Australian vehicle fleet hits 20 million

There were 20.1 million vehicles registered in Australia in 2021. "The national fleet passed 20 million for the first time in 2021, increasing by 1.7 per cent from the previous year" said Rob Walter, Director of ABS Transport Statistics.

"Registrations of electric vehicles surged again in 2021, almost doubling to 23 thousand registrations" he said, "representing the second consecutive year where the number of electric vehicles has almost doubled." Diesel registrations increased again in 2021, rising to 26.4 per cent of all registered vehicles however, petrol registrations still account for a majority of the fleet (71.7 per cent).

All states and territories reported an increase in the number of registered vehicles from 2020 to 2021. Queensland, South Australia and the Australian Capital Territory all recorded annual growth of 2.3 per cent, the highest of all states and territories. Victoria's fleet grew the least increasing by 0.7 per cent.

Toyota was again the most popular make in Australia with 3.0 million vehicles registered in 2021. Hyundai has moved into 4th place, replacing Ford which saw another annual decrease in registrations, this year by 4.8 per cent. Holden continues to hold onto second place ahead of Mazda in third, despite the number of Holdens registered falling by 5.3 per cent from 2020 to 2021. 

The 2021 Motor Vehicle Census details the number of registered motor vehicles in Australia and provides information such as vehicle type, vehicle characteristics including the year of manufacture, and type of fuel used. 

For further information see Motor Vehicle Census, Australia (cat. no. 9309.0), available for free download.