After slow-rolling its move toward electric cars for years, Toyota is becoming one of this year's biggest EV success stories. From January through June, the company sold 21,855 EVs in the U.S., a 136% surge over the same period in 2025, according to figures compiled by Cox Automotive.
The growth shouldn't be too surprising. After all, this time last year Toyota had just one, lonely electric model on sale, the bZ. This year it's filled out its lineup with the Subaru Outback-like bZ Woodland and the compact C-HR. Still, for a company that was seen as behind for so long, the growth is notable.
View Price on Amazon"Toyota, in particular, has emerged as an increasingly significant player and now ranks among the top five EV sellers in the U.S. market," Cox said on Friday. The 2026 Toyota bZ Woodland has been a major contributor to this growth, with the company selling 17,553 bZ crossovers so far this year—nearly double the same period last year—plus over 3,700 units of the new C-HR.
The remainder came from the bZ Woodland wagon. On top of introducing new models, Toyota has beefed up the bZ's range and charging speeds, which were subpar from the beginning. In the last nine months since the EV tax credit ended—along with other pro-EV policies—EV demand has softened and automakers have recalibrated their electric plans.
As other companies saw EV sales fall (whether due to supply-side decisions, demand issues, or both), Toyota has bucked the trend. During the first half of 2025, Toyota's measly 9,249 EVs sold put it behind Volkswagen, Rivian, Nissan, Kia, Honda, GMC, Ford, Cadillac, BMW, and Audi. In the first half of 2026, it's ahead of all of them, Cox data shows.
It's part of a plan, Toyota says, to gain its "fair share" of the EV market through new models. Meanwhile, some rivals are culling their lineups, which inherently leads to lower sales. Ford canceled the F-150 Lightning, Volkswagen cut the ID.4, and Nissan axed the Ariya.
Can Toyota keep it up? Part of it will depend on manufacturer incentives, which have boosted bZ sales. New models are poised to continue helping too. The bZ Woodland looks like it has room to grow, and it's a high-utility form factor that's tough to find in today's EV market.
Source: insideevs.com
