Coexistence of gasoline and electric vehicles, dominance of small cars, and BYD's retreat. The top 20 best-selling cars in 2025 are different from what you think.

If we were to choose a keyword for the Chinese automotive market in 2025, "reshaping" would perhaps be the most fitting.

The penetration rate of new energy vehicles has passed the inflection point of rapid growth, and the market has entered a stage of structural adjustment. It is no longer an incremental era where all players can get a share of the pie, but a stock competition where the fittest survive. No matter how exaggerated the car companies' promotions are, in the end, it all comes down to sales.

Dong Che Hui (a car-related media) analyzed the models that sold over 180,000 units from 2023 to the first 11 months of 2025. The rankings changed significantly over the three - year period. Some brands rose rapidly, while some former top players dropped out of the leading positions. Behind this is a comprehensive competition in product strength, pricing strategy, channel efficiency, and even the organizational response speed.

Sales rankings of various models from January to November 2025

The most striking signal in this reshaping is that the model at the top of the list is neither Tesla nor BYD, but a small car that has risen strongly.

BYD Loses the Top Spot

In the past two years, the battle for the top spot in China's new energy vehicle sales was mainly between Tesla Model Y and BYD Qin PLUS. Model Y, with its globally consistent product strength and brand appeal, has remained in the first - tier. It sold 456,000 units in 2023 and further increased to 480,000 units in 2024. BYD, on the other hand, adopted a "multi - model strategy". Multiple models such as Qin, Song, Yuan, Dolphin, and Seagull advanced side by side. At its peak in 2024, BYD models occupied five of the top 10 sales positions, almost half of the market.

In 2025, Geely Xingyuan took the top spot with 446,000 units sold. Geely Xingyue L and Boyue L also remained at the top of the list. As an established domestic automaker, after experiencing the pain of transformation, Geely successfully counterattacked with its cost - effective compact and sub - compact models, breaking BYD's near - monopoly in the market.

BYD Seagull and Dolphin, which dominated the segment in the past, both lost their positions in 2025. Seagull's sales dropped to 341,000 units, ranking fifth, while Dolphin dropped to 32nd place. Geely Xingyuan, with its larger space, more refined design, and more competitive configuration, precisely targeted these two "volume - drivers" of BYD in the same price range.

BYD Seagull

To make matters worse, BYD Han, the former flagship sedan, has quietly disappeared from the sales list.

In 2024, BYD Han sold 228,000 units, but in 2025, its sales nearly halved to only 137,000 units. Facing the encirclement of new and old competitors such as Xiaomi SU7 (272,000 units), Tesla Model 3 (193,000 units), Zeekr, and Lynk & Co, the product strength of the old - version Han has shown signs of fatigue. The redesigned new model has failed to gain wide market recognition in terms of design and core experience, with dismal sales.

However, there is also good news. BYD Qin L (ranked 8th with 278,000 units sold) and Seal 06 (ranked 14th with 230,000 units sold) have successfully completed their iterations, stabilizing their market share in the 100,000 - 150,000 - yuan sedan market.

BYD Seal 06 DM - i

BYD's high - end brands, Denza D9 and Fangchengbao Ti 7, also show good potential to become best - sellers. It is quite worth looking forward to how BYD will maintain its market share under the current situation next year.

Geely: Successfully Overcomes Difficulties

While many joint - venture brands and traditional domestic brands (such as Great Wall, Changan, and SAIC) were being pushed back by BYD, Geely stepped in. In the previous two years, Geely's performance in the new energy vehicle sales rankings was mediocre. However, in 2025, the situation completely changed. Geely not only won the annual sales championship but also had its Xingyue L and Boyue L firmly at the top of the list, demonstrating its overall dominance in the compact SUV segment.

Champion Geely Xingyuan

Geely is currently the only traditional automaker that outperforms the industry average in both the fuel - powered and new energy vehicle markets.

Although Geely started late in the new energy vehicle transformation and was hesitant at the beginning, its turn was resolute. As early as 2015, Geely proposed the "Blue Action" strategy, aiming to make new energy vehicles account for 90% of its total sales by 2020. However, by 2020, the actual proportion of new energy vehicle sales was only 5.2%.

What really made Geely determined was the explosive success of BYD and Li Auto in the hybrid and extended - range vehicle markets. Geely then revised its original strategy and launched an upgraded "Blue Geely Action Plan", fully investing in both energy - saving technologies (including fuel, hybrid, and extended - range) and intelligent pure - electric vehicles.

Geely has almost benchmarked every BYD best - seller. Geely Galaxy L6 benchmarks BYD Qin PLUS DM - i, Galaxy E8 benchmarks BYD Han EV, Galaxy E5 benchmarks BYD Yuan series, Xingjian 7 targets BYD Song Pro DM - i, and Xingyuan targets BYD Dolphin and Seal.

Geely Galaxy E8

The same is true in terms of technological competition. In May 2024, BYD released its fifth - generation DM - i technology, setting a new record with a mass - produced engine thermal efficiency of 46.06%. Only half a year later, Geely equipped its Galaxy Xingjian 7 with a new EM - i Thor hybrid system, surpassing BYD with a thermal efficiency of 46.5% and regaining the technological high - ground.

In February this year, BYD announced that 21 of its models would be equipped with the "Tian Shen Zhi Yan" assisted - driving system. Only one month later, Geely announced that its subsequent Galaxy series models would be equipped with different levels of the "Qian Li Hao Han" assisted - driving solutions.

Geely's strategy is simple and effective: more configurations, better design, and lower prices. It hopes to break through BYD's main models one by one with extreme cost - effectiveness and rapid iteration ability. Xingyuan's championship may just be the prelude to Geely's comprehensive counter - attack.

The Disappearance of Aion

Comparing the sales data over three years, the change of one brand is very obvious: GAC Aion. In 2023, Aion was at its peak. AION Y ranked 12th with 235,000 units sold, and AION S followed closely at 15th place with 220,000 units. These two models supported the brand's presence in the mainstream market. However, in 2024 and 2025, these two former main models completely disappeared from the sales list.

Besides the problem of model aging, it also reflects the change in the logic of the 100,000 - 150,000 - yuan pure - electric vehicle market. In 2023, this segment was supported by a large number of B - end demands (especially for ride - hailing services). From 2024 to 2025, with the entry of new models from BYD, Geely Galaxy, etc., which combine design, intelligence, and family - friendly features, pure - electric vehicles that lack C - end appeal and are only "tools" were quickly marginalized.

Data confirms this trend. According to the China Passenger Car Association, in 2023, the sales of new cars for rental and ride - hailing services in China reached 850,000 units, of which Aion contributed about 220,000 units, accounting for 45% of its total annual sales and nearly a quarter of the new ride - hailing vehicle sales that year. As the ride - hailing market became saturated, Aion lost its most important sales pillar, and its market performance deteriorated rapidly.

Aion's sales of various models in November 2025

Facing the dilemma, Aion tried to break through by launching a high - end brand, Hyper. It successively launched models such as Hyper GT, SSR, and HT. However, building a high - end brand requires long - term technological accumulation, user trust, and systematic operation. Aion was obviously not well - prepared. As a result, the monthly sales of the Hyper series were only about a hundred units, with mediocre market response. It not only failed to open up a new situation but also dispersed resources that should have been used for the main brand, leading to a stagnation in Aion's product strength in the core price range of about 150,000 yuan, especially in terms of intelligent configuration, which lagged behind its competitors.

Fortunately, Aion finally realized its strategic deviation this year. With the independent operation of the Hyper brand, Aion can refocus on its main brand, recalling its R & D, product, channel, and marketing resources. Industry sources indicate that the company has launched a deep - level adjustment, from organizational structure to product definition, from technological route to user operation, all undergoing a systematic "transformation".

The product strength of Aion's recent new models is quite strong. For example, the Aion RT launched in September offers an excellent experience at an affordable price starting from 99,800 yuan. The market response has been much more enthusiastic than before. However, the actual effect can only be evaluated next year.

The Last Bastion of Fuel - Powered Vehicles

We usually think that fuel - powered vehicles are in decline. On the surface, the wave of electrification is sweeping everything. However, looking closely at the sales data, we can find a counter - intuitive phenomenon. In 2023, the annual sales of two models were about 190,000 and 189,000 units respectively. By the first 11 months of 2025, SAIC Volkswagen Passat had sold 238,000 units, and FAW - Volkswagen Magotan had reached 202,000 units. They are among the few joint - venture mid - size sedans that can still maintain annual sales of over 200,000 units.

Sales trend of SAIC Volkswagen Passat in the past year. Data source: Chezhu Zhijia

Volkswagen accurately captured