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2021 US Auto Sales Figures – By Manufacturer (Automaker Rankings)

2021 U.S. Automotive Sales by Automaker – The Best-Selling Automotive Manufacturers By Sales Volume

The best-selling auto manufacturers in the United States in 2021 were Toyota Motor Corporation (Toyota and Lexus), General Motors (Chevrolet, Buick, GMC, and Cadillac), Ford Motor Company (Ford and Lincoln), Honda Motor Company and Stellantis (Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep, Ram, Fiat, Alfa Romeo, Maserati, and Peugeot). These five manufacturers accounted for over 70% of all new car sales in the US in 2021. The overall US auto market in 2021 was rebounding from the COVID-19 pandemic, but it was still down from pre-pandemic levels. Total new car sales in 2021 were 15.06 million units, up 11.5% from 2020 but down 7.5% from 2019.

Toyota is the world’s largest automaker and has been the best-selling brand in the US for several years. Toyota is known for its reliable and fuel-efficient vehicles, such as the Camry, Corolla, and RAV4. Toyota also sells luxury vehicles under the Lexus brand.  General Motors is the largest automaker in the US and has been in business for over 100 years. GM sells a wide range of vehicles, from cars and SUVs to trucks and vans. GM’s best-selling vehicles include the Silverado, Equinox, and Camaro. Ford is the second-largest automaker in the US and is known for its popular trucks and SUVs, such as the F-150, Escape, and Explorer. Ford is also investing heavily in electric vehicles, with the Mustang Mach-E and F-150 Lightning already on the market.

Honda is a Japanese automaker that is known for its reliable and fuel-efficient vehicles. Honda’s best-selling vehicles in the US include the Civic, Accord, and CR-V. Stellantis is a new automaker that was formed in 2021 through the merger of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles and Groupe PSA. Stellantis sells a wide range of vehicles under a variety of brands, including Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep, Ram, Fiat, Alfa Romeo, Maserati, and Peugeot. Stellantis’ best-selling vehicles in the US include the Ram 1500, Jeep Wrangler, and Jeep Cherokee.

2021 Best Selling Automakers in the U.S

This data table looks at last month’s total passenger car sales volumes in the United States by manufacturer. We compare U.S manufacturer sales for last month with the same month last year. We also include the year to date sales numbers and compare with the same year to date numbers from last year. With both monthly and YTD sales numbers we have a growth rate column so you can better gauge an individual manufacturer’s sales success in the U.S market.

2021 Automaker Market Share Dynamics in the U.S

This chart gives you a view of the year to date automotive sales volumes by manufacturer and how they make up the U.S automotive market in terms of market share. You can see in this handy chart that the big manufacturer continue to make up a disproportionate amount of the market for new car sales.

2021 vs 2020 U.S Automaker Sales Comparison

This chart simply takes each brand and compares their year to date sales with the year to date sales for the same time last year. Brands where the dark green bar is lower than the light green have seen declines in sales year on year whereas brands with a higher dark green bar and lower light green bar are seeing growth in volumes year on year.

2021 Automaker U.S Sales Growth Analysis

This chart might seem a little complicated at first but once you understand it is very helpful. First, the size of the area for each manufacturer refers to their market share (i.e size). The bigger the circle the larger the manufacturer in terms of sales volumes (YTD). The position of the circle in the chart along the left axis looks at the year to date growth of that manufacturer. The higher the manufacturer is on the chart, the more year to date growth it is seeing in sales volumes. Along the bottom axis you can see the total volumes shipped by that manufacturer year to date.

Automotive Data Disclosures

Important note: Both Ford, GM, and FCA have switched to quarterly reporting, making it more difficult to accurately gauge sales. We won’t have results to report for Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, GMC, Ford, Lincoln, Jeep, Chrysler, Fiat, Alfa Romeo, Dodge, and Ram until the end of each quarter.