While BMW’s sales on a global level grew slowly during 2025, its rival from Stuttgart did not register the same momentum. Mercedes-Benz reported an overall drop in deliveries, although not all indicators were negative. The models from the AMG division stood out in particular, providing a significant boost to the overall figures.
Namely, Mercedes closed the year 2025 with 1,800,800 passenger cars sold. When vans are added to that, the figure rises to 2,160,000 units. In comparison, BMW sold 2,383,218 vehicles, while the entire BMW Group delivered 2,463,715 units. Sales of Mercedes-Benz passenger cars alone fell by nine percent, with a decline recorded in all segments.
Decline in key markets
Much of the slowdown came from Asia, where demand took a sharper hit. Sales across the region fell 16 percent to 747,000 vehicles. China, which remains the largest single market for Mercedes, saw an even steeper decline of 19 percent, with a total of 551,900 units sold by the end of the year.
The situation did not look much better in North America either. Regional sales fell 12 percent to 320,600 vehicles, with the U.S. contributing 284,600 units, also down 12 percent. In Europe, sales fell slightly by one percent to 634,600 vehicles. However, not everything was negative. In smaller global markets, Mercedes recorded sales growth of 17 percent to 98,700 vehicles, with outstanding results in South America (up 54 percent), Australia (up 10 percent), Turkey (up 11 percent) and the Gulf countries (up three percent).
AMG and G-Class as bright spots
In contrast to the general decline, the AMG division was a bright spot. Following a similar trend seen by BMW’s M division, Mercedes-AMG posted strong growth, suggesting that demand for more expensive and more powerful performance versions remains relatively strong. According to Carscoops, Mercedes-AMG sold 145,000 vehicles last year, which represents one of the strongest results in the department’s history and a seven percent increase compared to 2024.
Another exception to the results was the G-Class, which had an outstanding year. Mercedes delivered 49,700 units of this rugged SUV in 2025, which is a record number and 23 percent more than the previous year.
Mixed results for electric vehicles
Things haven’t been so great when it comes to electrified Mercedes models. Total sales of such vehicles remained stable at 368,600 units, but deliveries of fully electric vehicles (BEVs) fell nine percent to 168,800. That’s less than half of BMW’s sales of electric vehicles, which rose 3.6 percent to 442,072 units last year.
Even so, there is potential for a turnaround. The recent introduction of the all-electric CLA model helped lift electric vehicle sales by 18 percent in the fourth quarter, and Mercedes will be watching closely to see if that momentum continues into 2026. Plug-in hybrid models, on the other hand, recorded a growth of nine percent during the year.