2021 (Full Year) France: Best-Selling Car Manufacturers and Brands

In full-year 2021, Stellantis (PSA and FCA) became the largest carmaker in France with Peugeot, Renault, and Citroen the best-selling car brands.

In the full calendar year 2021, the Stellantis Group (combining the former PSA and FCA Groups) was the largest car manufacturer in France. Peugeot, Renault, and Citroen were again the best-selling car brands in France, although the top three lost market share in 2021. Volkswagen was again the largest foreign car manufacturer in France with VW the top-selling foreign car brand. The Peugeot 208 and Renault Clio remained the best-selling car models in France in 2021. The French new car market in 2021 expanded by only half a percentage point (fewer than 9,000 cars) and remained around a quarter below the long-term average.

Latest French Car Sales Statistics — 2023: Market Overview, Brands, Models; 2022, 2021, 2020.

Best-Selling Car Manufacturers in France in 2021

In 2021 (full calendar year), the top-selling carmakers in France were as follows according to the CCFA:

	FY 2021	FY 2020	% 20/21
TOTAL MARCHE	1,659,008	1,650,118	0.54
STELLANTIS	560,414	581,854	-3.68
– ALFA ROMEO	1,541	2,372	-35.03
– CITROEN	161,883	162,688	-0.49
– DODGE	1	0
– DS	22,782	22,182	2.70
– FIAT	39,914	42,360	-5.77
– JEEP	10,822	6,381	69.60
– MASERATI	148	135	9.63
– OPEL	37,393	43,801	-14.63
– PEUGEOT	285,930	301,935	-5.30
GROUPE RENAULT	395,774	412,544	-4.07
– ALPINE	1,594	744	114.25
– DACIA	125,205	97,170	28.85
– RENAULT	268,975	314,630	-14.51
GROUPE VOLKSWAGEN	221,168	204,967	7.90
– AUDI	50,083	45,360	10.41
– BENTLEY	86	76	13.16
– BUGATTI	0	1	-100.00
– CUPRA	3,991	236	1,591.00
– LAMBORGHINI	121	81	49.38
– PORSCHE	4,487	4,878	-8.02
– SEAT	26,702	26,676	0.10
– SKODA	30,399	29,875	1.75
– VOLKSWAGEN	105,299	97,784	7.69
GROUPE B.M.W	71,319	67,369	5.86
– B.M.W.	45,970	45,478	1.08
– MINI	25,337	21,881	15.79
– ROLLS ROYCE	12	10	20.00
GROUPE TOYOTA	100,874	95,640	5.47
– LEXUS	4,704	5,913	-20.45
– TOYOTA	96,170	89,727	7.18
GROUPE FORD	43,777	55,219	-20.72
– FORD	43,777	55,219	-20.72
GROUPE NISSAN	26,414	32,964	-19.87
– INFINITI	0	1	-100.00
– NISSAN	26,414	32,963	-19.87
GROUPE DAIMLER	52,391	54,262	-3.45
– MERCEDES	50,789	52,570	-3.39
– SMART	1,602	1,692	-5.32
GROUPE HYUNDAI	89,456	73,637	21.48
– HYUNDAI	45,241	34,585	30.81
– KIA	44,215	39,052	13.22
GROUPE GEELY	17,285	16,412	5.32
– VOLVO	17,285	16,412	5.32
GROUPE TATA	7,796	6,765	15.25
– JAGUAR	1,718	1,309	31.25
– LAND ROVER	6,078	5,456	11.40
GROUPE SUZUKI	22,907	19,651	16.57
– SUZUKI	22,907	19,651	16.57
GROUPE MITSUBISHI	1,967	5,012	-60.75
– MITSUBISHI	1,967	5,012	-60.75
AUTRES / OTHERS	47,466	23,823	99.24
Source: CCFA.fr

Top-Selling Carmakers in France in 2021

The Stellantis Group, combining the former PSA and FCA groups, became the largest carmaker and dominant market force in France in 2021 with a market share of 34%. However, the group underperformed the broader market with several brands having lower sales. Alfa Romeo sales were down 35% but the 15% decline in sales by Opel and 5% by Peugeot hurt volume far more. Jeep sales were sharply higher.

The Renault Group performed even worse with the Renault brand struggling particularly hard with the shortage of semiconductors. While Renault sales were down 15% to slip behind Peugeot, Dacia sales improved by 29%, while Alpine sales more than doubled.

The Volkswagen Group was again the largest foreign carmaker in France and most brands gained market share with the notable exception of Porsche. In its first full year on the French market, Cupra sales increased a massive 1591%, which is remarkably close to the actual number of cars Alpine sold.

The BMW and Toyota Groups increased sales by over 5% while Daimler sales were down 3.5%. Both Ford and Nissan saw sales drop by another fifth while Hyundai Group sales were up a fifth.

“Others” doubled sales in France in 2021. This includes Tesla sales that are not listed individually and comprise more than half of this number — the Tesla Model 3 was the 14th best-selling model in France in 2021 with 24,911 sales.

Best-Selling Car Brands in France in 2021 (Full Year)

The 20 top-selling car brands in France in 2021 were as follows according to the CCFA:

	Brand	2021	2020	% 20/21
1	PEUGEOT	285,930	301,935	-5.30
2	RENAULT	268,975	314,630	-14.51
3	CITROEN	161,883	162,688	-0.49
4	DACIA	125,205	97,170	28.85
5	VOLKSWAGEN	105,299	97,784	7.69
6	TOYOTA	96,170	89,727	7.18
7	MERCEDES	50,789	52,570	-3.39
8	AUDI	50,083	45,360	10.41
9	B.M.W.	45,970	45,478	1.08
10	HYUNDAI	45,241	34,585	30.81
11	KIA	44,215	39,052	13.22
12	FORD	43,777	55,219	-20.72
13	FIAT	39,914	42,360	-5.77
14	OPEL	37,393	43,801	-14.63
15	SKODA	30,399	29,875	1.75
16	SEAT	26,702	26,676	0.10
17	NISSAN	26,414	32,963	-19.87
18	MINI	25,337	21,881	15.79
19	SUZUKI	22,907	19,651	16.57
20	DS	22,782	22,182	2.70
	Source: CCFA.fr

Top-Selling Car Brands in France in 2021 (Full Year)

In 2021, Peugeot replaced Renault as the best-selling car brand in France. Both top brands lost market share but Renault struggled more with computer chip shortages throughout the year. Citroen was again the third largest brand with flat sales.

Dacia increased sales by more than a quarter to gain fourth place from Volkswagen. In 2020, VW outsold Dacia by around 600 cars but Dacia’s strong performance turned the deficit to an advantage of almost 20,000 cars in 2021. Toyota increased sales like VW to maintain sixth place.

Despite losing market share, Mercedes-Benz remained the top-selling German premium brand in France in 2021 and gained on rank position due to the dismal performance of Ford that slipped from seventh to 12th. Audi leapfrogged BMW with sales up by a tenth.

Hyundai entered the top ten from 14th with sales up by 30%. Kia also had stronger sales to move ahead of Ford that slipped from 7th to 12th with sales down by fifth — the worst-performing top brand.

There were no new entrants on the top 20 list although Tesla would take at least 19th place if its sales were listed separately.

See also: 2021 (Full Year) France: New Car Market Overview and Analysis and 2021 (Full Year) France: Top 30 Best-Selling Car Models.

Latest French Car Sales Statistics — 2023: Market Overview, Brands, Models; 2022, 2021, 2020.