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Electric-first car brands in New Zealand:Which brands are most popular in search?

In August 2026, BYD was the most searched among electric-first car brands in New Zealand, with an estimated 53.2K branded searches and 36.6% estimated Share of Search within this set.

Share of Search, August 2026
  1. BYD36.6%
  2. Tesla30.2%
  3. Zeekr13%
  4. Denza5.6%
  5. Leapmotor5.5%
  6. XPENG4.7%
  7. Polestar4.2%
  8. Ora0.38%

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Share of SearchLeaderboard

Compare electric-first automotive marques available to New Zealand drivers, using branded searches made in New Zealand. Hybrid models from these brands are also included in their brand demand. Branded searches tell you how often people look for a brand by name or related terms. Comparing these searches across competitors helps you see how popular each brand is over time.

Share of Search among electric-first car brands in New Zealand, by month

Share of Search by month for BYD, Tesla, Zeekr, Denza, Leapmotor, XPENG, Polestar. The figures are in the table below the chart.

View monthly share of search table
MonthBYDTeslaZeekrDenzaLeapmotorXPENGPolestarOra
Oct 202531%41.2%9.7%1.4%5.9%2.4%8%0.45%
Nov 202536.7%36.9%7.6%2.7%5.1%3.2%7.5%0.41%
Dec 202533.1%35.8%7.7%8%5.1%2.2%7.6%0.48%
Jan 202640.2%33.4%6.3%5.7%4.6%2.9%6.4%0.46%
Feb 202635.9%34.2%8.7%6%4.6%3.9%6.3%0.46%
Mar 202644.6%31.1%7.9%2.3%3.8%3.5%6.5%0.3%
Apr 202643.4%29.6%10.1%2.9%4.5%4%5.2%0.27%
May 202639.8%29.2%11.4%4.3%4.8%4.1%6.1%0.28%
Jun 202641.6%30.7%8.9%3.7%6%3.6%5.2%0.32%
Jul 202636.6%30.7%9.5%5.1%5.5%7.2%5.2%0.36%
Aug 202636.6%30.2%13%5.6%5.5%4.7%4.2%0.38%
Sep 2026————————

This month’s ranking, August 2026

  1. 1.BYD

    36.6%

    held 1st · 53.2K estimated branded searches · +9.2% vs prior month · 0 points

  2. 2.Tesla

    30.2%

    held 2nd · 43.9K estimated branded searches · +7.2% vs prior month · -0.5 points

  3. 3.Zeekr

    13%

    held 3rd · 18.9K estimated branded searches · +49.5% vs prior month · +3.5 points

  4. 4.Denza

    5.6%

    moved from 7th to 4th · 8.1K estimated branded searches · +20.5% vs prior month · +0.5 points

  5. 5.Leapmotor

    5.5%

    held 5th · 8K estimated branded searches · +8.8% vs prior month · 0 points

  6. 6.XPENG

    4.7%

    moved from 4th to 6th · 6.8K estimated branded searches · -29.3% vs prior month · -2.5 points

  7. 7.Polestar

    4.2%

    moved from 6th to 7th · 6.1K estimated branded searches · -10.8% vs prior month · -0.9 points

  8. 8.Ora

    0.38%

    held 8th · 550 estimated branded searches · +14.6% vs prior month · 0 points

Compare search popularity between leading brands

Which brand is most popular in search among electric-first car brands in New Zealand?

In August 2026, BYD was the most searched among electric-first car brands in New Zealand, with an estimated 53.2K branded searches and 36.6% estimated Share of Search within this set. Tesla is in 2nd place, 6.4 percentage points behind at 30.2% Share of Search.

New Zealand electric-first car brands, last 12 months ending September 2026
BrandShare of SearchPeakLowRank
BYD31% → 36.6%44.6%Mar 202631%Oct 20252nd → 1st
Tesla41.2% → 30.2%41.2%Oct 202529.2%May 20261st → 2nd
Zeekr9.7% → 13%13%Aug 20266.3%Jan 20263rd
Denza1.4% → 5.6%8%Dec 20251.4%Oct 20257th → 4th
Leapmotor5.9% → 5.5%6%Jun 20263.8%Mar 20265th
XPENG2.4% → 4.7%7.2%Jul 20262.2%Dec 20256th
Polestar8% → 4.2%8%Oct 20254.2%Aug 20264th → 7th
Ora0.45% → 0.38%0.48%Dec 20250.27%Apr 20268th

Each finding as a sentence

  • Across the 11 months ending August 2026, BYD’s estimated Share of Search among electric-first car brands in New Zealand increased from 31% to 36.6%.
  • Across the 11 months ending August 2026, Tesla’s estimated Share of Search among electric-first car brands in New Zealand decreased from 41.2% to 30.2%.
  • Across the 11 months ending August 2026, Zeekr’s estimated Share of Search among electric-first car brands in New Zealand increased from 9.7% to 13%.
  • Across the 11 months ending August 2026, Denza’s estimated Share of Search among electric-first car brands in New Zealand increased from 1.4% to 5.6%.
  • Across the 11 months ending August 2026, XPENG’s estimated Share of Search among electric-first car brands in New Zealand increased from 2.4% to 4.7%.
  • Across the 11 months ending August 2026, Polestar’s estimated Share of Search among electric-first car brands in New Zealand decreased from 8% to 4.2%.
  • Across the 11 months ending August 2026, BYD’s estimated Share of Search among electric-first car brands in New Zealand peaked at 44.6% in March 2026 and was lowest at 31% in October 2025.
  • Across the 11 months ending August 2026, Tesla’s estimated Share of Search among electric-first car brands in New Zealand peaked at 41.2% in October 2025 and was lowest at 29.2% in May 2026.
  • Across the 11 months ending August 2026, Zeekr’s estimated Share of Search among electric-first car brands in New Zealand peaked at 13% in August 2026 and was lowest at 6.3% in January 2026.
  • Across the 11 months ending August 2026, Denza’s estimated Share of Search among electric-first car brands in New Zealand peaked at 8% in December 2025 and was lowest at 1.4% in October 2025.
  • Across the 11 months ending August 2026, Leapmotor’s estimated Share of Search among electric-first car brands in New Zealand peaked at 6% in June 2026 and was lowest at 3.8% in March 2026.
  • Across the 11 months ending August 2026, XPENG’s estimated Share of Search among electric-first car brands in New Zealand peaked at 7.2% in July 2026 and was lowest at 2.2% in December 2025.
  • Across the 11 months ending August 2026, BYD rose from 2nd to 1st among electric-first car brands in New Zealand.
  • Across the 11 months ending August 2026, Tesla fell from 1st to 2nd among electric-first car brands in New Zealand.
  • Across the 11 months ending August 2026, Denza rose from 7th to 4th among electric-first car brands in New Zealand.
  • Across the 11 months ending August 2026, Polestar fell from 4th to 7th among electric-first car brands in New Zealand.
  • Across the 11 months ending August 2026, Leapmotor and Ora held steady: their estimated Share of Search among electric-first car brands in New Zealand each moved less than 0.5 percentage points.

How did search popularity change for New Zealand electric-first car brands in August 2026?

  1. In August 2026, Denza overtook Polestar to rank 4th among electric-first car brands in New Zealand, at 5.6%.

  2. In August 2026, Zeekr gained estimated Share of Search among electric-first car brands in New Zealand, from 9.5% to 13%.

  3. In August 2026, XPENG lost estimated Share of Search among electric-first car brands in New Zealand, from 7.2% to 4.7%.

  4. In August 2026, Polestar lost estimated Share of Search among electric-first car brands in New Zealand, from 5.2% to 4.2%.

  5. In August 2026, Tesla lost estimated Share of Search among electric-first car brands in New Zealand, from 30.7% to 30.2%.

  6. Estimated monthly branded searches for BYD in New Zealand rose 68.3% over 11 measured months, from 31.6K to 53.2K in August 2026.

  7. Estimated monthly branded searches for Leapmotor in New Zealand rose 32.7% over 11 measured months, from 6K to 8K in August 2026.

  8. Estimated monthly branded searches for Ora in New Zealand rose 19.6% over 11 measured months, from 460 to 550 in August 2026.

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