Kia just had its best first quarter ever—but its EV momentum is fading

Kia has opened 2026 on a high note, posting the strongest first-quarter sales performance in its history. Strong demand for core SUVs, hybrids, and family-focused models has helped push the brand to a new milestone, proving its mainstream lineup continues to resonate with buyers.

But beneath the headline growth, the momentum story is becoming more complicated. While Kia’s overall electrified sales still rose in the quarter, recent trends suggest its fully electric lineup is losing steam compared to the rapid growth seen in previous years. Models like the EV6 and EV9 are no longer driving the same level of excitement, as hybrids and gasoline SUVs increasingly shoulder the brand’s volume gains.

That contrast highlights a broader shift in the market. Kia’s record quarter proves the brand’s product strategy remains strong, but the cooling pace of EV demand suggests electrification alone may no longer be enough to sustain the next phase of growth.

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Kia’s first quarter sales are in, and the automaker is soaring

The best-ever Q1 in the company’s history

Credit: Kia

With March now behind us, automakers are starting to report their first quarter sales figures. Kia has had a particularly fantastic start to the year, and it isn’t all that hard to see why. The Korean automaker has been consistently growing in the U.S. for the last couple of years, with their vehicles being priced lower than their competitors, despite being just as good, if not better.

Kia’s overall Q1 2026 sales

Overall, Kia has seen a pretty substantial leap in sales compared to the first three month of last year. The Korean automaker essentially managed to sell just over 8,000 more units in the first quarter of this year than it did in 2025. While a four percent increase may seem fairly small, it represents some pretty good gains, especially given the current state of the market.

These results represent the best first quarter that Kia has experienced in its history, which is pretty great news. Growth has slowed slightly, though. Kia actually saw better growth last year than it did this year. The company’s 2025 Q1 sales increased over ten percent compared to its first quarter sales figures in 2024. Still, they should be fairly pleased with this result.

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Electric vehicles are proving harder to sell in this turbulent market

Kia felt the sting of the EV slowdown

It is a pretty universal phenomenon that the demand for EVs has fallen pretty dramatically in the U.S. over the last couple of months. There are a lot of reasons for this, with the loss of the $7,500 federal tax incentive and heavy tariffs being key among them. Despite Kia’s strong growth, they have not been immune to the reduction in EV demand.

Kia’s EV sales in Q1 2026

Kia’s EV have seen a pretty dramatic decline in sales so far this year, with the small EV6 being hit the hardest. It isn’t good news for either model, though, and it is representative of the issues that a lot of automakers are facing right now. Demand for EVs isn’t where it was last year, and brands are going to have to come up with some creative strategies to get things back on track.

The EV6 and the EV9 are actually both pretty fantastic electric vehicles, with both of them being among the best value options in their classes. While they weren’t flying of dealership floors last year, they were certainly performing better than this year. Despite this, the brand has another two EVs slated to enter the market, the EV3 and EV4.

Kia’s corporate cousin, Hyundai, has had a little more success in the EV segment. The Hyundai Ioniq 5 has proven to be pretty resilient, with its sales growing 26 percent this year compared to last year. Though, even they have changed their EV strategy, discontinuing the standard Ioniq 6 in the U.S.

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Almost all gas and hybrid models in Kia’s lineup have shown growth

The brand’s more traditional offerings drove their success this quarter

Automakers like Kia have been pretty cautious about investing heavily in EV models, which has proven to be the right strategy. Contrasting their rapidly dropping EV sales, Kia’s gas-only and hybrid models have continued to grow at a really impressive rate. It is the continued popularity of these vehicles that helped Kia achieve their best first quarter ever.

Kia non-EV sales Q1 2026

The only non-EV model in Kia’s lineup that hasn’t seen growth is the Sorento, which is pretty good going all things considered. The Niro saw some exceptional growth this year, and even though it is offered as an EV, the hybrid is proving much more popular. The Sportage continues to be the bestseller, though. We’re also really impressed with the performance of the K4. Despite the relatively small market for compact cars, Kia’s most affordable offering has continued to be popular.

The Seltos and Telluride are also models to watch, as both are slated to receive pretty large updates this year. They both show strong growth and improvements could push this even further.

Despite the EV slowdown, Kia is having a great year so far

Korean automakers like Kia have been fighting negative public opinion for some time now, but they have managed to power through. Their strategy of offering a ten-year powertrain warranty has really helped reliability concerns. It is also just really hard to argue with their value-oriented approach, with the automaker offering fantastic vehicles for the price that you pay. All this has culminated in another fantastic start to the year for the brand, and we expect them to continue carrying the momentum forward past the first quarter.