Vehicle sales in China by year

Facts checked Newest figure published 22 January 2026

The series

Figures in vehicles (wholesale), one row per year.
Year vehicles (wholesale) Relative size Note
2009 13,640,000 China Daily reporting CAAM's release of 11 January 2010: 13.64 million, up 46.15%. This was the year China overtook the United States to become the world's largest vehicle market. Recorded at the precision the source states.
2012 19,310,000 Xinhua, via china.org.cn, reporting CAAM's release of 11 January 2013: 19.31 million, up 4.33%; passenger vehicle sales passed 15 million for the first time.
2013 21,980,000 Xinhua, via china.org.cn, reporting CAAM's release of 9 January 2014: 21.98 million, up 13.87%; the first year above 20 million.
2015 24,600,000 China Daily reporting CAAM's release of 13 January 2016: 24.6 million, up 4.7%, of which passenger vehicles 21.1 million (up 7.3%). Recorded at the precision the source states.
2016 28,028,000 CAAM release of 17 January 2017 as quoted by MMTA: up 13.7% on 2015.
2017 28,879,000 CAAM, up 3.0% on 2016.
2018 28,081,000 CAAM, down 2.8% on 2017; the first annual fall since the 1990s.
2019 25,770,000 Xinhua reporting CAAM's release of 13 January 2020: about 25.77 million, down 8.2%. Recorded at the precision the source states; CAAM's own table is in units of 10,000 vehicles.
2020 25,311,000 CAAM, down 1.9% on 2019.
2021 26,275,000 CAAM, up 3.8% on 2020.
2022 26,864,000 CAAM, up 2.1% on 2021.
2023 30,094,000 CAAM, up 12.0% on 2022; the first year above 30 million.
2024 31,436,000 CAAM, up 4.5% on 2023.
2025 34,400,000 CAAM, up 9.4% on 2024; a record, and the seventeenth consecutive year in which China was the world's largest vehicle market. Domestic sales were 27.302 million and exports 7.098 million.

Reading these figures

Two published series for the same year often disagree, and the reason is almost always the definition rather than an error: wholesale shipments are not retail registrations, passenger cars are not all vehicles, and what counts as a new-energy vehicle differs between publishers. The definition above is the one that applies to every number on this page.

Related

Sources for Vehicle sales in China by year

  1. China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM), 2025年12月汽车工业产销情况简析 (Brief analysis of vehicle production and sales, December 2025). Read . Published 2026-01-22. 2025 sales 34.40 million, up 9.4%; domestic sales 27.302 million, up 6.7%; exports 7.098 million, up 21.1%.
  2. Gasgoo, China's auto sales reach 34.40 million in 2025, 2026 expected to edge up 1%. Read . Published 2026-01-15; secondary report of the same CAAM release (production 34.531 million, sales 34.40 million).
  3. China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM), 2024年12月信息发布会 (December 2024 information conference slide deck). Read . Published 2025-01-13. 2024 sales 31.436 million, up 4.5%.
  4. China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM), Sales of Automobiles in December 2023. Read . Published 2024-01-12. Jan–Dec 2023 total 3,009.4 (unit: 10,000 vehicles), up 12.0%.
  5. China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM), Sales of Automobiles in December 2022. Read . Published 2023-01-12. Jan–Dec 2022 total 2,686.4 (unit: 10,000 vehicles), up 2.1%.
  6. China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM), Sales of Automobiles in December 2021. Read . Published 2022-01-12. Jan–Dec 2021 total 2,627.5 (unit: 10,000 vehicles), up 3.8%.
  7. China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM), Sales of Automobiles in December 2020. Read . Published 2021-01-14. Jan–Dec 2020 total 2,531.1 (unit: 10,000 vehicles), down 1.9%.
  8. China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM), Brief analysis of the economic operation of the auto industry in 2020. Read . Published 2021-01-14. Confirms 2020 production 25.225 million and sales 25.311 million.
  9. China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM), The automobiles witnessed stable growth. Read . Published 2018-01-23. 2017 sales 28,879,000, up 3.0%.
  10. China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM), The growth of automobiles below expectations. Read . CAAM's annual review of 2018: sales 28,081,000, down 2.8%. Page carries a 2019-06-05 migration stamp; the release was made in January 2019.
  11. Minor Metals Trade Association (MMTA), The Chinese Automotive Market – Much more than just large. Read . Quotes CAAM's release of 17 January 2017: 2016 sales 28,028,000, up 13.7%.
  12. Xinhua, China's auto sales down 8.2 pct in 2019. Read . Reports CAAM's release of 13 January 2020: about 25.77 million vehicles sold in 2019, down 8.2%.
  13. China Daily, Auto sales hit record in 2015, but growth slows down. Read . Published 2016-01-13. Reports CAAM's release: 2015 sales 24.6 million, up 4.7%, with passenger vehicles 21.1 million (up 7.3%) and commercial vehicles down 10%.
  14. China Daily, China: World's biggest auto producer, consumer. Read . Published 2010-01-12. Reports CAAM's figures for 2009: sales 13.64 million, up 46.15%, and production 13.79 million, up 48.3%.
  15. Xinhua, via China Internet Information Center (china.org.cn), China continues to reign as world's top automaker. Read . Published 2013-01-11. Reports CAAM's figures for 2012: sales 19.31 million, up 4.33%, and production 19.27 million, up 4.63%.
  16. Xinhua, via China Internet Information Center (china.org.cn), China auto sales see double-digit growth. Read . Published 2014-01-10. Reports CAAM's figures for 2013: sales 21.98 million, up 13.87%; production 22.12 million, up 14.76%; exports 977,300, down 7.46%.