The sale of electric cars exploded in April, with a 110% increase compared with last year according to new figures from the Society of the Irish Motor Industry.

There were 2,779 new electric cars, that is fully battery electric cars, registered in April, an increase of 109.7% compared to 1,335 registrations in April 2025.

The incredible numbers seen in April has pushed year-on-year growth in EV sales close to 50% higher than last year in the first four months of 2026.

So far this year, 16,779 new electric cars have been registered, representing a 48.5% increase compared to the same period in 2025, when 11,299 electric cars were registered.

The market share of electric vehicles is continuing to grow compared to petrol or diesel engines amid this growth.

Full battery electric vehicles recently overtook petrol in market share for new cars, and has continue to expand that lead.

BEVs accounted for 22.35% of new cars by market share, followed by Petrol with 21.25%, Plug-In Hybrid with 14.41%, and Diesel with 12.96%.

Hybrid cars continue to have the largest market share of new car engine types with 26.67% in April.

Continued government support is needed for electric vehicle numbers to reach a level that will meet Ireland’s climate targets Brian Cooke, Director General of SIMI has said.

“The strong performance in BEV sales is driven by private consumers, who account for 77% of sales, with this sector of the market being supported by strong Government incentives.”

“However, the BEV’s new car market share of 22% is still below the level required to meet national climate targets. The momentum behind the EV project is there, and we must build on this. Now is not the time to reduce supports.”

“The Government must maintain and extend current incentives for consumers and businesses while investing in infrastructure, along with a range of targeted measures to encourage widespread EV adoption before 2030.”

The Volkswagen ID.4 remains the best selling electric car in Ireland over the course of 2026 to date. However, the Skoda Enyaq has crept in as the best selling electric vehicle of April.

In fact, two of the top selling electric car models so far this year are Skodas, with the other spots taken by Volkswagen, Kia, and Hyundai.

1. Volkswagen ID.4
2. Kia EV3
3. Hyundai Inster
4. Skoda Enyaq
5. Skoda Elroq

Every county in Ireland saw massive growth in EV sales so far this year compared with 2025, with no county having growth of less than 50% according to SIMI figures.

There were four counties where y-o-y growth has already exceeded 100%. The single largest figure seen was in Roscommon, where sales in the first four months of the years are 139% above the same period in 2025.