Niu: owner, models, markets and what the name means
Facts checked United States status as of 4 September 2026
- Private
- Electric-native
- NASDAQ NIU
Listing: Nasdaq since 2018, ticker NIU
Niu makes electric two-wheelers: city scooters and mopeds, electric motorcycles, electric bicycles, kick-scooters and, since 2023, an electric dirt bike. The company was founded in 2014 and listed on Nasdaq in 2018; manufacturing is in Changzhou, Jiangsu, and the head office is in Beijing.
What set the brand apart at launch was using lithium-ion batteries when most Chinese electric scooters used lead-acid, paired with a connected app and a strong industrial-design identity. That turned an appliance category into a consumer brand.
Sales are overwhelmingly Chinese: of 1,197,978 units sold in 2025, 1,112,021 were in China and 85,957 abroad. International distribution runs through dozens of country distributors and retailers including Best Buy in the United States and MediaMarkt in Europe, with 57 distributors covering 53 countries at the end of 2024.
Key facts
| Chinese name | 小牛 “shyow-NYOH” 'little ox' or 'calf'; in colloquial Chinese 牛 also means impressive or formidable |
|---|---|
| Also written | NIU, Niu Technologies and 小牛电动 |
| Owner | Niu Technologies |
| Founded | 2014 |
| Headquarters | Beijing, China |
| Origin | China |
| Vehicles | Motorcycles |
| Segment | Motorcycle |
| United States | Sold in the United States — Sold in the United States through distributors and retail partners including Best Buy. International sales, of which the US is part, were 85,957 units in 2025. |
| Official site | www.niu.com/ |
| 2025 unit sales | 1,197,978 vehicles, of which 85,957 international |
| 2025 revenue | RMB4,307.9 million, up 31.0% |
| Distribution | 57 distributors in 53 countries at the end of 2024, plus 3,735 franchised stores in China |
| Founded and listed | Founded 2014; Nasdaq listing 2018 |
Who owns Niu?
No ownership holding is recorded for this entity.
The full ownership page for Niu · Is Niu Chinese?
Where Niu is sold
Recorded in 3 market s: CN, United States and Germany. Where a company publishes only its principal markets, that is a floor and not a complete list.
| Country | Code | Market page |
|---|---|---|
| China | CN | no page yet |
| United States | US | Chinese cars in the United States |
| Germany | DE | Chinese cars in Germany |
Niu: questions people ask
- Is Niu Chinese?
- Yes. Niu Technologies is a Chinese company headquartered in Beijing with manufacturing in Changzhou, Jiangsu, listed on Nasdaq since 2018.
- Are Niu scooters sold in the United States?
- Yes, through distributors and retail partners including Best Buy, though international sales are a small share of the company's volume.
- What does Niu mean?
- 牛 means ox or bull, and the scooters are sold in China as 小牛, little bull. In everyday Chinese, calling something 牛 also means it is impressive.
Related
Sources for Niu
- Niu Technologies, Niu Technologies Provides Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2025 Sales Volume Update. Read .
- Bike-EV, Niu sells 1.2 million electric two-wheelers in 2025. Read .
- Wikipedia, Niu Technologies. Read .