The UK car market · SMMT data
New vs used: what Britain is actually buying.
UK buyers registered 156,571 new cars in July 2026 (+11.7% year-on-year) and bought 2,016,232 used cars in Q1 2026 (-0.2%). The new market is led by crossovers; the used market still runs on superminis — topped by the discontinued Ford Fiesta. And while 27.5% of new cars are now electric, only 4.3% of used sales are.
New cars · July 2026
156,571
+11.7% vs 140,154 a year earlier
Top 10 — July 2026
| # | Model | Units |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ford Puma | 3,531 |
| 2 | Nissan Qashqai | 3,224 |
| 3 | Kia Sportage | 3,205 |
| 4 | Jaecoo 7 | 2,709 |
| 5 | MG HS | 2,703 |
| 6 | Ford Kuga | 2,533 |
| 7 | Jaecoo 5 | 2,481 |
| 8 | Volkswagen Golf | 2,413 |
| 9 | Mini Cooper | 2,350 |
| 10 | Vauxhall Corsa | 2,326 |
Top 10 — 2026 so far
| # | Model | Units |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ford Puma | 33,173 |
| 2 | Kia Sportage | 29,033 |
| 3 | Jaecoo 7 | 26,549 |
| 4 | Nissan Qashqai | 26,326 |
| 5 | Vauxhall Corsa | 20,796 |
| 6 | Volkswagen Golf | 19,965 |
| 7 | MG HS | 19,424 |
| 8 | Mini Cooper | 18,645 |
| 9 | Volvo XC40 | 18,118 |
| 10 | Volkswagen Tiguan | 16,898 |
Fuel mix
| Fuel | Units | Share | YoY |
|---|---|---|---|
| BEV | 43,106 | 27.5% | +44.5% |
| HEV | 20,711 | 13.2% | +11.6% |
| PHEV | 23,359 | 14.9% | +33.6% |
| Petrol | 62,799 | 40.1% | -5.2% |
| Diesel | 6,596 | 4.2% | -17.7% |
Who's buying
| Buyer | Units | Share | YoY |
|---|---|---|---|
| Private | 58,137 | 37.1% | +12.6% |
| Fleet | 93,734 | 59.9% | +9.5% |
| Business | 4,700 | 3% | +61.3% |
Used cars · Q1 2026
2,016,232
-0.2% vs 2,020,990 a year earlier
Top 10 used models
| # | Model | Units |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ford Fiesta | 76,745 |
| 2 | Vauxhall Corsa | 62,201 |
| 3 | Volkswagen Golf | 56,236 |
| 4 | Ford Focus | 54,662 |
| 5 | Nissan Qashqai | 42,214 |
| 6 | Volkswagen Polo | 39,159 |
| 7 | BMW 3 Series | 37,621 |
| 8 | MINI | 37,438 |
| 9 | Vauxhall Astra | 35,340 |
| 10 | BMW 1 Series | 32,363 |
Fuel mix
| Fuel | Units | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Petrol | 1,147,969 | 56.9% |
| Diesel | 629,987 | 31.2% |
| Hybrid | 128,039 | 6.4% |
| Electric | 86,943 | 4.3% |
| Plug-in Hybrid | 20,021 | 1% |
By region
| Region | Units |
|---|---|
| South East | 292,545 |
| North West | 222,997 |
| West Midlands | 207,765 |
| East | 194,898 |
| South West | 185,473 |
| Yorkshire & Humberside | 182,360 |
| East Midlands | 161,809 |
| Scotland | 159,865 |
| London | 147,334 |
| Wales | 107,408 |
By colour
| Colour | Units |
|---|---|
| Black | 429,392 |
| Grey | 376,124 |
| White | 331,409 |
| Blue | 318,100 |
| Silver/Aluminium | 259,424 |
| Red | 197,170 |
| Green | 36,862 |
| Orange | 15,565 |
| Yellow | 10,820 |
| Brown | 9,741 |
Forecourt data · the best-sellers, analysed
Which of Britain's best-sellers actually hold their value?
Of the UK's best-selling cars, the Mini Cooper holds its value best on our data — keeping about 73% of its price after three years — while the Ford Fiesta keeps the least (55%). Every figure is drawn from the same depreciation, MOT and running-cost data behind that car's full profile.
| Model | Holds value · 3yr | Reliability | Cost to run · /yr |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mini Cooper | 73% | better than 63% | £2,565/yr |
| Volkswagen Golf | 72% | better than 74% | £2,722/yr |
| Jaecoo 7 | 69% | — | £2,697/yr |
| Ford Focus | 69% | — | £2,425/yr |
| Volvo XC40 | 68% | better than 79% | £3,034/yr |
| Nissan Qashqai | 67% | better than 69% | £2,608/yr |
| Vauxhall Corsa | 66% | — | £2,107/yr |
| Volkswagen Polo | 65% | better than 69% | £2,117/yr |
| Vauxhall Astra | 65% | better than 47% | £2,611/yr |
| Volkswagen Tiguan | 64% | better than 47% | £2,953/yr |
| BMW 1 Series | 64% | better than 67% | £2,874/yr |
| Kia Sportage | 63% | better than 35% | £2,656/yr |
| MG HS | 63% | better than 47% | £2,582/yr |
| BMW 3 Series | 61% | better than 19% | £3,854/yr |
| Ford Puma | 59% | better than 90% | £2,446/yr |
| Ford Kuga | 56% | better than 77% | £2,692/yr |
| Ford Fiesta | 55% | better than 37% | £2,144/yr |
“Holds value” is the share of its original price a typical example keeps after three years, from each model's depreciation curve. “Reliability” is the model's percentile for MOT pass rate across the cars we track. “Cost to run” is fuel, servicing, road tax and insurance for a typical three-year-old at average mileage, excluding depreciation. All come from the same data behind the full profiles. How these are worked out →
Forecourt data · value-retention league
Which cars hold their value best — and worst?
Across every model Forecourt tracks, the Caterham Seven holds its value best — keeping about 91% of its original price after three years — while the Jaguar I-Pace keeps the least, at 34%. Each figure is the three-year point on that model's depreciation curve, the same one behind its full profile.
Holds value best
| Model | Holds value · 3yr | Reliability |
|---|---|---|
| Caterham Seven | 91% | — |
| Hyundai i10 | 84% | better than 21% |
| Kia Picanto | 80% | better than 59% |
| Toyota Yaris Cross | 79% | better than 95% |
| Mercedes-Benz GLE Coupe | 79% | — |
| Honda Jazz | 78% | better than 97% |
| Toyota Yaris | 77% | better than 87% |
| Bentley Continental GT | 77% | better than 93% |
Loses value fastest
| Model | Holds value · 3yr | Reliability |
|---|---|---|
| Jaguar I-Pace | 34% | better than 87% |
| Renault Zoe | 37% | — |
| Nissan Leaf | 38% | better than 69% |
| MG MG5 | 38% | — |
| Volkswagen ID. Buzz | 40% | better than 43% |
Ranked by the share of original price kept at three years, across the models we track. Reliability is each model's MOT pass-rate percentile. How these are worked out →
Forecourt data · surviving vs vanishing
Which best-sellers are growing — and which are fading — on UK roads?
Among the cars Britain buys most, the MG HS is growing fastest on the road, up 36.9% year-on-year vs 2024, while the Vauxhall Astra is fading fastest, down 9.4%. Figures track how many of each model are taxed for UK road use.
Growing on UK roads
Year-on-year change in the number taxed for UK road use, vs 2024, for the current best-sellers. From DVLA/DfT vehicle-licensing data. How these are worked out →
Common questions
Most asked
Which cars hold their value best in the UK?
Across the models Forecourt tracks, the Caterham Seven holds its value best, keeping about 91% of its original price after three years. The figure is the three-year point on its depreciation curve, the same data behind its full profile.
Which cars lose their value fastest in the UK?
The Jaguar I-Pace retains the least of the models we track, keeping about 34% of its price after three years. Fast depreciation tends to hit cars with weak used demand, plentiful supply, or rapidly improving newer versions.
What is the best-selling new car in the UK?
The Ford Puma is the UK's best-selling new car, with 3,531 registered in July 2026 and 33,173 so far in 2026. It leads a new market that has tilted heavily toward crossovers and SUVs, holding top spot even as total registrations sit at 156,571 for the month (+11.7% year-on-year).
What is the best-selling used car in the UK?
The Ford Fiesta is the UK's best-selling used car, with 76,745 changing hands in Q1 2026 — striking for a model no longer in production. The used market runs on established superminis and family cars rather than the crossovers that lead new sales, which is why the new and used best-seller lists look so different.
How many new cars were registered in the UK in July 2026?
156,571 new cars were registered in July 2026, +11.7% against the 140,154 registered a year earlier. Of those, 27.5% were battery-electric — the clearest sign of how quickly the new-car mix is shifting even when the headline volume moves only modestly.
How many used cars were sold in the UK in Q1 2026?
2,016,232 used cars changed hands in Q1 2026, -0.2% on the 2,020,990 a year earlier. The used market dwarfs the new one in volume, which is why used-car value retention, reliability and running costs matter more to most buyers than new-model launches.
What share of UK car sales are electric?
27.5% of new cars in July 2026 were battery-electric, versus just 4.3% of used sales in Q1 2026. That gap is one of the biggest stories in the market: the new fleet is electrifying years ahead of the used fleet, so used EVs remain a small, fast-moving slice where depreciation and battery condition matter most.
About this data
New-car figures are official UK registrations for July 2026; used-car figures are transactions reported for Q1 2026. New and used periods differ because the two datasets are published on different cycles — registrations monthly, used-car volumes quarterly.
Source: SMMT (Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders). Model links go to Forecourt's own depreciation, running-cost and reliability profiles. Figures are reproduced for reference; where a model isn't yet in our catalogue it appears without a link.
Data updated 2026-08-13 · Source: SMMT