GM’s EV Sales Are Booming. But Can It Catch Tesla?

If you work on any of GM’s electric vehicles, give yourself a pat on the back. This past week, the company released a full list of EV sales figures for the first quarter of 2025, and the numbers are shockingly good (pun intended).

GM has already delivered more than 62,000 EVs in the US through May, with last month being the second-best in the automaker’s history for EV sales. That marks an impressive 94 percent year-over-year increase.

GM achieved a 15.5-percent EV market share in Q1, putting it in second place domestically, just behind Tesla. The question is: Can GM take the crown before the end of 2025?

While those numbers are impressive for GM, the company still has a way to go if it wants to catch Tesla.

According to Cox Automotive, Tesla sold an estimated 128,100 electric vehicles between January and May—nearly double what GM has sold. And that’s with an 8.6-percent decrease year-over-year. Tesla also recently introduced the updated Model Y and has plans for more models later in the year.

Through April, though, GM’s EV sales were up a whopping 94 percent, spearheaded largely by Cadillac and Chevrolet. Cadillac’s EVs were up by 37 percent, while Chevy’s EV sales improved by an impressive 119 percent, led by the Blazer EV and Equinox EV. GMC also saw a large bump in sales from the Hummer EV and electric Sierra pickup.

GM currently offers 13 electric vehicles throughout its portfolio of brands, ranging from compact SUVs to trucks. Chevrolet alone has become the fastest-growing EV brand of the group, with more than 37,000 vehicles sold through May. That edges out Ford, which moved just 34,000 EVs in the same period. Chevrolet currently has three EVs in its portfolio: The Blazer EV, Equinox EV, and Silverado EV (not counting the BrightDrop electric cargo van).

“Customers are responding in record numbers to our world-class portfolio of electric and gas-powered vehicles,” notes Rory Harvey, executive VP and president of global markets.

Photo by: Buick

It’s not just the EV side of the business that’s seeing sustained success. GM’s massive portfolio of gas and hybrid vehicles is also seeing record numbers already this year.

Buick was one of the biggest movers early in 2025. Sales for the luxury automaker were up 39 percent through April, with the Enclave, Encore GX, and Envista being the brand’s top sellers. The new Enclave alone was up 39 percent—the nameplate’s best sales quarter since 2019. As a whole, this was Buick’s best sales quarter since 2006.

Cadillac wasn’t far behind with a sales increase of 21 percent, marking nearly three straight years of retail sales growth. The Escalade had its best Q1 to date, as did Cadillac’s V-Series performance cars—likely aided by the arrival of the updated Blackwing models. All told, Cadillac reeled in its best retail market share since 2014.

GMC had its best sales quarter ever, with an 18 percent increase. The Sierra was up 13 percent, and the Canyon jumped an impressive 66 percent. But the Acadia was the brand’s biggest mover, improving by 73 percent. The Yukon and Yukon XL also had their best sales quarters since 2007, improving by 29 percent.

By percentages, Chevrolet saw the smallest increase—just 14 percent. But, it was still the brand’s best quarter since 2019. The new Trax was up 57 percent, the Traverse jumped by 62 percent, and the Colorado pickup improved by 73 percent. This also marked the best Q1 for the Tahoe since 2007, with a 28 percent increase.

There’s still plenty of time in the year to see how GM fairs, but so far, the automaker is clearly on the right track.