As a growing flood of off-lease EVs hits the market, and gas prices are at all-time highs, buyers are eager for used EVs—and prices have risen.

A previously overlooked corner of the EV market is suddenly having its moment in the sun. But the new kid on the block is…used?

New electric vehicles get a lot of attention—given their remarkable advances in 15 years, that’s understandable. But a growing number of drivers are finding that used EVs hit the sweet spot of capability, availability and affordability.

Many people don’t know that two and a half times as many used cars are sold in the US as new cars: 39 million used cars change hands every year vs the typical 15 to 17 million vehicles sold new. As cars last longer—S&P Global Mobility says the average model on US roads is now 12.8 years old—and rising prices make new vehicles unaffordable for more and more households, there’s little shame left to driving a recent car bought used.

More than 600,000 new EVs were leased from 2023 to 2025 to take advantage of the commercial-purchase loophole in the IRA. Their three-year leases are now starting to expire.

But EVs add a new wrinkle to the new-vs-used discussion. New EV sales have leveled out from the lows they hit after incentives ended a year ago—but used EV sales have grown for four quarters as a proportion of all EVs sold in the US.

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