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Electric vehicles on the used market often cost less than comparable gasoline models, making the technology affordable to many more buyers.
Sept. 13, 2025, 5:00 a.m. ET
New electric vehicles cost thousands more than similar models that run on gasoline. But a growing number of shoppers are discovering that for used cars, often the opposite is true.
Used battery-powered vehicles often sell for less than comparable cars with internal combustion engines, making them a good deal even before calculating savings in maintenance costs and fuel. That is expanding the number of people who can afford to buy such models.
Sales of used electric vehicles rose 40 percent in July from a year earlier, according to Cox Automotive, a research firm.
K. Boyle, an 80-year-old widow who lives in San Francisco, recently bought a used Nissan Leaf she found on Craigslist for just $1,000 after factoring in a rebate from her electric utility.
The model, from 2013, is not designed for long trips, but its battery still has enough range to cover Ms. Boyle’s grocery shopping and visits to her daughter across town, she said.
“I was nervous at first,” said Ms. Boyle, a retired junior high school teacher who likened the car’s instant acceleration to something you might drive at Disneyland. “You just press it, and it goes.”
