2020 (Full Year) Global: Bentley Car Sale Worldwide

In 2020, Bentley sold a record 11,206 cars worldwide — the highest global sales in the company’s 101-year history.

In 2020, Bentley sold a record 11,206 cars worldwide -- the highest global sales in the company's 101-year history.
© Bentley Motors

Full-year 2020 was the most successful year in Bentley’s 101-year history when a record 11,206 Bentley cars were sold worldwide. The Americas remained Bentley’s number one region although a strong performance in China, posting an increase of 48 percent, made China Bently’s second-most-important market. Bentley sales in Europe, the UK, and the Middle East were weaker in 2020. The top-selling model was the Bentagaya that accounted for 37% of all Bentley sold worldwide in 2020.

Bentley Worldwide Car Sales in 2020 (Full Year)

Bentley Motors announced total worldwide sales of 11,206 in the full calendar year 2020, an increase of two percent over 2019. Although the pre-COVID sales forecast was much greater, new model introductions fuelled this significant achievement which was the highest sales performance in any of the luxury British marque’s 101 years. Bentley’s previous record sales year was in 2017 when 11,089 cars were sold worldwide.

Bentley reported worldwide car sales as follows for various global markets in 2020 (January to December):

Market2020 (% Change)2019 (sales)2020 (% of total sales)
Americas3,035 (+4%)2,91327%
China2,880 (+48%)1,94026%
Europe2,193 (-18%)2,67020%
Asia Pacific1,203 (+6%)1,13911%
United Kingdom1,160 (-22%)1,49210%
Middle East735 (-14%)8526%
Total11,206 (+2%)11,006100%

Bentley Challenges in 2020

Bentley’s production was shut down for seven weeks beginning in March 2020, and running at a 50 percent output for a further nine weeks thereafter, as social distancing measures were introduced. A resulting comprehensive redesign of the production facility enabled Bentley to meet this global demand while in parallel maintaining these social distancing protocols to the current day and beyond.

Commenting on the global sales results, Adrian Hallmark, Chairman and CEO of Bentley Motors, said: “Even though we anticipated greater sales before the pandemic struck, when you consider the level of restrictions around the world for the majority of the year, to achieve a record sales performance is a strong measure of our potential. 

“As we look to the year ahead we remain cautiously optimistic as much remains uncertain. One thing that doesn’t is our commitment to progress, the first step of which is the launch of the Bentayga Hybrid. This is one of nine new models we will launch this year as we continue on our Beyond100 strategic path and our accelerated journey towards becoming a fully electrified car company by 2030.”

Best-Selling Bentley Models in 2020

Full-year 2020 was the most successful year in Bentley's 101-year history when a record 11,206 Bentley cars were sold worldwide.
© Bentley Motors

The key to Bentley’s success was the introduction of a number of new models, combined with greater global availability of other popular models in 2020. In particular, the all-new Flying Spur was launched internationally and received a phenomenal reception from customers and media alike. This demand was increased further in October with the introduction of a high-performance V8 engine derivative.

The Bentley Continental GT (24 percent) and GT Convertible (15 percent) together accounted for 39 percent of total sales, finishing the year as Bentley’s number one selling model line. However, in spite of the run out of the previous generation model, and delays to market entry of the all-new Bentayga due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the pioneering, go-anywhere SUV was still the biggest selling single model, accounting for 37 percent of total sales.

Bentley Worldwide Sales by Major Region in 2020 (Full Year)

Bentley’s biggest growth in 2020 was in China, where sales increased by 48 percent to 2,880 cars (1,940 cars sold in 2019).
© Bentley Motors

The Americas remained the most important global region for Bentley with 3,035 cars delivered in 2020, an increase of four percent on the 2,913 Bentleys sold here in 2019. Placing the region as Bentley’s number one market, this strong performance was boosted by the introduction of the Flying Spur and a full year of sales of the Continental GT and GT Convertible luxury Grand Tourer.

Bentley’s biggest growth in 2020 was in China, where sales increased by 48 percent to 2,880 cars (1,940 cars sold in 2019). The traditional sedan market welcomed the introduction of the all-new Flying Spur, with Bentayga sales remaining strong.

In Europe, Bentley closed the year with the delivery of 2,193 cars, against a figure of 2,670 in 2019, a decrease of 18 percent with the region impacted because of the market entry delays of the all-new Bentayga.

Bentley’s home market in the UK, sales were down 22% to 1,160 cars.

Bentley delivered 735 cars to the Middle East in 2020, against a total of 852 the previous year. Finally, the Asia Pacific region posted an increase of six percent, delivering 1,203 cars, against 1,139 sold in 2019.

Global Worldwide Car Sales by Brand in 2020 (Full Year)

→→ Latest global sales by brands

Global worldwide car sales by brand in 2020 (Full Year):

“Sales” as reported by brands generally refer to deliveries and not necessarily sales to the customer and final registration. Terms and definitions may vary.

About Bentley Motors

Bentley Motors is a luxury car brand and part of the Volkswagen Group. The company’s headquarters in Crewe in the UK is home to all of its operations including design, R&D, engineering, and production of the company’s three model lines, Continental, Bentayga, and Flying Spur. The combination of fine craftsmanship, using skills that have been handed down through generations, alongside engineering expertise and cutting-edge technology is unique to UK luxury car brands such as Bentley. It is also an example of high-value British manufacturing at its best. Bentley employs around 4,000 people at Crewe.

About the author:

Henk Bekker

Henk Bekker is a freelance writer with over 20 years of experience in online writing. His best-selling cars website has been reporting car sales statistics since 2008 with classic car auction prices focusing on the most expensive automobiles sold at public auctions in the past decade. He also owns the travel websites European-Traveler.com and Lake Geneva Switzerland. Henk holds an MBA from Edinburgh Business School and an MSc in Finance from the University of London.