Toyota is the world’s best-selling automaker – again

The global battle for the world’s best-selling automaker has been a contested one for the last few years, but one conglomerate has always come out on top. Toyota returned to its place on the top of the podium as the world’s leading automaker for the fifth year in a row. Notably, however, Toyota sold less vehicles this past year than in 2023.

Toyota sold more than 10.8 million vehicles in 2024

Toyota, including Lexus, saw sales exceed 10.1 million vehicles in 2024, marking the second year in a row that Toyota sales topped 10 million vehicles. That’s actually a 1.4% decrease from Toyota’s 2023 sales, which topped 10.3 million vehicles.

In the United States, the midsize Camry led Toyota’s car sales, with just under 310,000 examples sold. The compact Corolla trailed behind in second place with 232,908 models sold. The Toyota RAV4 proved to be the Japanese automaker’s best-selling vehicle overall in the United States, with more than 475,000 units sold.

America’s love affair with trucks seems to have continued, although both Toyota pickups saw a year-over-year sales decrease. The Tacoma saw over 192,000 models leave dealer lots, while the Tundra’s sales came in at just under 160,000 units. The Sienna minivan saw its sales increase to just over 75,000 models sold.

In terms of electrified vehicle sales, the Toyota RAV Hybrid saw more than 208,000 models sold. The Toyota Camry Hybrid, which comes redesigned as a hybrid only for the 2025 model year, saw just over 205,000 examples sold. The Toyota bZ4X, the brand’s only all-electric offering, saw just 18,570 models leave dealer lots.

Combined with Daihatsu and Hino, Toyota saw its sales surpass 10.8 million, a 3.7% decrease from 2023 when all four brands sold more than 11 million vehicles combined.

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Lexus recorded its best-ever full-year US sales in its history

Lexus, Toyota’s luxury division, saw its best annual sales in the United States in its 35-year history. In 2024, 345,669 vehicles wearing Lexus badging rolled off dealer lots. That’s more than a 25,000-model increase from 2023.

The midsize Lexus ES sedan led the luxury brand’s car sales, with more than 43,000 models sold. The RX crossover led the brand as a whole, with more than 118,000 models sold. With those sales numbers, the RX is projected to maintain its status as the top-selling midsize luxury SUV for the 26th year in a row.

The luxury brand’s electrified vehicle sales were up 34.4%, with more than 123,000 examples sold, or roughly 35.6% of Lexus’ total sales volume. The Lexus RX Hybrid, NX Hybrid, and ES Hybrid made up the top three. The Lexus RZ, the luxury marque’s only all-electric model, saw just under 9,700 models sold.

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Volkswagen Group and Hyundai will fill out the rest of the podium

While Toyota’s year-over-year sales decreased, the Japanese automaker still held a steady lead over the second- and third-place automakers. Volkswagen Group, which includes Volkswagen, Porsche, Audi, Lamborghini, Bentley, and a handful of others, saw its year-over-year sales fall by 2.3%. In all, VW Group’s total sales amounted to 9.03 million vehicles.

Hyundai Motor Group, which includes Hyundai, Kia, and Genesis, took the third-place spot on the podium. The South Korean conglomerate saw its sales fall by a single percent year-over-year, with 7.23 million vehicles sold.

Final thoughts

Given Toyota’s reputation for reliability among both new and used markets, it’s no surprise the Japanese automaker maintained its placement as the world’s best-selling automaker for the fifth year running. Kelley Blue Book named Toyota and Lexus as the best brands for resale value in 2024 after all.

Volkswagen Group has been trailing behind Toyota for years now. With its struggles in China and resulting production issues, I’m a little surprised the German group sold as many vehicles as it did.

As for Hyundai bringing up the rear, that didn’t hold much surprise. Hyundai and Kia have done well in positioning themselves as value-oriented brands with vehicles designed to meet the needs of the modern consumer in recent years.

Will Toyota manage to hold its position at the top of the automotive industry by sales for a sixth year? Will Volkswagen manage to recover from its struggles in 2024 and overtake Toyota? Will Hyundai surprise everyone and break further into the top three? Let us know your thoughts in the comments!

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