Cars & Used-Car Buying

Used EVs Gain Sales Share as Inventory Tightens

By Owen Marsh / October 27, 2026 / Updated November 8, 2026

Used electric vehicles hit a record 3.3% of U.S. used-vehicle sales in September 2026, up from 2.9% in August, according to Cox Automotive’s EV Market Monitor, published October 16, 2026. Cox estimates 47,862 used EVs sold and counts 35 days of supply for them, against 46 days for its comparison group. The price story is messier: Cox’s average listing price slipped from August but still sits above a year ago, and two other trackers show different levels altogether. Here is what each source measured, what moved, and how to read the headline without confusing a national average with the price on a particular windshield.

Key takeaways

Cox puts used EVs at a record 3.3% of used-vehicle sales in September 2026, an estimated 47,862 units, up 12.3% from August and 21.2% from September 2025.
Used EV days’ supply fell to 35, versus 46 for Cox’s comparison group (labeled ICE+). That 11-day gap is the widest of 2026, per CBT News’s reading of the report.
Cox’s average used EV listing price was $36,767: down 1.8% from August, up 6.4% from a year earlier. The premium over ICE+ narrowed to $2,137 from $2,692.
Three trackers, three averages: roughly $37,400 (Recurrent, August), $36,767 (Cox, September) and $32,533 (iSeeCars, September). Compare each tracker with itself over time, not with the others.
A national average says nothing about whether one listing is fairly priced.

What Cox counted in September 2026

Most headline figures come from Cox’s monthly EV Market Monitor. Know two things before quoting it. Cox labels the sales numbers as estimates, and the page does not name its underlying data source. It also does not define “ICE+” or explain how days’ supply is calculated. My working assumption: ICE+ means vehicles other than pure EVs, with hybrids likely included, and days’ supply is the usual dealer yardstick for how long current stock lasts at the recent selling pace. Assumptions, not Cox’s stated definitions.

Used EV measure (Cox)	September 2026	Change
Estimated sales	47,862 units	Up 12.3% from August; up 21.2% from September 2025
Share of used-vehicle sales	3.3% (a record)	2.9% in August
Days’ supply, used EVs	35 days	Down 16.7% from August; up 21.3% from a year earlier
Days’ supply, ICE+ used	46 days	Up 2% from August; down 6.3% from a year earlier
Average listing price	$36,767	Down 1.8% from August; up 6.4% year over year
Premium over ICE+	$2,137 (6.2%)	$2,692 in August

One more number explains why a small share makes a big headline: Cox reports ICE+ used sales fell 4.4% from August while used EV sales rose 12.3%. Back-of-envelope, 47,862 sales at a 3.3% share implies roughly 1.4 to 1.5 million used-vehicle sales for the month, so about 1 in 30 used sales was electric. Growing fast, still a niche.

Tight supply: a ratio, not a headcount

Days’ supply compares stock with selling pace, so it can drop without a single car leaving a lot. If sales jump 12.3% and inventory stays put, the ratio shrinks. Cox’s page does not publish a unit count of used EVs in stock, so “inventory tightens” is better read as “EVs are selling faster relative to what is listed” than “the cars are gone.”

Brands differ. Cox shows Tesla with the leanest supply among major brands at 27 days, Hyundai at 30 and Ford at 33, and notes that Tesla and Rivian figures count only dealer-sold vehicles, not factory-owned outlets. Month-over-month sales rose for Chevrolet (21.3%), Ford (17.1%) and Tesla (3.3%), among others. Cox says a growing flow of off-lease EVs is supporting used EV availability and sales.

Days’ supply is not days on market

Do not line up Cox’s 35 days against other trackers’ “days” without checking the definition. iSeeCars measures days on market for 1- to 5-year-old listings: 41.9 days for EVs in September 2026 (46.6 a year earlier), 48.6 for hybrids and 54.8 for gas cars. Recurrent reports median time to sell, with the Chevrolet Bolt EV quickest at 13 days. Same idea, different clocks.

Prices: three trackers, three levels

Tracker and date	What it measures	Used EV figure	Trend
Cox EV Market Monitor, published Oct 16, 2026	Average used EV listing price, September; sample not defined on the page	$36,767	Down 1.8% from August; up 6.4% year over year
Recurrent Q4 2026 report, published Sept 30, 2026	Average retail listing; data through September	About $37,800 in July; about $37,400 in August	About 8% above a year ago; steady for several months
iSeeCars study, published Oct 28, 2026	Average asking price, 1- to 5-year-old used vehicles listed in September (over 1.5 million listings); not final sale prices	$32,533 (hybrids $34,476; gas $31,954)	EVs up 9.8%, hybrids up 4.9%, gas up 0.3% year over year

Why the spread? Different samples, ages and months. I could not find a stated sample definition for Cox’s or Recurrent’s averages on the pages I read; iSeeCars spells out its own. There is also a mix effect: CBT News reports that lower prices on the Nissan Ariya, Cadillac LYRIQ, BMW iX and Chevrolet Blazer EV helped pull Cox’s average down. That describes which models were listed, not proof that every EV got cheaper.

On the premium, Cox and iSeeCars agree on direction, not size. Cox says $2,137 over ICE+. iSeeCars says about $579 over gas cars in September 2026, after EVs sat roughly $2,227 below gas cars a year earlier.

Context: a year after the credit ended

Recurrent frames its report as a look at the market one year after the federal used-EV tax credit ended. It says used EV sales have rebounded since, even though overall used-car sales were down about 3% year over year in August, and that used EVs sell about as fast as comparable gas cars. It cites a national gas price near $4.46 a gallon, more than $1 above a year earlier. iSeeCars’ Karl Brauer points to higher fuel prices and a recovery from the slump after incentives ended. Those are the trackers’ explanations, not proof of cause. Recurrent also says Teslas were about 30% of used EVs sold in August and about 45% of September listings.

New EVs went the other way. Cox estimates 86,632 new EVs sold in September 2026, down 40.7% from 146,076 a year earlier, with share at 6.5% against 11.5% then. Incentives ran about 11% of the $55,842 average transaction price (roughly $6,117 per vehicle), down from 14.2% a year earlier.

Frequently asked questions

Is the used EV market actually growing?

By Cox’s estimate, yes: 47,862 sales in September 2026 was up 21.2% on a year earlier, and share hit a record 3.3%. It is one month of estimates.

Are used EVs now pricier than gas cars?

It depends on the tracker. Cox shows a $2,137 premium over ICE+; iSeeCars shows about $579 over gas cars for 1- to 5-year-old listings. Both are averages of different groups.

Does 35 days of supply mean EVs are scarce?

Not by itself. It means listed stock is small relative to recent sales; ICE+ stood at 46 days. iSeeCars also shows slow movers: the Cadillac Escalade IQ averaged 128.7 days on market, the GMC Sierra EV 93.2 and the Chevrolet Silverado EV 89.1.

What is missing from this picture?

Edmunds also publishes used-vehicle data, but I did not find an Edmunds Q3 2026 used-vehicle report to cite, so none of its figures appear here. Cox’s October figures were not out when this was checked.

Before you decide: reading the next headline

This article does not say whether to buy any vehicle. Use the market data as background, then price the specific car. Before you trust a statistic, run it through this checklist:

Who measured it, and is it listing prices or completed sales?
What is the sample: model years, mileage, factory-direct sales included or not?
Which month, and are you comparing a tracker only with its own earlier readings?
Share or volume? 3.3% is still about 1 in 30 used sales.
Which clock: days’ supply, days on market or median time to sell?
Did the average move because prices changed or because the model mix changed?
For a real listing, compare the same model, year, mileage and battery condition, plus warranty status and total cost with financing.