The most popular used electric cars in Australia

While Australia's electric car market continues to grow, the used electric car market is still relatively small – and electric models are underperforming on the second-hand car market compared to petrol and diesel-powered cars.

RELATED: Does mileage matter on a used electric car?

As a result, it's possible to snap up a bargain if you shop around for a two or three-year-old electric car that's still under the manufacturer's warranty.

Here's what we know about used electric car prices in Australia for 2024.

Used-car sales data from 2023 suggests electric cars lose a significant amount of their value after the two-year mark.

On average, used cars tend to lose 14.1 per cent of their original value when resold between two and four years after being purchased new.

Comparatively, electric cars between two and four years old lose 42.4 per cent of their original value on the used market – a steep decline when compared to the rest of the market.

Electric cars also take longer to sell – sitting on the market for an average of 75 days if resold within two years of being purchased new, compared to the rest of the used-car market, which averages 52 days to sell for models two years old or less.

Data source: AutoGrab

Concerns about battery longevity, constantly evolving technology and the arrival of newer, more affordable models are typically blamed for EVs' sharp loss of resale value.

"With the growing competition, we are seeing prices of new EVs drop. This flows through to the second-hand car market, with EVs underperforming compared to internal combustion engine (ICE) powered vehicles for their retained value," said Saxon Odgers, Chief Commercial Officer at automotive data firm AutoGrab.

Another factor influencing used EV prices is the manufacturer's pricing strategies for new models – with price cuts on newer models making them more appealing than used models.

Mr Odgers explained, "For instance, consider the 2021 Model 3: its price decreased by -9.5 per cent between May and July 2023 following Tesla's announcement of the reduction in pricing for the 2023 Model 3, in anticipation of the release of the 2024 Model 3 Highland".

A lack of demand may also be contributing to lower prices for second-hand EVs – with Australian used-car buyers exhibiting a clear preference for petrol or diesel-powered models.

According to a recent analysis by comparison site Compare the Market, search interest for used cars in Australia is heavily skewed towards SUVs and utes from automakers including Toyota, Ford and Honda.

Based on the study of keyword traffic, the Tesla Model 3 is the most-searched used electric car in the world and the fifth most-searched used car globally, but Australia only accounts for less than one per cent of this traffic.

The Tesla Model 3 only came in at number 24 on the list of Australia's most-searched used cars – usurped by more popular models like the Toyota HiLux, Hyundai i30 and Mazda CX-5.

The only other used EV to rate a mention was the Tesla Model Y, which ranked 79th for used car interest in Australia – compared to 21st globally.

"Since January 2023, 58 per cent of used EVs sold [in Australia] have been Tesla vehicles," Mr Odgers told Drive.

"The majority consists of 2021 and 2022 models, particularly the Model 3 (43.6 per cent) followed by the 2022 Model Y (7.9 per cent)."

Below is a list of Australia's top 10 best-selling used electric cars since January 2023:

Data source: AutoGrab