Buying a Used EV
A recent iSeeCars study analyzed 2.4 million used cars that were sold between May 2024 and May 2025. While the average 1- to 5-year-old car sold for approximately $630 more than a year ago, used electric vehicles (EVs) appear to be dropping in value. In fact, used EV prices dropped by a whopping 30 percent a year ago (saving used buyers $11,000). This May, EVs only lost 8.8 percent ($2,993 in value). iSeeCars - Used Cars Price Study.
“The car market continues to suffer from a COVID hangover, with reduced new car production between 2020 and 2022 leading to fewer 1- to 5-year-old used cars on the market in 2025,” said iSeeCars Executive Analyst Karl Brauer. “There’s also been a higher percentage of lease customers buying out their vehicles at the end of the lease, further restricting the used car supply.”
The study suggests that the $2,993 in average savings for consumers, makes the average price of used EVs about $31,000 for cars that are between one to five years old. The study reports that the biggest price drop went to used Tesla purchasers. In fact, Tesla was listed in a top ten list by iSeeCars of EVs with the biggest price drops.
For instance, according to the survey, the famous Tesla Model S is now $8,837 cheaper on the used car lot than it was a year ago. The survey reports this indicates you can find a good used Model S these days for around $46K. That’s a 16 percent drop year over year.
The average price for a used Model Y Tesla is down to under 30 grand, about $5,000 lower, costing 14 .2 percent less than a year ago. Meanwhile, the Model 3 has fallen to an average used price of $25,361, losing $3,078 on average for a 10.8 percent drop. The survey suggests that now is a terrific time to save when buying a used electric car.
For those of you who have had your hopes high for buying a used Porsche EV, the amazing Porsche Taycan has seen used prices plummet by nearly 13 percent according to the iSeeCars survey, offering an $11,000 savings from last year, and selling for an average price of $75,644.
According to the iSeeCars study, five of the top ten car models with the largest price drops today are electric vehicles and four of those models are Teslas. According to Executive Analyst Karl Brauer, “Multiple factors contribute to a used car’s value, but being an electric vehicle and wearing the Tesla brand appears to be a double negative.”
Tesla’s drop in popular value may well have to do with Tesla CEO Elon Musk’s previous work with the Trump administration. As the price of new Tesla cars have been dropping for the last two years, this also caused a drop in used Tesla prices. In fact, according to the survey, last year used EVs became cheaper to buy than used gas cars.
Hybrids are Cheaper Too
According to the iSeeCars survey, there are excellent savings to be had on used hybrid vehicles as well. The popular Ford Explorer Hybrid has seen an 11.3. percent drop in used car prices in the last year. You can now save $4,044 on this tech packed SUV compared to last year’s prices. The same is true for the performance packed BMW 5 Series Hybrid. The survey results tell us that it has dropped by 8.5 percent over last year, with prices dropping an average of $3,168.
However, this current drop in used car prices is likely to turn around soon due to a lack of inventory. The effect of trade tariffs will begin to affect new and used car prices in the coming months. Many automakers have managed to hold prices for the summer, but tariffs will likely raise the price of new imported cars soon.
Automakers are each responding differently to tariffs, for instance, Mercedes-Benz and Hyundai have pledged not to raise prices for now, while Ford has raised the prices on its Mustang Mach-E electric crossover.
Also keep in mind that if you are interested in buying a used hybrid or electric vehicle now, the Federal Reserve, which determines interest rates for auto loans, is still on its way down. The Fed has kept rates steady for the last few months.
Another reason to buy an EV now is the coming loss of the federal EV Tax Credit of $7,500. To find out more, read our article Federal EV Tax Credits Expire Soon: What Shoppers Need to Know
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