On June 1, four leading Chinese EV startups—Leapmotor, Li Auto, XPeng, and NIO—released their vehicle delivery figures for May, highlighting the surge in China EV sales May.
Leapmotor retained its top position among the emerging automakers for the third consecutive month, setting a new personal record. Li Auto, after four months, once again surpassed the 40,000-unit monthly delivery mark. XPeng maintained over 30,000 monthly deliveries for the seventh month in a row, although its month-on-month growth slowed in May. NIO remained stable at around 20,000 units, while its Firefly brand showed promising market potential in its first full month of deliveries.
Leapmotor: Highest Monthly Deliveries Again with 45,067 Units in May, Contributing to China EV Sales May
Leapmotor delivered 45,067 vehicles in May, a year-on-year increase of over 148.1%, setting a new monthly record. The strong performance is largely attributed to the company’s product strategy and pricing tactics.
On May 15, the 2026 Leapmotor C10 officially launched, bringing advanced features such as an 800V high-voltage platform and end-to-end assisted driving with LiDAR to the mass market at a starting price of RMB 140,000 (approx. USD 19,300). This move further reinforced Leapmotor’s position in the mainstream NEV market.
Additionally, on May 25, Leapmotor announced limited-time Dragon Boat Festival offers for the C11 and C16 EREV 200 Pro trims. During May 24 to June 8, the C11 EREV 200 Pro was priced at RMB 103,800, while the C16 EREV 200 Pro was offered at RMB 111,800.
“Leapmotor insists on full-stack in-house R\&D of core technologies. This allows us to maintain cost and quality control while enabling customers to enjoy high-quality products at affordable prices,” said Zhu Jiangming, Chairman of Leapmotor.
Li Auto: Back Above 40,000 Units with L Series Upgrades
Li Auto delivered 40,856 vehicles in May, up 16.67% year-on-year. The upgraded L Series models launched in May, combined with discounts on older versions, helped boost sales.
Deliveries of the Li Auto MEGA Home model also began in late May. Based on current order trends, stable monthly deliveries for the MEGA are expected to reach 2,500–3,000 units—representing a 150–200% increase over the 2024 version.
“Since the new versions launched, weekly sales have consistently exceeded 10,000 units. In May so far, Li Auto has achieved a 14.7% market share in the over-RMB 200,000 segment. We are confident that our upgraded models will soon return to the 50,000-unit monthly level,” said company management during the Q1 2025 earnings call.
XPeng: YoY Surge but MoM Growth Slows to -4.34%
XPeng delivered 33,525 vehicles in May, a 230.43% increase year-on-year and the seventh consecutive month above 30,000 units. However, month-on-month growth showed signs of stagnation in 2025. January saw a 17.29% decline, February edged up by 0.34%, and March and April increased by 9.04% and 5.54%, respectively. May fell back 4.34%.
The new XPeng MONA M03 Max, launched on May 28 with a starting price of RMB 129,800, is expected to be a key growth driver. It brings advanced autonomous driving capabilities to the sub-RMB 130,000 segment. Within just one hour of launch, the model recorded 12,566 firm orders—exceeding last year’s equivalent launch.
“The current competition in the auto market is not yet intense, but it will be in one of the next five years,” said XPeng Chairman He Xiaopeng. He emphasized that mere price-cutting is not sustainable for automakers. “We shouldn’t compete on price but on technology—and we must go global.”
NIO: Firefly and ONVO Drive Diversification, 23,231 Units Delivered
NIO delivered 23,231 vehicles in May, up 13.08% year-on-year. The NIO brand contributed 13,270 units, while its sub-brands contributed significantly—ONVO delivered 6,281 units, and Firefly, in its first full delivery month, added 3,680 units. The Firefly model starts at RMB 119,800, roughly RMB 30,000 below the original pre-sale price.
To stimulate demand, NIO accelerated its product refresh cycle and technology rollout. On May 16, new versions of the ES6 and EC6 were launched, followed by the updated ET5 and ET5T on May 25. These updates complete the overhaul of NIO’s “5566” core lineup.
Starting May 30, the first version of “NIO World Model (NWM)” began rolling out to over 400,000 Banyan-based vehicles. Cedar-based models—including the ET9, new ES6, EC6, ET5, and ET5T—will receive updates by the end of June.
This year, NIO has reorganized operations and sales channels across all three brands. NIO Chairman William Li recently stated, “Despite a 40% reduction in ONVO’s frontline sales staff, its May deliveries still increased by over 40%. NIO is not aiming to win with price wars, but with technology and superior service.”
