Malaysia’s electric vehicle (EV) market continues to show growth in May 2026, with registrations growing despite an overall decline in total industry volume.
According to the latest vehicle registration data published by the Road Transportation Department on data.gov.my, a total of 5,038 EVs were registered in May 2026, representing a 21.34% increase from the 4,152 units registered in May 2025.
In contrast, Malaysia’s overall car market recorded a weaker month, with Total Industry Volume (TIV) falling 11.21% year-on-year from 74,393 units in May 2025 to 66,053 units in May 2026.
As a result, EVs accounted for 7.63% of all vehicle registrations in May 2026, up from 5.58% during the same month last year.
In total, Malaysia recorded 25,523 EV registrations from January to May 2026, an 83.99% increase from the 13,871 EVs registered during the same period in 2025.
EV registrations continue to grow, but hybrids overtake EVs in May
While EV adoption continues to increase, May 2026 marked the first time this year that hybrid petrol vehicles narrowly overtook EVs for monthly registration.
A total of 5,103 hybrid petrol vehicles were registered in May 2026, slightly ahead of the 5,038 EVs registered during the same period. Hybrid registrations also recorded stronger growth, rising 89.35% year-on-year compared to EVs’ 21.34% increase.
Another factor is the decline in Proton e.MAS EV registrations last month as Proton begins its transition to CKD-based production at its facility in Tanjung Malim.
The growth of hybrids was driven by the Proton e.MAS 7 PHEV which recorded 1,181 units, followed by the Toyota Vios Hybrid at #2 with 588 units, Toyota Yaris Cross Hybrid at #3 with 504 units and Toyota Corolla Cross Hybrid at #4 with 493 units.
For the first five months of 2026, however, EVs remain ahead with 25,523 registrations, compared to 18,495 hybrid petrol vehicles.
Top 30 EVs registered in Malaysia (May 2026)
After dominating Malaysia’s EV charts for four consecutive months, the Proton e.MAS 5 loses its top spot in May 2026 to its larger sibling, the Proton e.MAS 7.
The Proton e.MAS 7 emerged as the #1 best-selling EV in May with 896 registrations, which is slightly ahead of the Proton e.MAS 5 at #2, which recorded 883 registrations.
While registrations for the e.MAS 5 fell sharply from 1,772 units in April to 883 units in May, the e.MAS 7 gained slightly from 636 units to 896 units during the same period. The softer figures coincide with the e.MAS 5’s transition from CBU to locally assembled CKD production.
Combined, the registrations for the two EV models fell from 2,408 units in April to 1,779 units in May. Despite the decline, Proton’s two EV models still accounted for nearly half of all EV registrations in Malaysia during the month.
Meanwhile, Chery’s iCaur V23 took the #3 spot with 397 units in May, overtaking the Zeekr 7X, which recorded 355 registrations.
BYD retains its strong presence taking #5, #6 and #7 spots with the Seal 6, Sealion 7 and Atto 2 recording 268, 242 and 208 units respectively.
Further down the line, the Perodua QV-E reached a new milestone with 80 registrations in May, representing its highest monthly figure so far. The registrations for the home grown EV jumped 53.8% month-on-month from 52 units in April and now has a cumulative total of 182 units registered so far.
Other notable performers include the Leapmotor B10 at #8 with 149 registrations, XPeng G6 at #9 with 144 registrations and the TQ Wuling Bingo, at #13 which achieved a record 100 registrations in May.
Top 30 EVs registered in Malaysia (Jan to May 2026)
Looking at cumulative registrations in the first 5 months of the year, the Proton e.MAS 5 remains Malaysia’s best-selling EV in 2026 with 9,356 registrations recorded from January to May.
The Proton e.MAS 7 sits in second place with 2,286 registrations, followed by the BYD Atto 3 with 1,873 units.
The biggest surprise this year is arguably the iCaur V23, which has accumulated 1,369 registrations in just five months, making it the fourth best-selling EV in Malaysia so far this year. The Zeekr 7X follows closely behind at #5 with 1,354 registrations, highlighting the growing demand for premium EV offerings.
Rounding out the top 10 are the BYD Seal 6, BYD Sealion 7, Chery iCaur 03, Tesla Model 3, BYD Atto 2 and Tesla Model Y.
In the past few weeks, we saw several model refresh and facelifts such as the XPeng X9 2026, Zeekr X 2026 and the BYD Atto 3 2026.
Proton has also just introduced its new Premium Plus variant for the e.MAS 7 which boasts slightly more range and comfort features which include massaging seats and extended leg rest for the front passenger.
Top 20 EV brands registered in Malaysia (Jan-May 2026)
Proton e.MAS remains the dominant EV (and also Hybrid) brand with 11,642 EV registrations recorded during the first five months of 2026, which is equivalent to 45.6% market share.
BYD follows behind in second place with 4,599 registrations, which is less than half of Proton’s total.
Chery has emerged as Malaysia’s third-largest EV brand with 2,134 registrations, thanks largely to the strong performance of the iCaur V23 and iCaur 03.
Zeekr continues to strengthen its position with 1,627 registrations, ahead of Tesla, which recorded 1,027 registrations during the same period.
The rest of the top 10 consists of MG, Leapmotor, XPeng, TQ Wuling and BMW.
