Tesla EVs recharge at a Tesla Supercharger station on July 2, 2026, in South Pasadena, California.<\/p>\n
Mario Tama | Getty Images<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
Prices for used electric vehicles are doing something unusual \u2014 and the dynamic poses both good and bad news for consumers, according to automotive experts.<\/p>\n
Generally, used car prices depreciate over time. Indeed, as the popular saying goes, any car \u2014 new or used \u2014 starts losing its value<\/a> as soon as it leaves the lot.<\/p>\n “That’s just the law of used cars,” said Andrew Garberson, the head of growth and research at Recurrent, which helps value<\/a> used EVs. <\/p>\n In the auto ecosystem, used EVs are notorious for their especially rapid depreciation, experts said. They’ve historically had “horrendous” resale values, said Ivan Drury, director of insights at Edmunds, a car research site. <\/p>\n This year, prices for used EV have so far moved in the opposite direction, according to industry data.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Prices for used EVs are up 5.1% from January to June 2026, according to a Recurrent analysis published this month. The trend continued into the second half of the year: Prices are up 7% year to date through mid-July, it said.<\/p>\n Recurrent compared EVs according to the same make and model year across 108 combinations and weighted price growth according to inventory volume. <\/p>\n “Used EVs are appreciating, which almost never happens,” according to an e-mailed Recurrent statement about the analysis. <\/p>\n Other auto analysts found a similar trend. <\/p>\n The average transaction price for 3-year-old EVs \u2014 those with a 2023 model year \u2014 rose 6% during the first half of 2026, to $33,303 from $31,429, according to an Edmunds analysis conducted exclusively for CNBC. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n Price growth for used EVs has been broad-based, said Stephanie Valdez Streaty, the director of industry insights at Cox Automotive, a market research firm.<\/p>\n Twenty-one of the 25 used EV models with the highest sales volume increased in price between January and June this year, she said. <\/p>\n Overall, the price trend is positive for current EV owners looking to sell their cars, since they have better odds of receiving a higher price, experts said. <\/p>\n “If you own one right now and you’re debating selling, this matters to you a lot,” Drury said. “If your ownership cycle is coming to an end with this vehicle, price-shop this thing.”<\/p>\n However, the trend poses a potential downside to would-be buyers, since a higher price tag could make the car less affordable, experts said. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n Interior of Rivian’s new all-electric R2 SUV.<\/p>\n Michael Wayland \/ CNBC<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Sustained price appreciation for used cars has happened before, generally when there’s a shift in supply and demand patterns, experts said. <\/p>\n This happened during the Covid-19 pandemic, for example: Consumer demand for used cars ballooned as automakers struggled to produce new cars amid shortages<\/a> of important manufacturing components. <\/p>\n But the price growth for used EVs this year has been all the more surprising because it has happened despite a high supply of used EVs hitting the market \u2014 which, all else being equal, would generally cause prices to fall, experts said. <\/p>\n Recurrent expects more than 500,000 leased EVs to return to market as used cars this year, and even more next year, Garberson said. <\/p>\n “What we’re seeing in 2026 is different because we have more used EV supply than ever,” Garberson said. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n In other words, strong consumer demand has acted as a countervailing force against high supply \u2014 a perhaps unexpected outcome given that Republicans eliminated a federal tax credit that had made EVs more affordable for households, Garberson said. <\/p>\n The Inflation Reduction Act, which President Joe Biden signed in 2022, had made the tax break available through 2032. President Donald Trump’s “big beautiful bill” curtailed it ahead of schedule, <\/strong>ending the tax break after Sept. 30, 2025<\/a>.<\/p>\n “The narrative the last nine months has been, after the tax credits expired, no one would buy an electric car anymore,” Garberson said.<\/p>\n Of course, EV sales are still just a fraction of the overall auto market. New EVs accounted for 5.4% of total new-vehicle sales in June, while the market share for used EVs was just 2.4%, according to Cox Automotive data.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Cars parked in front of homes in Daly City, California, May 19, 2026.<\/p>\n Jason Henry | Bloomberg | Getty Images<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n There are several factors juicing consumer demand for used EVs, experts said. <\/p>\n Among them are high gasoline prices due to the Iran war<\/a>, which have pushed more consumers to consider fuel-efficient options, experts said. <\/p>\n Average gas prices in the U.S. were about $4.10 per gallon as of July 27 \u2014 up roughly 31% from $3.12 a year earlier, according to weekly data<\/a> published by the Energy Information Administration. <\/p>\n Fuel prices are “supercharging the EV demand,” Drury said. <\/p>\n The impact of gas prices has also increased demand for other fuel-efficient cars: Prices for 3-year-old hybrid vehicles were up 3% in the first half of the year, for example, according to Edmunds. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n Overall affordability is another big factor, against a backdrop of inflation that has remained above policymakers’ target of 2% for five or so years, auto experts said. The dynamic has pushed more consumers toward the used car market<\/a> more broadly. <\/p>\n Used EV sales were up 20% in June versus a year earlier, while sales of new EVs were down about 28%, according to Cox Automotive data. <\/p>\n Consumers can often get a newer EV \u2014 perhaps one that’s 3 years old \u2014 at roughly the same price point as a comparable gas-powered car that’s 4\u00bd to 5 years old, Drury said. In that sense, consumers may see more value in the newer EV, since it likely has better technology and lower mileage, he said. <\/p>\n “It always comes down to affordability in car sales,” Rob Dell, vice president at Bob Ruth Ford, a car dealership in Dillsburg, Pennsylvania, said during a recent podcast interview<\/a> with Recurrent. “It doesn’t matter if it runs on gas or electric.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n A Ford employee works inside a high-voltage lab at Ford’s new Electric Vehicle Development Center in Long Beach, California.<\/p>\n Courtesy Ford<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Additionally, consumers have more choice among EV brands and models across various price points than they did even a few years ago, experts said. That additional choice has bolstered consumer demand, they said.<\/p>\n Prices have increased most for the lowest-cost used EVs as consumers seek out cheaper models, experts said. <\/p>\n Used EVs under $20,000 have seen prices increase 9.4% in the first half of 2026, compared with 5.6% for those in the $20,000 to $30,000 range and 6.5% in the $30,000 to $40,000 range, according to Recurrent’s analysis<\/a>. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n It always comes down to affordability in car sales. It doesn’t matter if it runs on gas or electric.<\/p>\n Rob Dell<\/p>\n vice president at Bob Ruth Ford<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n Used EVs at higher price points saw declining prices over that period: a 1.2% drop for used EVs that cost $40,000 to $50,000 and a 3.3% drop for those over $50,000, Recurrent found. <\/p>\n The total cost of ownership for an EV may also be lower than that of a traditional gas-powered vehicle, due to things like generally lower maintenance costs \u2014 something that dealers have gotten better at communicating to potential buyers, Valdez Streaty said. <\/p>\n Consumers may also save on fuel costs depending on factors<\/a> such as whether they can charge their EV at home and if they have relatively low electricity prices in their area, experts said. <\/p>\n “Market dynamics right now are making used EVs a really good option for consumers,” Valdez Streaty said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\nRead more CNBC personal finance coverage<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
Why used EV prices are rising<\/h2>\n
‘It always comes down to affordability’<\/h2>\n
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