EV Depreciation Tightens in 2026 but Splits Down the Middle: Tesla Model Y and Toyota bZ4X Hold Above 60 Percent, Audi e-tron GT and Mercedes EQS Lose Half Their Value in Three Years

The 2026 EV depreciation leaderboard has finally stopped bleeding. Three-year EV depreciation across the US used market sits at roughly 38 to 42 percent of original MSRP for the first half of 2026, down from the 49 to 55 percent peaks recorded in late 2024. Tighter new-EV inventory after the federal tax credit reset, stronger off-lease demand and a maturing battery-health disclosure standard adopted by most major dealer groups did the work. But averages hide the real action: premium EVs above $70,000 MSRP are still depreciating six to ten percentage points faster than mainstream EVs in the $30,000 to $45,000 band.

The Top of the Leaderboard: Cheap Parts, Tight Supply, Strong Brands

Best three-year residual values on 2023-model-year units sold this spring: Tesla Model Y RWD retains roughly 64 percent of original transaction price, supported by cheap service parts, dense Supercharger access and steady fleet and rideshare demand. Toyota bZ4X holds about 62 percent — slow new-car sales kept fewer used units in the channel, and Toyota loyalty filled the rest. Hyundai Ioniq 5 SE and SEL come in at 60 percent on base trims, with the Limited trim depreciating faster because it overlapped heavily with lease deals. Rivian R1S Dual-Motor holds 58 percent on low-mileage units thanks to production scarcity. Ford F-150 Lightning Pro work-fleet trim retains 57 percent.

The Bottom: Lease Subvention and Premium Glut

The losers cluster around premium EVs whose 2023 lease subsidies dumped low-mile units into auction. Audi e-tron GT 2022 to 2023 retains 36 percent — a $108,000 sticker now sells used at roughly $39,000. Mercedes EQS and EQE sit just above. Lucid Air Touring takes a meaningful hit on thin service-network coverage outside California and Florida. Volkswagen ID.4 early model years and certain Polestar 2 vintages round out the bottom.

What Chinese EV Pricing Pressure Adds to the US Picture

Even though Chinese-brand EVs do not retail at scale in the US, their pricing pressure travels through the trade lane. Global transaction prices on the Model 3 and Y, Mach-E, ID.4 and Polestar 2 have been compressed by competition from BYD, Geely Galaxy, Leapmotor and XPeng in Europe, Latin America and Southeast Asia — and the new-car compression eventually shows up in three-year residuals. Used-car listing platforms have already begun to publish residual modeling that explicitly tracks Chinese-import waves in Australia, Mexico and the UK as leading indicators.

For the complete best-and-worst tables, segment-by-segment depreciation curves and how the federal tax credit reset is reshaping residual modeling, see iEVChina’s 2026 EV depreciation leaderboard.