Czech Republic Car Sales kept momentum in 2024, up 4.7%, with Skoda solidifying its dominance by locking down the Top 5 models. Meanwhile, Tesla and Volvo stole the spotlight in the fast-growing EV market with standout performances.
Market Trend and Outlook
Czechia’s economy is set to grow 1.0% in 2024, accelerating to 2.7% by 2026, driven by recovering household consumption and strong investments supported by EU funds. Inflation is expected to decline from 2.7% in 2024 to 2.0% in 2026, with services inflation leading due to wage growth. Household consumption remains below pre-pandemic levels as cautious saving persists, while export growth stays subdued despite a strong automotive sector.
Unemployment will remain low at 2.7% by 2026, with wage growth slowing from 6.2% in 2024 to 5.6% in 2026. The fiscal deficit is forecast to narrow from 2.5% in 2024 to 1.9% in 2026, supported by reduced subsidies and tax reforms, though public debt will rise slightly to 44.8% of GDP. Public investment will peak in 2025 before stabilizing, while energy prices are expected to ease inflation further. Risks remain from trade dependencies and energy prices, but Czechia’s recovery is gradual and supported by fiscal and monetary discipline.
The Czech EV market surged 78% in 2024, fueled by a new subsidy program for entrepreneurs and businesses. EVs now make up 4.3% of total car sales, with further growth expected.
While Skoda dominates the overall market, Tesla led EV sales, and Volvo climbed to 3rd with the biggest leap, jumping 9 spots. MG and Fiat also posted triple-digit growth, making significant gains.
The Czech car market grew 4.7% year-over-year to 230,356 units. The positive trend was confirmed in Q4, with December going up by 18.6%.
Looking at cumulative data up to December 2024, brand-wise Skoda ranked 1st with 73,208 sales (-1.8%), posting a huge lead on the runner-up Hyundai, with only 18,927 registrations (+0.8%). Toyota -up 1 spot- in 3rd reported 14,043 sales (+2.7%) in front of Volkswagen -down 1 spot- with 11,022 sales (-25.1%) and Kia in 5th with 9,877 (-9.1%).
Dacia rose 1 spot into 6th with 8,306 sales (+17.3%), followed by Mercedes -down 1 spot- at 5,753 (-0.4%), Ford -up 1 spot- with 4,975 units sold (-6.8%), Renault -up 3 spots- at 4,613 sales (+70%) and BMW -down 2 spots- with 4,434 registrations (+13.7%).
Looking at specific models, for which there is a dedicated article, Skoda held the top 6 spots. The Skoda Octavia kept its position in 1st despite falling 11.%. The Skoda Karoq and the Skoda Kodiaq followed in 2dn and 3rd.
Medium-Term Market Trend
The Czech auto market from 2010 to 2017 presented an overall uptrend, reporting negative yearly variations only in 2012 (-3.5%) and 2013 (-9.0%). From 2014 to 2017 the market reached higher all time highs 4 years in a row, ending 2017 at a maximum of 266,753. In the following years the trend reversed, with 2018 resulting in a 2.4% loss and 2019 a -5.5% variation that would bring sales down to 246,033.
The arrival of the pandemic in 2020 caused the Czech car market to fall further, dropping 19% to 199,025 sales.
Following the Covid-19 crisis, in 2021 the market recovered 4%, just enough to get back above the 200k mark. The good news did’t last long, with sales falling 6.9% to 190,663 in 2022. A combination of factors are behind the current industry struggle: the disruption in the global supply chain caused by a lack of raw materials, in particular for the production of microchips and Governments push towards Evs, an expensive alternative for low income consumers. Despite, in 2023 the Czech Auto Market maintained steady growth, with total sales reaching 220,027 (+15.4%).
Tables with sales figures
In the tables below we report sales for all Brands, top 10 Manufacturers Group and top 10 models.