Tesla Sales Drop 12% In California But Still Crushes Competition

• Tesla sold 203,221 vehicles in California last year, down from 230,010 in 2023.
• Due to the decline in sales, Tesla's market share dropped from 60.1% to 52.5%.
• The Model Y was California's best-seller, delivering twice as many units as the RAV4.

For years, Tesla has been the undisputed heavyweight of California's growing electric vehicle market. It's dominated sales charts, crushed the competition, and made itself synonymous with EVs in the Golden State. But 2024 told a slightly different story. While Tesla still leads the pack by a huge margin, its sales dropped 12% over the year, even as overall EV and PHEV sales grew. That's now five consecutive quarters of decline for Tesla in its home turf.

Last year, a total of 203,221 new Tesla models were sold across California. That represents an 11.6% decline from the 230,010 units it delivered in 2023. This slide dragged Tesla's share of the state's zero-emission vehicle (ZEV) market down from 60.1% to 52.5%, a 7.6% drop. Meanwhile, nearly every other major automaker managed to increase its slice of the EV pie.

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Even the California New Car Dealers Association took notice, stating, "Things aren't looking so golden for EV automaker Tesla in the Golden State. Tesla's dominance in the electric vehicle market continues to falter as the brand reported its fifth consecutive quarterly registration decline."

California: Top 25 Selling BEV and PHEV Models in 2024

Despite the sales decline, Tesla remains the dominant force in California's ZEV market. Sure, its market share slipped, but it still accounts for more than half of all ZEV sales. Its closest competitor, Hyundai, grew its market share from 4.4% to 5.9% with 22,718 units sold, surpassing Chevrolet, which saw its share drop from 5% to 3.8% with 14,553 units. In fact, Chevy fell to sixth place, overtaken by luxury brands like BMW (18,664 units, up 29%) and Mercedes (17,369 units, up 10.5%).

Kia posted a 74.1% increase in ZEV sales, reaching 13,943 units, while Cadillac saw an impressive 296.9% jump—largely thanks to the Lyriq—hitting 5,235 units. Volkswagen, on the other hand, took a nosedive, with sales plummeting 55.6% to 5,440 deliveries.

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The Tesla Model Y also comfortably remained California's best-selling EV last year, with 128,923 registrations. That positioned it well ahead of the Tesla Model 3 with 53,056 registrations and the nearest-non-Tesla product, the Hyundai Ioniq 5, with 16,879 units sold.

The Model Y was also the best-selling car last year regardless of powertrain. The Toyota RAV4 was in second place, with 65,041 registrations recorded throughout the year. That positioned it slightly ahead of the Toyota Camry with 55,027 sales and the Honda Civic with 53,049 units sold, just six fewer than the Tesla Model 3.

ZERO EMISSION VEHICLE SALES CALIFORNIA