Geely Overtakes BYD As China’s Best Selling Brand

For most of the past three years, BYD has often seemed invincible. The company constantly launched new models, expanded its offer and recorded impressive sales growth. However, the start of 2026 brought a sharp slowdown, allowing rival Geely to take over the lead in the Chinese market.

In the first two months of this year, BYD sold 400,241 vehicles, which is a drop of 36 percent compared to the same period last year. Of these, 190,190 vehicles were sold in February, which represents a 9.5 percent drop compared to the previous month, partly due to the Lunar New Year celebration, but also a 41 percent drop compared to February last year.

The reduction in tax credits and the decline in consumer confidence are starting to affect the market. Many buyers are delaying purchases, waiting for new models and clearer information about the government’s vehicle replacement programs before investing.

While BYD faces difficulties at home, the company continues to strengthen in foreign markets. In February alone, they exported 100,600 of their vehicles to new energy sources, which include electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles. Including January, BYD’s total exports this year reached 201,082 vehicles, accounting for roughly half of total sales.

Competition is getting stronger.

While BYD is going through challenges, several other Chinese manufacturers are seeing strong growth. In the first two months of 2026, sales of Stellantis partner Leapmotor rose 19 percent to 60,126 units. Xiaomi’s electric vehicle division recorded a growth of 48 percent year-on-year, with more than 59,000 vehicles sold. Zeekr saw 84 percent growth, while Nio brand shipments jumped 77 percent.

Geely also achieves extremely good results. Year-to-date, they have delivered roughly 76,000 more vehicles than BYD in China. This is a significant figure because this is the first time since 2022 that Geely has surpassed BYD in sales for two consecutive months. Although Geely currently leads in China, it is slightly behind in foreign markets with 181,891 vehicles exported this year.

According to Bloomberg, BYD CEO Wang Chuanfu acknowledged the growing pressure back in December. He said competing automakers have begun to close the technology gap that once gave BYD a clear advantage, and that now appears to be reflected in sales figures.

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