World 2019: Discover the Top 1300 best-selling cars

April 24, 2020
Matt Gasnier

The Toyota Corolla celebrates 15 straight years as the world’s best-seller.

Consult 60 years of Worldwide Historical Data here.

29/04 update: Now with the Top 15 groups and Top 30 brands.

24/04 update: Now with a Top 10 sneak peek, Renault-sourced data and complete Turkey and Puerto Rico/USVI sales.

For the 9th consecutive year (since 2011), we present to you our exclusive Full Year worldwide models ranking, for 2019. We are proud to say that this is the most complete and accurate worldwide ranking published anywhere in the automotive press. It takes into account official sales data from 140 markets, plus estimates for missing models. If you came across different 2019 worldwide rankings earlier elsewhere, they are incomplete as they do not take into account as many markets as we do. At BSCB we like to avoid rushing publication to keep our data accurate and as complete as possible. As always and to ensure our calculations are transparent, complete notes are included in the data table to show what variants, generations and rebadges are included for each nameplate, as often a car can be sold under various names and/or brands depending on the region. If a nameplate you are expecting doesn’t come up, look it up by searching the word in the page and it will lead you straight to it on the table, either as a main nameplate in the ranking or as a side note.

3 consecutive years above 1 million annual global sales for the Ford F-Series.

In 2019, the Toyota Corolla celebrates 15 consecutive years as the best-selling vehicle in the world, with sales up 4.5% to 1.48 million units. In a move welcome by OCD nerds like me, the new generation is now sold everywhere in the world including Japan where it completed the replacement a specific model there last August with the launch of the globally-aligned sedan and station wagon variants. The Corolla’s #1 market in the world in 2019 is however China where it sold 574.000 units including its twin the Levin. Check out our test drive of the Australian Corolla hatch here. In second place again, the Ford F-Series (-1.7%) edges down to 1.07 million units, marking only the 4th time in history it ends the year above the 1m mark after 2004, 2017 and 2018. North America accounts for 98.9% of the F-Series global volume.

The Toyota RAV4 almost became the first SUV to sell 1 million units globally.

One million annual global sales is a milestone the Toyota RAV4 (+16.4%) missed by just 33.000 units this year, due to a late new generation launch in China. Once a pioneer in the segment, the RAV4 spectacularly reclaims the title of best-selling SUV in the world for the first time in over a decade thanks to the full-blown success of its new hybrid variant. The Honda CR-V was the #1 SUV in the world from at least 2011 to 2014 and the Nissan X-Trail from 2015 to 2018. Given where 2020 is headed, unless it amasses a significantly higher volume in China the Toyota RAV4 will likely have to wait 2021 to become the first SUV to ever sell 1 million units worldwide in a single year. Check out our 11.000 km RAV4 adventure here.

The Honda CR-V is the #2 SUV in the world, with sales up 12.3% in 2019.

The RAV4 has secured a 145.000 unit-advantage over the Honda CR-V (+12.3%) also extremely dynamic and up 5 spots on 2018 to #4 overall. Honda even manages to place two nameplates in the worldwide Top 5 this year, with the Civic (-1.9%) enjoying success both in North America and China – these two regions totalling almost 80% of its global volume. The VW Tiguan (-4.1%) remains the #3 SUV in the world and gains one spot on last year to climb to #6, overtaking the Nissan X-Trail (-13.3%) which is starting to feel its age and goes from #1 global SUV in 2018 to #4 this year. This also means there are 4 SUVs among the 7 best-selling vehicles in the world in 2019, a new record. You can also consult our quick test drives for the Honda CR-V, VW Tiguan and Nissan X-Trail.

The Ram Pickup is the biggest gainer in the Top 10: +17.6%.

Although the RAV4 has managed a stunning progression this year, it is not the biggest gainer in the Top 10: this title goes to the Ram Pickup (+17.6%) shifting from #15 in 2018 directly to #8 worldwide this year, thanks to the success of its new generation. North America accounts for 98.8% of Ram Pickup’s worldwide sales. Check out our 2014 US Coast to Coast adventure with a Ram 1500 here and our 2015 US North to South voyage in a Ram 2500 here. The Nissan Sylphy (-8.6%) and VW Polo (-14.1%) complete the Top 10, while further down the Top 20, the most spectacular progression is delivered by the Chevrolet Onix (+41.2%) eclipsing the half-million mark thanks to Brazil which represents two-thirds of its global volume. Notice the VW Golf (-12.4%), comfortable leader in Europe, dropping out of the global Top 10, the Toyota Hilux (3.5%), #1 in 36 countries this year, stuck at a lukewarm #20, the VW T-Roc (+73.6%) breaking into the Top 50, and the Mercedes A-Class (+68.7%) and BMW X3 (+55.9%) also very strong.

The VW T-Cross is by far the most successful launch of 2019.

The Tesla Model 3 is one of the success stories of 2019, almost exactly doubling its 2018 score to cross the 300.000 annual unit-mark at #62 overall, with 62% of its 2019 volume coming from North America and 32% from Europe. The Hyundai Kona (+36.9%) and Nissan Kicks (+46.7%) also shine in the Top 100. For the first time since 2013 (Renault Captur), the most successful nameplate launch in 2019 isn’t a Chinese model. After the Baojun 730 in 2014, the Wuling Hongguang V in 2015, the Chery Arrizo 5 in 2016, the Baojun 510 in 2017 and the Baojun 530 in 2018, this time it’s the VW T-Cross that crosses its very first finish line in pole position, landing directly at #126. 54% of its 187.000 units come from Europe but the T-Cross has also started very solidly in Latin America, China and Africa. In fact there are no Chinese nameplates among the Top 5 biggest launches of the year for the first time in a decade: the 2nd most popular is the Chevrolet Monza (#258) -admittedly exclusive to China – ahead of the Hyundai Venue (#282), Kia Seltos (#300) – which led the brand’s record-breaking launch in India – and the Kia Telluride (#356) thanks to a surprisingly dynamic landing in North America.

Here is a sneak peek at what BSCB Platinum Members have access to below the Paywall:

Worldwide Full Year 2019 best-selling models:

Pos	Model	2019	/18	2018	Pos	Notes
1	Toyota Corolla	1,483,120	4.5%	1,418,627	1	Incl. Corolla X, XI, XII, Auris, Levin, Corolla iM
2	Ford F-Series	1,070,406	-1.7%	1,088,551	2	Incl. Lobo
3	Toyota RAV4	966,971	16.4%	830,487	6
4	Honda CR-V	824,897	12.3%	734,602	9	Incl. Breeze
5	Honda Civic	817,902	-1.9%	833,970	5	Aka Everus S1
6	VW Tiguan	771,400	-4.1%	804,113	7	Incl. Tiguan AllSpace
7	Nissan X-Trail	761,127	-13.3%	878,125	3	Incl. X-Trail I, II, III, aka Rogue, Dongfeng Fengdu MX6
8	Ram Pickup	754,172	17.6%	641,129	15	Incl. 1500-5500
9	Nissan Sylphy/Sentra	729,218	-8.6%	797,836	8	Incl. Sentra VII, Sylphy, Almera (Russia)
10	VW Polo	724,510	-14.1%	843,404	4	Incl. Polo IV, V, VI, Polo Vivo, Vento, Virtus, Ameo