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15 Car Sale Statistics in Australia (2024 Update)
Pete Ortiz
Last updated:
Note: This article’s statistics come from third-party sources and do not represent the opinions of this website.
In a country as big as Australia, cars are considered a necessity. But do the numbers back up that claim? What kinds of cars do people in Australia purchase? We tracked down all the most interesting and revealing statistics and highlighted them for you here. We also answered a few frequently asked questions that people have about car sales in the country.
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How Many Cars Does Australia Sell?
Image Credit: Thai Nguyen, Unsplash
1. Experts expect Australia to sell 1.2 million cars in 2023.
(Statista)
Australia sells millions of cars per capita, and when you translate that to raw numbers, experts expect that total to reach 1.2 million cars by 2023. That’s quite a few cars for one country!
2. Australia sold more than 8 million new cars in 7 years.
(Cars Guide)
Over 7 years, Australia has sold over 8 million cars, and that is including in 2020, when sales numbers plummeted because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Image Credit: EZ-Stock Studio, shutterstock
3. There are about 3 million used car sales each year in Australia.
(Cars Guide)
While Australia sells many new cars, used cars change hands quite often too. While estimates can be hard to come by, many experts estimate the total of used car sales each year to be in the range of 3 million.
4. Australia has 789 vehicles per 1,000 people.
(DingGo)
Australians love their cars, and they have quite a few of them. When you compare cars to people, there are 789 vehicles in the country for every 1,000 people. That might seem low, but keep in mind that this number includes children and anybody else who can’t drive.
So, there’s more than one vehicle for every eligible driver in the country!
Image Credit: Piqsels
5. There were 2,800 car dealerships in Australia in 2021.
(Ken Research)
If you have many people buying cars in Australia, you need many people selling cars. In 2021, there were 2,800 car dealerships in the country. While that might not seem like enough to sell over a million cars each year, when you break it down, that means each dealership averages one new car sale per calendar day.
6. New South Wales sold more used cars than any other state in Australia in 2021.
(Ken Research)
New South Wales averages more used car sales than any other state. Considering that it has Sydney and a few other large cities, it’s not surprising that there are so many used car sales there.
Image Credit: Goodfreephotos_com, Pixabay
The Most Popular Brands and Cars
7. Toyota sold 22.3% of all vehicles in Australia.
(Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries)
The most popular vehicle brand in Australia is Toyota. In fact, more than one in five new vehicles in Australia are Toyotas. That’s more than twice as much as the nearest competitor!
8. The Toyota HiLux has been the best-selling car in Australia since 2015.
(Cars Guide)
Toyota is the most popular vehicle brand in Australia, so it’s not surprising that it has the most popular vehicle too. What is a bit surprising is how long that vehicle has held the top spot. The Toyota HiLux has held the title as the most popular vehicle since 2015!
Image Credit: Streetmetal, Shutterstock
9. Toyota has sold the most cars in Australia since at least 2015.
(Cars Guide)
Not only has Toyota made the most popular vehicle in Australia (the Toyota Hilux) since 2015, but it’s also sold more vehicles than any other brand at least since then. They were likely the most popular vehicle before 2015 too, but not enough data is available to confirm that.
10. Mazda sells the second most cars in Australia.
(Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries)
Mazda doesn’t sell half as many vehicles as Toyota, but with 85,640 cars sold in 2019, it’s not hurting for sales either.
Image Credit: Piqsels
11. Electric vehicles made up just 0.2% of the vehicle market in Australia in 2020.
(DingGo)
One area where vehicle sales aren’t thriving is the electric vehicle market. While those numbers are on the rise, in 2020, they still only accounted for about 0.2% of the total vehicle market. That number should rise as electric vehicles become more common, though it might take Australia a while to catch up to the rest of the world.
Type of Car Sale Statistics
12. SUVs accounted for 49.6% of all cars sold in 2020.
(Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries)
In Australia, there’s a definitive preference for SUVs. In fact, just under half of all new vehicles bought in Australia in 2020 were SUVs. That’s far more than the next vehicle class.
Image Credit: ArtisticOperations, Pixabay
13. Light commercial vehicles accounted for 22.4% of all cars sold in 2020.
(Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries)
If you combine SUVs and light commercial vehicles, you get up to 72% of the market. That means most new vehicles in Australia are either an SUV or a light commercial vehicle, and both are larger vehicle types.
14. Passenger vehicles accounted for 24.2% of all cars sold in 2020.
(Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries)
Passenger vehicles like sedans were once the most popular type of vehicle in Australia. That’s not the case today. They make up 24.2%, which equals out to just about half as many SUVs.
Image Credit: vogas, Pixabay
15. Electric vehicle sales in Australia increased by 69.3% from December 2019 to December 2020.
(DingGo)
While electric vehicles aren’t the most popular choices in Australia, they’re becoming more popular. In fact, while every other vehicle type saw a drop in sales in 2020, electric vehicles saw a surge of 69.3%. While that’s due in large part to how few electric vehicles people buy there, the number is certainly trending up.
Frequently Asked Questions
Now that you know more about car sale statistics in Australia, it’s normal to have a few questions. Here are the answers.
What Percentage of Australians Own a Car?
With so many people buying cars each year in Australia, it’s no surprise that 87.6% of all households in the country own at least one car. (Informed Decisions)
Image Credit: bubutu, Shutterstock
Will Australian Car Prices Drop in 2023?
While you can’t expect the price of new cars to drop in 2023, the Australian Financial Review expects used car prices to drop by 11% in 2023. They jumped up by 16% in 2022, so they won’t stabilize back to 2021 prices. (Australian Financial Review)
How Long Do Australians Keep Their Cars?
Most people in Australia hold onto their vehicle for about 6 years before deciding to switch things up with a new model. (Canstar Blue)
How Many People in Sydney Have a Car?
Sydney is similar to New York City, but it’s not quite as big or as compact. Like many people in metropolitan areas, people in Sydney are less likely to own a car than people in the rest of the country. Still, 56.2% of households in the city own at least one car. (Informed Decisions)
Image Credit: Patryk Kosmider, shutterstock
How Much Does the Average Australian Drive?
Many people are purchasing cars in Australia, but how much are they really driving? The average Australian drives 36.4 kilometres (22.6 miles) per day. For reference, Americans tend to drive about 35 miles per day. (Budget Direct)
Conclusion
With so many cars in Australia, the next time that people think about the land down under, they should picture a few vehicles! Millions more arrive every year, and even with supply shortages driving up demand, it doesn’t seem like Australia is going to see a drop in car sales numbers any time soon.
Pete has been working in the trades since high school, where he first developed a passion for woodworking. Over the years, he has developed a keen interest in a wide variety of DIY projects around the home. Fascinated by all sort of tools, Pete loves reading and writing about all the latest gadgets and accessories that hit the market. His other interests include astronomy, hiking, and fishing.
As the founder of House Grail, Pete's primary goal is to help consumers make educated decisions about DIY projects at home, in the garage, and in the garden.
