Used Teslas duck the trend of falling EV prices

Until recently, people who wanted to buy a used EV in the US could count on a $4,000 tax credit from the government. That "free money" helped many buyers decide to skip the gas station. Unfortunately, that federal credit ended on September 30. Since that day, the market for used electric cars has split into two very different paths - one belongs to Tesla, and the other belongs to everyone else.

New data from iSeeCars shows that the used EV market is struggling. Between September 2025 and January 2026, the number of people choosing used electric cars dropped quite a bit. In September, EVs made up 3.5% of the used cars sold that were between one and five years old. By January, that number fell to 2.8%. That is a 20% drop in just a few months. It's not really a big surprise that when the government stops helping people pay for cars, fewer people want to buy them. This is a big reversal from the year before, when the market share for used EVs actually grew by nearly 20%.

The overall market is clearly shrinking, but used Tesla prices are doing something strange - they are going up. Since the tax credit disappeared, the average price for a used Tesla rose by 4.3%. In September, the average used Tesla cost $30,040 in the US. By January, that price climbed to $31,329. This might not seem like a giant jump, but it stands out because almost every other brand is losing value.

If you look at the used EV market without Tesla, the picture looks much darker. Most other electric cars saw their prices drop by an average of 3.6%. This means there is a gap of about eight percentage points between how Tesla is doing and how the rest of the industry is doing. In the past, Tesla's prices were falling very fast, but now they seem to be recovering.

The price drops for other brands are easy to see when you look at specific models. The Hyundai Kona Electric saw its used price fall by 6.4%. The Volkswagen ID.4 did not do much better, with a drop of 6.2%. Other popular choices like the Kia Niro EV fell by 5.2%, and the Ford Mustang Mach-E lost 5.1% of its value. Existing owners are likely not happy about these numbers, but it's good news for shoppers looking for a bargain on a non-Tesla vehicle.

On the other side of the lot, every single Tesla model saw a price increase. The popular Model Y rose by 1.3%, and the Model 3 went up by 2.6%. The most expensive models saw the biggest jumps. The Tesla Model S price increased by 8.5%, and the Model X went up by 10.3%. These are big numbers for a used car market that is supposed to be cooling down.

There is a specific reason why the Model S and Model X are seeing such high prices. Tesla has decided to stop making new versions of these two cars. By the end of the second quarter, there will be no more brand-new Model S or Model X vehicles for sale. Because there will be fewer of these cars available in the future, the ones that already exist are becoming more valuable to buyers. It is a simple case of supply and demand.

The end of the federal tax credit was a big test for the industry. Most brands are still trying to figure out how to sell cars without government help, but Tesla seems to have enough fans to keep its prices high. For now, the used EV market is a tale of two worlds. If you want a Tesla, you might have to pay more than you did last fall. If you want almost anything else, you might find a much better deal than you expected.

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