Best-selling cars 2025: The UK's most popular new models of the year

We’re just a month into 2025 but, with official registration data from January now available, a picture of the top ten most popular cars of the year is beginning to emerge.

Jump straight to the list of top 10 best-selling cars

This year, carmakers face toughening quotas on the proportion of electric vehicles they sell, with any brand that shifts more than 2,500 cars or commercial vehicles over the 12 months of 2025 required to ensure that 28 per cent of them are fully electric. That’s up from 22 per cent last year — a target that was beaten by some brands but missed by the industry as a whole, with the total market share reaching just 19.6 per cent in 2024.

The Department for Transport said it didn’t expect any brand to have to pay the £15,000 fine for every internal combustion engine (ICE) car sold above the quota (£9,000 for every van) last year, due to “flexibility” built into the system.

However, it means 2025 will be another tough year for vehicle makers as the Zero Emission Vehicle (Zev) mandate heat is turned up by the government, and in January the share of electric cars was just 21.3 per cent. Of the top 10 best sellers last month, only four are available with pure-electric powertrains, and a fifth — the Ford Puma — is not getting an electric version until the spring.

January 2025 UK car registrations and market share by fuel type (Source: SMMT)

It may mean that, once again, carmakers will have to heavily discount electric models, or reduce the supply of petrol and hybrid cars, to meet the zero emission vehicle mandate.

Mike Hawes, chief executive of the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT), which represents the UK car industry and releases the registration figures, said:

“January’s figures show EV demand is growing — but not fast enough to deliver on current ambitions. Affordability remains a major barrier to uptake, hence the need for compelling measures to boost demand, and not just from manufacturers.”

He said that applying the Expensive Car Supplement to EVs, which from April will add £410 to the cost of first year VED (road tax) on vehicles with a list price of more than £40,000, is “the wrong measure at the wrong time.”

“Rather than penalising EV buyers, we should be taking every step to encourage more drivers to make the switch, helping meet government, industry and societal climate change goals.”

The UK’s top ten most popular new cars of 2025

But what are the UK’s best-selling new cars so far in 2025? Here are the top ten most popular models of the year to date, according to the SMMT’s registration figures.

1. Kia Sportage: 3,476 registrations in 2025 to date

Sunday Times family car of the year 2022: Kia Sportage

The current Kia Sportage family SUV was relaunched in 2022, getting a new chassis and engine line-up along with more modern styling. The interior quality is excellent and the combined 12.3in digital displays give the interior a technologically-advanced look.

At the top of the Sportage range is a plug-in hybrid model developing 261bhp through its combination of 1.6-litre petrol engine and electric motor. A non-plug-in hybrid is available on this generation Sportage, as well as mild-hybrid petrol models and a diesel, so all buyers will be catered for whatever their fuel preference.

It’s up against polished rivals such as its cousin, the Hyundai Tucson, as well as the VW T-Roc, Tesla Model Y, Nissan Qashqai and Ford Kuga, so competition in this sector is fierce, and that makes the fact that it was the second best-selling car of 2024 — and the most popular car of all in January — all the more impressive.

2. Nissan Qashqai: 3,421 registrations

The Nissan Qashqai is enduringly popular: it was the UK’s overall best-selling car in 2022, the second most-bought model in 2023, and the third best-seller in 2024.

The Qashqai helped popularise the crossover genre, having a bigger impact on the types of cars we drive than almost any other car launched this century. SUVs and crossovers now dominate sales, as the top ten most popular cars of 2024 demonstrated.

The current Qashqai launched in 2021 with a hybrid “e-Power” variant, clever technology, a fresher design and more upmarket interior, and we liked it enough to name it our Small SUV / Crossover of the Year. It was refreshed last year, with updated styling and interior tech, plus a new specification called N-Design.

There’s no denying that whether buying new or used, the Qashqai is a decent and able family car, with good fuel economy, smart looks and lots of tech at an affordable price. Plus it’s built in Sunderland.

Nissan Qashqai e-Power 2024 review: Solid, sensible SUV sustenance

3. Vauxhall Corsa: 3,379 registrations

The Vauxhall Corsa supermini started 2024 strongly but was knocked off the number one spot in May, and finished the year outside the top 10. The same pattern may occur this year, too, as sales of popular high-riding SUVs gather pace.

With Ford discontinuing its hugely popular Fiesta, the Corsa’s chief rival, in 2023, it was an opportunity for rivals like Vauxhall to capitalise; Renault said as much about the hybrid Clio it launched last year. The current Corsa, introduced in 2019, has a good shout in the short to medium term with handsome looks and a range of power choices under the bonnet, including a pure-electric variant. Last year the electric version was updated with range boosted to 255 miles per charge.

But now new, affordable and good-to-drive small electric cars, such as the Renault 5, Hyundai Inster and Fiat Grande Panda, are arriving to steal some of the Corsa’s thunder. All of the above are much more affordable than the electric version of the Vauxhall supermini, so its excellent start in 2025 is looking shaky long term.

Vauxhall Corsa Electric 2023 review: More power, more range and yes, more money

4. Volkswagen Golf: 2,614 registrations

You might have expected the legendary VW Golf to do be doing rather better, but it goes to show how much crossovers and SUVs are now in vogue, and the current eighth-generation model isn’t a darling of the motoring press. However, its frustrating touchscreen infotainment system has been much improved with the Golf Mk 8.5, launched last year, and it has sharper looks and a new plug-in hybrid option capable of 62 miles on electric power alone (officially). This has given what many still consider to be the benchmark family hatchback a boost in sales.

Look beyond the tech and the Golf has many redeeming features. The ride quality is excellent and the refinement top notch. The handling is pleasing, too, and it comes in many flavours including the sporty GTI and GTI Clubsport, GTE plug-in hybrid, diesel GTD and fire-breathing four-wheel-drive Golf R.

5. Peugeot 3008: 2,567 registrations

The Peugeot 3008 is the first of two models from the French brand in the top six for January, which the carmaker puts down to some excellent offers — across employer salary sacrifice and Motability schemes, as well as retail (private sales) — in the last part of 2024 gaining traction into 2025. Peugeot is also being smart in offering its cars with a “multi-energy” policy, which means you can get many of its products in hybrid, plug-in hybrid and pure electric forms, and the 3008 crossover is no exception.

Its success is all the more impressive, though, given it has excellent rivals such as the Hyundai Tucson, Ford Puma, Škoda Karoq and Kia Sportage. Customers like the Peugeot’s good looks, commanding driving position and high quality, stylish interior. The electric model offers up to 435 miles of range, too.

It’s not the most exciting car to drive in its segment, nor the cheapest (prices start at £35,660), and many note its slightly cramped rear seats, but the 3008 in all its guises is a solid choice and can make a lot of sense with the right monthly payment deal.

Peugeot e-3008 2024 review: Radical new look and pure-electric power, but has French crossover lost its spark?

6. Peugeot 2008: 2,478 registrations

The Peugeot 2008 is the 3008’s little brother, and so comes in at a more affordable price (starting at £28,830) but with the same sharp looks and multi-energy powertrain choice… though this time in petrol, hybrid and electric forms (there’s no plug-in hybrid here).

It’s a refined car to drive, with decent interior space and performance, and the E-2008’s range between charges of 251 miles (officially) is perfectly good for most people’s day-to-day needs. Its i-Cockpit cabin won’t be to everyone’s tastes, but it’s certainly eye-catching, and the 2008 is a car most people will be pleased to see sitting outside their house.

Peugeot e-2008 2023 review: Updated electric crossover goes further, faster

7. Ford Puma: 2,332 registrations

Although it didn’t have a lightning start to 2025, the Ford Puma topped the sales charts for both 2023 and 2024, and we can expect it to climb up this list throughout the year.

The Puma’s success is arguably no surprise as Ford’s entry-level crossover SUV is based on the excellent Fiesta, and one of the best-handling and most practical cars in its class.

In his review of the Puma, Jeremy Clarkson said he loved the washable boot (known as the “megabox”) and noted that the feature seemed to be designed by “an actual person who leads an actual life”.

The Puma’s positive reception by critics and public alike helped convince Ford of Europe to discontinue the Fiesta and plough ahead with the new pure-electric Puma Gen-E, to add to the electric line-up alongside the Mustang Mach-E, new Capri and new Explorer. Quite the changing of the guard.

8. Nissan Juke: 2,320 registrations

2019 Nissan Juke 2019 Frankfurt Motor Show Reveal

We haven’t often seen the Juke — the Qashqai’s smaller sibling — in the top 10 before 2024, so Nissan will be delighted that it had two crossovers in the top four best-selling cars of last year, and that both cars have started 2025 strongly.

The Juke has been a bit of a Marmite car in the past but the second-generation model is an objectively more attractive proposition and the introduction of a hybrid version has clearly caught the eye of many new car buyers who value fuel economy and low running costs.

Like the Qashqai, the Juke is built in Sunderland and so the “buy local” effect may be a factor in its popularity. But the Juke drives well, appeals to young drivers, has plenty of tech and is competitively priced, which makes the compact crossover an attractive proposition for buyers of all ages.

The forthcoming replacement model, announced last year, may continue in much the same vein.

2020 Nissan Juke: photos, prices, engines and technology

9. MG HS: 2,148 registrations

A visit to the top 10 best-selling cars is unusual for MG, though it could be a sign of things to come. Although a British brand, MG is owned by Chinese state-owned megacorp SAIC, and many can see Chinese companies dominating global vehicle production and sales over the coming years.

Car market fixed by ‘brutal’ China and the West is ‘too scared’ to fight back, says Iain Duncan-Smith

The MG HS is the brand’s rival to the Nissan Qashqai, Kia Sportage, Hyundai Tucson, Ford Kuga and the many others in the crowded mid-sized crossover segment, though with prices starting at £24,995 it’s able to undercut its competitors.

The price reflects its refinement, though, and reviews show the cost savings are apparent inside, in its driving manners and under the bonnet.

Still, it’s a smart-looking thing, thanks to a design refresh in 2024, and you can’t argue with its practicality, seven-year warranty or pricetag.

10. MG ZS: 2,107 registrations

The MG ZS comes in hybrid and electric forms, and both are excellent value for money, starting at £21,995 and £30,495 respectively. Whichever you go for, you’re not buying the most stylish car, nor one with the best handling, interior quality or safety features. You’re also contributing to the Chinese automotive industry, which some buyers are realising might not be the best choice. But you can’t argue with the interior space or affordability.