New EV sales entered 2025 with a lot of momentum. EV sales in the fourth quarter of 2024 reached 10% of all car sales and overall for the year hit a record 1.6 million vehicles.

The first few months of 2025 are showing similar trends, with new EVs sales growing more than 11% in Q1. Much of this is due to fear that the consumer EV rebates will be revoked, and scrambling to get large consumer purchases under the wire before tariffs hit. Nonetheless, a significant part of it is due to automakers tapping into what drivers want and adding variety to their lineups. Building on the 54 unique models offered in 2024, the 2025 lineup offers 71 unique models with improved specs and options for every lifestyle.

Average EV Range Increases 4% to 293 miles in 2025

Average vehicle range for EVs has been increasing year by year since the first mass market EV - the 2011 Nissan LEAF - debuted with 73 miles of all electric range.

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The introduction of the Tesla Model S in 2012 more than doubled the average range, and as more EVs entered the market between 2-13 and 2017, the average range hovered around 170 miles. However, starting in 2018 with the introduction of the Chevrolet Bolt EV and the Tesla Model 3, average range surpassed 200 miles and continued its climb to 300 mi.  

  1. Range change from 2024: +4%
  2. Range change from 2020: +12%
  3. Range change from 2015: +82%

Recurrent’s EV research team awarded seven range leaders for the 2025 model year based on these categories. 

Fast Charge Speeds Improve by 7% in 2025

Fast charging speed is a new, key EV performance metric that is becoming more important as public charging infrastructure improves. However, battery sizes vary different from model to model, and automakers publicize charging speeds in different ways (peak charging rates, 0-100% charging time, 20-80% charging time). This can make it difficult for consumers to compare from one brand to another.

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The metric that Recurrent uses is “Time to Add 100 miles” and it normalizes charging speeds regardless of battery size to allow comparisons between different models and over time. This number also assumes the DC fast charging equipment has enough power that the vehicle is the limiting factor, not the charger.

For many EV owners, the majority of charging happens at home or at work on Level 2 chargers, but home charging is not universally available, and road trips that exceed 200 - 300 miles require DC fast charging. 

The time it takes to recharge a battery at a DC fast charger depends on two things:

  1. The speed that a DC fast charger can push power to your vehicle, and
  2. The rate that your vehicle can accept power.

As charging infrastructure becomes less of a limiter (#1), vehicle manufacturers are making improvements on #2. In 2025, the fastest charging EV on the market in 2025 is the Hyundai Ioniq 6 RWD, which can refill 100 miles at an average speed of 8.3 minutes – twice as fast as the average for the model year. 

The research team at Recurrent awarded seven category leaders for charging excellence in 2025. 

Average EV Efficiency Drops by 16% From 2018 Peak

EV efficiency has been decreasing over time as automakers introduce larger and heavier vehicles, such as trucks and SUVs, that appeal to American drivers. Thanks to falling battery production costs, bigger batteries don’t affect prices too much, all while continuing to increase range.

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EV efficiency peaked in 2018, before EVs hit the mainstream. At that time, there were only a handful of battery electric vehicles on the market: Chevrolet Bolt EV, Volkswagen e-Golf, BMW i3, Hyundai IONIQ Electric, Nissan Leaf, and Tesla Models 3, S, X. With the cost of lithium ion batteries at $176/kWh, automakers were trying to get the highest range with the smallest battery.

The battery costs in 2024 fell to $115/kWh. A desire to increase range while adding larger vehicles has caused EV efficiency to come down 16% since 2018.

Like fast charging speeds however, there are vehicles that are far better than the average for the model year. 

Recurrent’s winners for the 2025 Most Efficient EVs are:

While nearly every EV is less expensive to operate than nearly every combustion engine vehicle, the reasons to opt for a more efficient EV include minimizing monthly electricity costs and overall emissions.

Interestingly, while range has been increasing every year for a decade, battery capacity growth is outpacing it. This is explained by the drop in efficiency.

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