Global Auto Sales and Car Ownership. 15+ Statistics (2023)

Nov 23, 2020

Updated: February 2022

The 2020 pandemic affected businesses in many different ways. The auto industry was no different. Global auto sales reached $5.5 million in March of 2020, down 39% from 2019. While auto sales took a dive during the pandemic, that could be something to smile about while you are on your morning commute, as there are currently 1.42 billion cars worldwide. Below you'll find facts about current global auto sales, car manufacturers, current cars on the road, and the automobile industry.

Article Contents

Global / International Auto Sales Statistics. How Many Cars are Sold Each Year?
How Many Cars are there in the world?
Automobile Industry Stats and Market Size. How Big is the Automobile Industry?

Americans will always be in love with cars. Let it be new cars, classic cars, movie cars, and even their own cars. People are passionate about what kind of vehicles they like and even what kind of brands they choose to support. Currently, there are 1.42 billion cars worldwide. Of those cars, 1.06 billion are passenger cars and 363 million commercial.

Statistics (Editors Picks)

• In 2019, automakers sold more than 17 million vehicles in the US, marking 5 consecutive years of increased sales. Low unemployment, available credit, and healthy consumer sentiment were contributors to a robust market.

• Analysts expect U.S vehicle sales to be between 17.7 million and 17.1 million in 2020.

• In October of 2020, total vehicle sales in the US decreased to 16.20 Million from the 16.34 Million it was in September.

• In March 2020, global vehicle sales totaled 5.55 million, down 39% from March 2019. This is the largest year-on-year monthly decrease since 1980. Even transcending the global financial crisis of 2008, which saw a 25% decrease in sales.

• The US averaged 15.60 Million total vehicle sales from 1993 until 2020, hitting an all-time high of 21.77 Million in October 2001 and a record low of 8.60 Million in April 2020.

• In 2020, global sales of automobiles are expected to fall under 62 Million, down from a peak of 80 million in 2017.

• There are currently 1.42 billion cars in operation worldwide, including 1.06 billion passenger cars and 363 billion commercial vehicles.

• In 2010, the 1 billion unit mark was reached for cars in the world.

• The market size of the Car & Manufacturing Industry is $69 billion in 2020. The market size is expected to decline by -30.3% in 2020.

• $953 billion is driven into the economy by the auto manufacturing industry through sales, assembly plant employees, small part suppliers, and auto-related small business to revenue for the government.

• The US has one of the largest automotive markets in the world. In 2019 U.S vehicle sales reached 17 million units for the 5th straight year.

Global / International Auto Sales and Statistics

How Many Cars Are Sold Each Year?

Photo Credit: Ye Masa K on Unsplash

In 2019, automakers sold more than 17 million vehicles in the US, marking 5 consecutive years of increased sales. Low unemployment, available credit, and healthy consumer sentiment were contributors to a robust market.

Americans love their cars. Year to year, car sales continue to climb. In fact, 2019 marked the 5th consecutive year that car sales exceeded 17 million vehicles. Low unemployment rates, available credit, and healthy consumer sentiment were all factors in a robust market. 2020, however, broke the trend the car industry had going. In March of 2020, global car sales totaled 5.5 million. This was down 39% from March of 2019, marking the largest year-on-year drop since 1980, even transcending the global financial crisis of 2008. Between 1993 up until 2020, the US averaged 15.60 million total vehicle sales, with an all-time high of 21.77 million in October of 2001. Then hitting a record low of 8.60 million in April of 2020. Globally, auto sales are estimated to drop under 60 million units, down from a peak of almost 80 million in 2017.

Key Statistics:

In October of 2020, total vehicle sales in the US decreased to 16.20 Million from the 16.34 Million it was in September.

According to the US car sales statistics, these were the passenger cars sold by year:

o 7.7 million in 2014

o 7.5 million in 2015

o 6.9 million in 2016

o 6 million in 2017

o 5.3 million in 2018

o 4.7 million in 2019

In March 2020, global vehicle sales totaled 5.55 million, down 39% from March 2019. The largest year-on-year monthly decrease since 1980. Even transcending the global financial crisis of 2008, which saw a 25% decrease in sales.

The US averaged 15.60 Million total vehicle sales from 1993 until 2020, hitting an all-time high of 21.77 Million in October 2001 and a record low of 8.60 Million in April 2020.

Global sales of automobiles are forecast to fall to just under 62 million units in 2020, down from a peak of almost 80 million units in 2017.

In 2019, just under 17 million light vehicles were sold in the U.S., accounting for about 97 percent of the roughly 17.5 million motor vehicles.

Sources:

https://www.cnbc.com/2020/01/06/us-auto-sales-down-in-2019-but-still-top-17-million.html
https://tradingeconomics.com/united-states/total-vehicle-sales
https://fortunly.com/statistics/us-car-sales-statistics/#gref
https://cleantechnica.com/2020/08/10/us-auto-sales-down-by-1-5-million-in-2nd-quarter-amplifying-long-trends
https://tradingeconomics.com/united-states/total-vehicle-sales
https://www.statista.com/topics/1487/automotive-industry
https://www.selectusa.gov/automotive-industry-united-states

Number of Cars in the World

Exactly How Many Cars are There in the World?

Photo Credit: Thomas Tucker on Unsplash

There are currently 1.42 billion cars in operation worldwide, including 1.06 billion passenger cars and 363 billion commercial vehicles.

It only takes one morning commute to work to realize that there are a lot of cars on the road. Currently, there are 1.42 billion cars in operation worldwide. Of those cars, 1.06 billion are passenger cars, and 363 billion are commercial vehicles. The 1 billion cars in the world mark were made in 2010.

Key Statistics:

There are currently 1.42 billion cars in operation worldwide, including 1.06 billion passenger cars and 363 billion commercial vehicles
The vehicle saturation is around 18 percent
In 2010, the 1 billion unit mark was reached for cars in the world.

Sources:

https://www.rfidtires.com/how-many-cars-world.htm
https://www.carsguide.com.au/car-advice/how-many-cars-are-there-in-the-world-70629
https://www.worldometers.info/cars/

Automobile Stats and Market Size

How Big is the Automobile Industry?

Photo Credit: Vincent Ghilione on Unsplash

The US has one of the largest automotive markets in the world. In 2019 U.S vehicle sales reached 17 million units for the 5th straight year.

It may not cross your mind, but the US is home to the second-largest car sales and production market. In 2019, vehicle sales reached 17 million units for the 5th straight year in a row. Honda famously opened its first production facility in the US in 1982, leading to every European and Japanese carmaker to follow soon after and collectively investing more than $75 billion in the US. Today, in 2020, the market size of the car and manufacturing industry is $69 billion. Having such a sizeable automotive industry also has excellent trickle-down benefits for small businesses. The auto manufacturing business pumped $953 billion into the economy. This is partly due to the need for assembly part employees, small part suppliers, and auto-related small companies.

Key Statistics:

The market size of the Car & Manufacturing Industry is $69 billion in 2020. The market size is expected to decline by -30.3% in 2020.
$953 billion is driven into the economy by the auto manufacturing industry through sales, assembly plant employees, small part suppliers, and auto-related small business to revenue for the government.
The US has one of the largest automotive markets in the world. In 2019 U.S vehicle sales reached 17 million units for the 5th straight year.

Sources:

https://www.ibisworld.com/industry-statistics/market-size/car-automobile-manufacturing-united-states/
https://autoalliance.org/economy/
https://www.selectusa.gov/automotive-industry-united-states

Conclusion

Americans are passionate about cars. So much that car sales kept climbing for 5 consecutive years, only to be knocked out by the pandemic of 2020. 2010 marked the year that there were 1 billion cars globally. Now, there are 1.42 billion cars globally. Seeing how America is the second-largest market for sales and production, there is no doubt that the car industry can see a bounce back after the pandemic subsides.

Sources:
Cover Photo: Theodor Vasile on Unsplash
https://www.cnbc.com/2020/01/06/us-auto-sales-down-in-2019-but-still-top-17-million.html
https://tradingeconomics.com/united-states/total-vehicle-sales
https://fortunly.com/statistics/us-car-sales-statistics/#gref
https://cleantechnica.com/2020/08/10/us-auto-sales-down-by-1-5-million-in-2nd-quarter-amplifying-long-trends
https://tradingeconomics.com/united-states/total-vehicle-sales
https://www.statista.com/topics/1487/automotive-industry
https://www.selectusa.gov/automotive-industry-united-states
https://www.rfidtires.com/how-many-cars-world.htm
https://www.carsguide.com.au/car-advice/how-many-cars-are-there-in-the-world-70629
https://www.worldometers.info/cars/
https://www.ibisworld.com/industry-statistics/market-size/car-automobile-manufacturing-united-states/
https://autoalliance.org/economy/
https://www.selectusa.gov/automotive-industry-united-states