with 2025 (34% vs 44%).
Overall, Volkswagen was the most popular make of new private car licensed in June 2026, while the Tesla Model 3 was the most popular make of electric car.
The number of new goods vehicles was up 11% in June 2026 when compared with June 2025 (2,330 vs 2,107).
On a seasonally adjusted basis, new private cars licensed were down 9% in June 2026 compared with May 2026. The number of seasonally adjusted used (imported) private cars licensed rose by 3% over the same period.
Registration and licensing figures may differ in a given month for a number of reasons, some of which are outlined below:
| Table 1 Number of vehicles licensed for the first time classified by taxation class | |||||||||
| Taxation Class | June | January - June | |||||||
| 2025 | 2026 | Change | 2025 | 2026 | Change | ||||
| New vehicles | |||||||||
| New Private Cars | 5,259 | 5,123 | -136 | -3% | 77,961 | 81,137 | 3,176 | 4% | |
| New Goods Vehicles | 2,107 | 2,330 | 223 | 11% | 17,419 | 19,477 | 2,058 | 12% | |
| New Tractors | 188 | 196 | 8 | 4% | 1,404 | 1,675 | 271 | 19% | |
| New Motor Cycles | 207 | 237 | 30 | 14% | 1,511 | 1,693 | 182 | 12% | |
| New Exempt Vehicles | 223 | 325 | 102 | 46% | 3,665 | 3,714 | 49 | 1% | |
| New Other | 254 | 192 | -62 | -24% | 1,712 | 1,593 | -119 | -7% | |
| Total New Vehicles | 8,238 | 8,403 | 165 | 2% | 103,672 | 109,289 | 5,617 | 5% | |
| Used (imported) vehicles | |||||||||
| Used private cars | 5,448 | 7,714 | 2,266 | 42% | 33,327 | 45,602 | 12,275 | 37% | |
| Used goods vehicles | 1,002 | 982 | -20 | -2% | 6,088 | 6,566 | 478 | 8% | |
| Used tractors | 208 | 237 | 29 | 14% | 1,363 | 1,442 | 79 | 6% | |
| Used motorcycles | 227 | 296 | 69 | 30% | 1,494 | 1,729 | 235 | 16% | |
| Used other vehicles | 627 | 704 | 77 | 12% | 3,432 | 3,962 | 530 | 15% | |
| Total used vehicles | 7,512 | 9,933 | 2,421 | 32% | 45,704 | 59,301 | 13,597 | 30% | |
| Total all vehicles | 15,750 | 18,336 | 2,586 | 16% | 149,376 | 168,590 | 19,214 | 13% | |
Figure 2 In June 2026, 30% of all new private cars licensed were electric.
| Most popular makes of new cars, June 2026 | |
| Volkswagen | 17 |
| Tesla | 12 |
| Skoda | 12 |
| Toyota | 10 |
| BMW | 5 |
| Other | 45 |
| Most popular make of new electric model cars, June 2026 | |
| VolkswagenID.4 | 7 |
| SkodaEnyaq | 5 |
| SkodaElroq | 4 |
| TeslaModel 3 | 28 |
| Other | 42 |
| TeslaModel Y | 14 |
| X-axis label | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 | Jan - June 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| <1 year old | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 |
| 1-2 years old | 7 | 9 | 8 | 8 | 10 |
| 3-5 years old | 36 | 29 | 27 | 25 | 24 |
| 6-9 years old | 42 | 42 | 42 | 39 | 35 |
| Over 10 years old | 14 | 19 | 23 | 26 | 30 |
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Statistician's Comment
The Central Statistics Office (CSO) has today (10 July 2026) published Vehicles Licensed for the First Time for June 2026.
Commenting on the data, Damien Lenihan, Statistician in the Transport Section of the CSO, said: “Today’s figures from the CSO show a 26% growth in the number of new private electric cars (EVs) licensed for the first time in June 2026 (1,539) when compared with the same month in 2025 (1,225). Licensing of hybrid vehicles increased by 24% from 764 in June 2025 to 944 new private cars in June 2026.
The total number of used (imported) private cars licensed in June 2026 rose by 42% compared with the same period in 2025 (7,714 vs 5,448). There were 1,421 used (imported) diesel private cars licensed in June 2026, compared with 1,285 in the same period of 2025. Used (imported) private petrol cars licensed went up by 21% in June 2026 compared with June 2025 (2,856 vs 2,358).
In the first six months of 2026, there was a 49% rise in new private EVs licensed when compared with the same period in 2025 (19,580 vs 13,102). We can also see that almost a quarter (24%) of all new private cars registered between January and June 2026 were electric. Over the same six-month period, there was a fall of 20% in the number of new petrol cars licensed (17,171 vs 21,424). Similarly, a 22% decrease in the number of new diesel cars licensed was seen over the same period (10,418 vs 13,439).
The total number of new goods vehicles licensed for the first time in June 2026 was 2,330, up 11% on June 2025 (2,107). There were 19,477 new goods vehicles licensed from January to June 2026 which was an increase of 12% on the 17,419 licensed over the same period of 2025.
Most Popular Makes
Data also shows that Volkswagen was the most popular make of new private car licensed in June 2026 at 859 vehicles, followed by Tesla (637), Skoda (613), Toyota (489), and BMW (242). Together, these five makes represented 55% of all new private cars licensed in June 2026 (See Table 4).
The most popular brand of new electric car licensed in June 2026 was Tesla Model 3 (429), followed by Tesla Model Y (208), and Volkswagen ID.4 (113) (See TEM28 for further information).”