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The federal $7,500 EV tax credit ended on September 30, 2025, and U.S. electric-vehicle sales dropped sharply before beginning a gradual recovery. The rebound has been uneven: Tesla accounts for a large share of new-EV sales, used EV sales have strengthened, and legacy automakers have cut or delayed some electric models. The data in the report point to a market adjusting to changed incentives, not a uniform return to growth.
U.S. electric-vehicle sales have begun to recover about a year after the federal $7,500 tax credit ended on September 30, 2025, but the rebound is uneven: Tesla and Rivian account for much of the new-EV momentum, while used electric cars are gaining buyers. The findings, reported by InsideEVs using data from JD Power, Cox Automotive and Cars.com, show a market adapting to the loss of incentives rather than returning uniformly to its previous trajectory.
The loss of the credit coincided with a sharp reversal after a rush to buy before the deadline. JD Power data cited by InsideEVs put EVs at more than 14% of U.S. retail car sales in September 2025, then 7.1% in October and 5% in November. The share climbed above 6% in December and exceeded 8% in May, before reaching 7.9% in September, according to the report. These figures describe EV share of retail sales, not total vehicle sales.
New-EV growth has been concentrated. Cox Automotive estimates that U.S. EV sales rose 6.1% from the second to the third quarter, to about 262,000 vehicles, the highest quarterly total since the credit ended. The firm’s estimates suggest sales would have slipped slightly without Tesla. Tesla’s own U.S. sales are not separately reported, and Cox estimated its third-quarter sales were down 19.7% year over year, compared with a decline of close to 40% for the overall EV market.
There are signs of improving supply-demand balance. Cars.com data show average EV time on dealer lots fell each month from April through September. By September, the average was 89.4 days, down from 115.6 days in March and closer to the 80.5 days recorded during the buying surge a year earlier. Meanwhile, Cox Automotive reported more than 47,000 used EV sales in the latest month cited, up 21% year over year and a record share of the used-car market. The source does not specify that month in the supplied excerpt.
A Recovery With Uneven Winners
The figures matter to shoppers and automakers because the market is responding to the removal of a major purchase incentive without moving in lockstep. Falling days on dealer lots and a partial recovery in sales suggest demand did not disappear, but the uneven manufacturer results mean aggregate growth can conceal weakness across much of the industry. The tax-credit change also affects the price calculus facing buyers, particularly those choosing between a new EV, a used model and a gasoline-powered vehicle.
For consumers, the expanding supply of lightly used, longer-range EVs may offer more options at lower prices than new vehicles. For manufacturers, weaker sales and altered policy signals have accompanied decisions to cancel or delay electric models. InsideEVs reports that legacy automakers have canceled or delayed roughly two dozen EVs since the previous year. Those decisions may constrain future choice, even as the used market benefits from vehicles leased in earlier years returning to dealerships.
The data do not establish that the tax-credit change alone caused every sales shift. The report also describes a pre-deadline buying rush, changing fuel prices, model availability and company-specific product decisions. Those factors complicate comparisons between the period before and after September 2025.
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From Deadline Rush to Market Reset
The federal credit ended on September 30, 2025, alongside other policy changes described in the InsideEVs report, including the rollback of fuel-economy regulations. Buyers had brought purchases forward before the deadline, helping push EVs above 14% of retail sales in September. The subsequent fall therefore reflected both the disappearance of an incentive and the unwinding of demand that had been pulled into an earlier month.
InsideEVs quoted JD Power senior vice president Tyson Jominy as saying the market reached a low point quickly and had proved more resilient than some expected. Hyundai CEO José Muñoz said dealers who had requested fewer Ioniq 5 shipments later asked for more after the war in Iran began, which he linked to higher gasoline prices. That account is an executive’s observation, not a measured estimate of how much fuel costs affected sales.
Automakers have also made different strategic choices. The report says Tesla has maintained a large share of U.S. EV sales, while Rivian deliveries have risen alongside its new R2 product. Legacy manufacturers can shift investment toward gasoline models; EV-only companies have fewer such options. Toyota is identified in the report as another exception, with EV sales growing as it introduced new models.
““That, I think, is showing that we’re getting closer to the moment where the demand and the supply are in good balance.””
— Jenni Newman, Cars.com editor-in-chief, quoted by InsideEVs
Sales Data Leave Gaps
The figures offer a snapshot, not a settled forecast. The supplied report excerpt does not identify the calendar month for the cited 47,000-plus used-EV sales, and it does not provide a full, consistent monthly series across all data sources. Tesla does not break out U.S. sales in the cited material, so its contribution relies on Cox Automotive estimates. The report also does not quantify how much of the recovery is attributable to fuel prices, new models, pricing or other factors.
It remains unclear whether the recent improvement will persist without the federal credit, whether other automakers will restore delayed EV programs, and how sales will respond to future changes in fuel prices or policy. The data support a partial recovery and stronger used-EV demand; they do not establish a return to the growth path before the credit ended.
Watch Sales and Model Plans
The next useful indicators are quarterly EV sales, retail-market share and dealer inventory. Continued declines in time on dealer lots alongside stable or rising sales would suggest supply and demand are moving closer together; a renewed rise in inventory or falling market share would point to renewed pressure. Comparisons will be clearer when reporting periods and data sources are consistent.
Buyers and industry observers will also be watching which delayed or canceled models return, how automakers price vehicles without the federal credit, and whether used-EV availability continues to grow as leased vehicles reach the secondhand market. The current evidence shows a recovering but uneven market; the next sales reports will show whether that pattern holds.
Key Questions
When did the federal EV tax credit end?
The report says the $7,500 federal EV tax credit ended September 30, 2025.
Did EV sales keep falling after the credit ended?
They fell sharply in October and November 2025 after a pre-deadline buying rush, then recovered partway. JD Power data cited in the report put EVs at 5% of retail sales in November and 7.9% in September a year later.
Which companies are driving the new-EV recovery?
The report identifies Tesla and Rivian as important contributors. Cox Automotive estimates cited by InsideEVs suggest the overall market would have declined slightly from the second to third quarter without Tesla.
Are used EVs selling well?
Yes, according to the report. Cox Automotive recorded more than 47,000 used-EV sales in the latest month cited, a 21% year-over-year increase. The excerpt does not name that month.
Does the report show that EV demand has fully recovered?
No. It documents a partial rebound and stronger used-EV sales, but says the recovery is uneven. The figures do not establish that sales have returned to their pre-credit trajectory or explain precisely how much each market factor contributed.
Source: insideevs.com
