Thanks in large part to explosive growth in Canada’s largest plug-in vehicle market, Quebec, battery-electric vehicles accounted for 9.1% of the new vehicles sold in Canada during the first-half of 2024. According to Statistics Canada, that’s up from 7.2% in the first-half of 2023, 5.4% in 2022, and 1.8% in pre-pandemic 2019.
Beyond the first-half, we now have sales results from the first two-thirds of 2024 for vehicles eligible to receive rebates in the federal government’s iZEV program, including plug-in hybrids.
Although Quebec accounts for just 25% of all new vehicle sales in Canada – and 21% of non-plug-in vehicles – over half of all electrics sold in the country in 2024 reside in la belle province. Rebate-eligible sales of electrics in Quebec doubled from the January-August period of 2023 to the same period this year, an increase of 28,000 vehicles in advance of Quebec’s decision to wind down provincial incentives.
Outside of Canada’s three big EV markets – Quebec, Ontario, British Columbia generate 95% of rebate-eligible EV sales – plug-in hybrids are very nearly as popular as electrics. In fact, in each of the four Atlantic provinces, automakers actually delivered more PHEVs than BEVs in the first-two-thirds of 2024.
Nationally, however, sales of pure electrics in 2024 outnumber plug-in hybrids by nearly three-to-one. PHEV volume jumped at the greatest rate in British Columbia, where an 83% year-over-year gain resulted in 7,509 rebate-eligible sales in the first eight months of 2024. While B.C.’s overall market for new vehicles is less than one-third the size of Ontario’s, B.C.’s provincial incentive structure and accelerated ZEV sales targets for manufacturers combine to produce slightly more rebate-eligible BEV and PHEV sales than Ontario.
Province by province, your mileage, as they say, may vary. Only 0.1% of new vehicles sold in Saskatchewan are BEVs, for example. That figure jumps to 19% in Quebec. Consequently, because demand varies so widely by jurisdiction, some of the numbers you’re about to see may seem outrageous. Depending on your location, Teslas may either be decidedly uncommon or downright ubiquitous.
Nevertheless, according to federal statistics from the Incentives for Zero-Emission Vehicles Program from the first eight months of 2024, these are the five best-selling electric vehicles and five best-selling plug-in hybrids in Canada this year.
Canada’s Best-Selling Electric Vehicles
5. Hyundai Kona Electric: 6,683, up 77%
Now in its second iteration, the electric Kona is a very popular member of a very popular Kona family. (Hyundai sold 24,385 Konas overall in 2024’s first nine months, a 49% year-over-year increase.) The Kona isn’t the only high-volume Hyundai EV – the Ioniq 5 ranks sixth on this list with 6,361 EV-eligible sales through the end of August.
4. Ford Mustang Mach-E: 7,083, up 279%
Improved eligibility criteria pushed the Mustang Mach-E well up this list even as Ford is awash in negative EV headlines. “Ford drops EV plans, adds Super Duty truck production to Ontario plant,”we wrote in July. “Ford Shrinks Its EV Rollout Plans As Demand Lags,” wrote the Wall Street Journal in August. Rebates are clearly a necessary component for electric success – Ford sold only 5,026 Mach-Es in total in Canada in 2023. Yet with eight different variants now eligible for Canada’s $5,000 price cut, sales have ballooned.
3. Volkswagen ID.4: 7,259, up 97%
Availability and affordability make the Volkswagen ID.4 one of the most popular BEVs in Canada, more than 3,000 units ahead of the Kia EV6 and Toyota bZ4x; more than 5,500 units ahead of the Nissan Ariya and Subaru Solterra. The ID.4 isn’t the flashiest of electrics – Volkswagen will leave that to the upcoming ID.Buzz van – but 332-468 kilometres of range and a spacious cabin are evidently sufficient for thousands of buyers. Of the ID.4s sold, 73% are in Quebec.
2. Tesla Model 3: 9,490, up 35%
Quebec is not the dominant delivery location for Teslas in the way it is for almost every other EV on the market. “Only” 34% of Model 3s and 31% of Model Y rebates occur in Quebec. As of October 7, but subject to consistent Tesla price adjustments, two of the three 2025 Model 3 models are eligible for federal rebates: the Model 3 Long Range in both rear and all-wheel drive.
1. Tesla Model Y: 19,188, up 113%
With more than twice as many rebate-eligible sales as any other vehicle, the Tesla Model Y is clearly Canada’s No.1 electric on year-to-date terms. But it’s worth taking a close examination at some of the more recent results. In August, specifically, the Model Y claimed 1,490 rebates; the Model 3 another 1,833, and the Chevrolet Equinox EV topped the charts at 1,853 units. On year-to-date terms, remembering the Equinox wasn’t available until May, Chevrolet’s latest electric SUV ranks ninth.
Canada’s Best-Selling Plug-In Hybrid Vehicles
5. Mazda CX-90 Plug-In Hybrid: 2,195, up 473%
Available both as a hybrid and plug-in hybrid, the CX-90 is Mazda’s replacement for the CX-9. Although its limited EV-only range means the CX-90 is only eligible for $2,500 in federal rebates (as opposed to $5,000 for many vehicles), the CX-90 maximizes appeal with sheer power: 323 horsepower and 369 lb-ft of torque. If BEVs and PHEVs have proven anything at all, it may well be that “green” and “performance” are not mutually exclusive ideas.
4. Toyota Prius Prime: 2,914, up 130%
The original mass-produced hybrid is sportier than ever and more stylish than ever in fifth-generation form. As a plug-in hybrid, the Prius Prime is estimated to provide up to 72 kilometres of electric range in concert with a 220-bhp powerplant, more than double the power offered by the first Prius. And at $42,565 before rebates, the Prius costs a lot less than other PHEVs and EVs.
3. Ford Escape Plug-In Hybrid: 4,603, up 144%
Long gone are the days when hybrids were niche outliers. Most major players in Canada’s largest segment (in which the Ford Escape competes) offer a hybrid or a plug-in hybrid variant. Some offer both. Not surprisingly, given the sheer magnitude of Canada’s compact SUV category – nearly a quarter of the entire market – compact SUVs also control the leaderboard for plug-in hybrids, as well. The Escape outsells PHEV versions of the Hyundai Tucson, Kia Sportage, and Dodge Hornet by thousands while trailing the two top sellers by a wide margin, too.
2. Toyota RAV4 Prime: 6,676, up 36%
Available as both a hybrid and plug-in hybrid, the Toyota RAV4 is Canada’s best-selling SUV and best-selling non-pickup truck overall. If only RAV4 Primes were more readily available, it’s hard to imagine that Toyota wouldn’t top this list of PHEVs, as well. While EVs roundly outsell PHEVs across Canada, the same can’t be said inside Toyota showrooms. Toyota’s bZ4x generated 4,070 sales in 2024’s first eight months, 2,606 units behind the RAV4 Prime.
1. Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV: 8,518, up 41%
Though often mocked for its modest attempts to make headway in the Canadian market, the Mitsubishi of today is not the Mitsubishi of yesteryear. Mitsubishi sold 11,454 vehicles in the third-quarter (a new record) and is tracking toward its best sales year ever. The Outlander PHEV is a huge part of that success, generating 35% of the brand’s sales and outselling the regular Outlander by a 43% margin.