EV prices aren’t following the ‘law of used cars,’ analyst says — what it means for buyers and sellers

Generally, used car prices depreciate over time. Indeed, as the popular saying goes, any car — new or used — starts losing its value as soon as it leaves the lot.

“That’s just the law of used cars,” said Andrew Garberson, the head of growth and research at Recurrent, which helps value used EVs.

In the auto ecosystem, used EVs are notorious for their especially rapid depreciation, experts said. They’ve historically had “horrendous” resale values, said Ivan Drury, director of insights at Edmunds, a car research site.

This year, prices for used EV have so far moved in the opposite direction, according to industry data.

Recurrent compared EVs according to the same make and model year across 108 combinations and weighted price growth according to inventory volume.

“Used EVs are appreciating, which almost never happens,” according to an e-mailed Recurrent statement about the analysis.

Other auto analysts found a similar trend.

The average transaction price for 3-year-old EVs — those with a 2023 model year — rose 6% during the first half of 2026, to $33,303 from $31,429, according to an Edmunds analysis conducted exclusively for CNBC.

Price growth for used EVs has been broad-based, said Stephanie Valdez Streaty, the director of industry insights at Cox Automotive, a market research firm.

Twenty-one of the 25 used EV models with the highest sales volume increased in price between January and June this year, she said.

Overall, the price trend is positive for current EV owners looking to sell their cars, since they have better odds of receiving a higher price, experts said.

“If you own one right now and you’re debating selling, this matters to you a lot,” Drury said. “If your ownership cycle is coming to an end with this vehicle, price-shop this thing.”

However, the trend poses a potential downside to would-be buyers, since a higher price tag could make the car less affordable, experts said.

This happened during the Covid-19 pandemic, for example: Consumer demand for used cars ballooned as automakers struggled to produce new cars amid shortages of important manufacturing components.

But the price growth for used EVs this year has been all the more surprising because it has happened despite a high supply of used EVs hitting the market — which, all else being equal, would generally cause prices to fall, experts said.

Recurrent expects more than 500,000 leased EVs to return to market as used cars this year, and even more next year, Garberson said.

“What we’re seeing in 2026 is different because we have more used EV supply than ever,” Garberson said.

In other words, strong consumer demand has acted as a countervailing force against high supply — a perhaps unexpected outcome given that Republicans eliminated a federal tax credit that had made EVs more affordable for households, Garberson said.

The Inflation Reduction Act, which President Joe Biden signed in 2022, had made the tax break available through 2032. President Donald Trump’s “big beautiful bill” curtailed it ahead of schedule, ending the tax break after Sept. 30, 2025.

“The narrative the last nine months has been, after the tax credits expired, no one would buy an electric car anymore,” Garberson said.

Of course, EV sales are still just a fraction of the overall auto market. New EVs accounted for 5.4% of total new-vehicle sales in June, while the market share for used EVs was just 2.4%, according to Cox Automotive data.

Among them are high gasoline prices due to the Iran war, which have pushed more consumers to consider fuel-efficient options, experts said.

Average gas prices in the U.S. were about $4.10 per gallon as of July 27 — up roughly 31% from $3.12 a year earlier, according to weekly data published by the Energy Information Administration.

Fuel prices are “supercharging the EV demand,” Drury said.

The impact of gas prices has also increased demand for other fuel-efficient cars: Prices for 3-year-old hybrid vehicles were up 3% in the first half of the year, for example, according to Edmunds.

Overall affordability is another big factor, against a backdrop of inflation that has remained above policymakers’ target of 2% for five or so years, auto experts said. The dynamic has pushed more consumers toward the used car market more broadly.

Used EV sales were up 20% in June versus a year earlier, while sales of new EVs were down about 28%, according to Cox Automotive data.

Consumers can often get a newer EV — perhaps one that’s 3 years old — at roughly the same price point as a comparable gas-powered car that’s 4½ to 5 years old, Drury said. In that sense, consumers may see more value in the newer EV, since it likely has better technology and lower mileage, he said.

“It always comes down to affordability in car sales,” Rob Dell, vice president at Bob Ruth Ford, a car dealership in Dillsburg, Pennsylvania, said during a recent podcast interview with Recurrent. “It doesn’t matter if it runs on gas or electric.”

Additionally, consumers have more choice among EV brands and models across various price points than they did even a few years ago, experts said. That additional choice has bolstered consumer demand, they said.

Prices have increased most for the lowest-cost used EVs as consumers seek out cheaper models, experts said.

Used EVs under $20,000 have seen prices increase 9.4% in the first half of 2026, compared with 5.6% for those in the $20,000 to $30,000 range and 6.5% in the $30,000 to $40,000 range, according to Recurrent’s analysis.

Used EVs at higher price points saw declining prices over that period: a 1.2% drop for used EVs that cost $40,000 to $50,000 and a 3.3% drop for those over $50,000, Recurrent found.

The total cost of ownership for an EV may also be lower than that of a traditional gas-powered vehicle, due to things like generally lower maintenance costs — something that dealers have gotten better at communicating to potential buyers, Valdez Streaty said.

Consumers may also save on fuel costs depending on factors such as whether they can charge their EV at home and if they have relatively low electricity prices in their area, experts said.

“Market dynamics right now are making used EVs a really good option for consumers,” Valdez Streaty said.