Source: LakeStream/Shutterstock.com
Source: LakeStream/Shutterstock.com

Utes are the most popular vehicles in New Zealand. In the table below, we list the top-selling utes in New Zealand based on registration numbers from the NZTA.

Last year, while sales of passenger cars were up 12% year on year, after a couple of years of poor sales, fewer new utes hit the roads. Overall, sales of the country's most popular five utes were down 10%.

This year, while the top four most popular utes remain the Ranger, Hilux, Triton and Navara, it's interesting to see newcomer the BYD Shark 6 make the top five.

Top-selling utes in NZ

Rank

Top Selling Utes
2025

Top Selling Utes
2026

1

Ford Ranger (9650)

Ford Ranger (3400)

2

Toyota Hilux (6568)

Toyota Hilux (2966)

3

Mitsubishi Triton (3279)

Mitsubishi Triton (1497)

4

Nissan Navara (2446)

Nissan Navara (1274)

5

BYD Shark 6 (1882)

BYD Shark 6 (628)

Source: NZTA – 2026 sales to 31/05/26

Ute sales by engine type

It's no surprise that most utes in NZ run on diesel, but thanks to the popularity of the Toyota Hilux, non plug-in diesel hybrids accounted for 16% of sales last year.

Add to that total petrol hybrids and EVs, and, overall, last year, non-ICE utes accounted for a quarter of all sales, a trend that's continuing this year:

Sales by Engine Type 2025

Sales by Engine Type 2026

72.3% Diesel

69% Diesel

15.9% Non plug-in diesel hybrid

18% Non plug-in diesel hybrid

8.2% Plug-in petrol hybrid

9% Plug-in petrol hybrid

3.3% Petrol

3% Petrol

0.2% EV

1% EV

0.1% Non plug-in petrol hybrid

0% Non plug-in petrol hybrid

Source: NZTA – 2026 sales to 31/05/26

Top-selling passenger cars in NZ

To give the above figures some context, here are the best-selling passenger cars for the same periods, which highlight the ongoing strength of ute sales:

Rank

Top Selling Cars 2025

Top Selling Cars 2026

1

Toyota RAV4 (11,295)

Toyota RAV4 (2165)

2

Mitsubishi ASX (4970)

Mitsubishi ASX (1534)

3

Mitsubishi Outlander (4309)

Ford Everest (1200)

4

Ford Everest (3323)

Toyota Corolla Cross (1185)

5

Kia Seltos (3189)

Mitsubishi Outlander (1058)

6

Toyota Yaris Cross (2018)

Kia Sportage (1024)

7

MG ZS (1971)

Tesla Model Y (1000)

8

Toyota Corolla (1953)

Kia Seltos (870)

9

Hyundai Tucson (1841)

Hyundai Tucson (788)

10

Suzuki Swift (1825)

Toyota Yaris Cross (767)

11

GWM Haval H6 (1815)

GWM Haval H6 (700)

12

Toyota Landcruiser Prado (1668)

Mazda CX-5 (589)

13

Mazda CX-5 (1609)

Kia Stonic (547)

14

Toyota Corolla Cross (1476)

Toyota Landcruiser Prado (515)

15

Kia Sportage (1360)

Toyota Yaris (503)

Source: NZTA – 2026 sales to 31/05/26

Bruce Pitchers is Canstar's NZ Editor. An experienced finance reporter, he has three decades’ experience as a journalist and has worked for major media companies in Australia, the UK and NZ, including ACP, Are Media, Bauer Media Group, Fairfax, Pacific Magazines, News Corp and TVNZ. As a freelancer, he has worked for The Australian Financial Review, the NZ Financial Markets Authority and major banks and investment companies on both sides of the Tasman.
In his role at Canstar, he has been a regular commentator in the NZ media, including on the DrivenStuff and One Roof websites, the NZ Herald, Radio NZ, and Newstalk ZB.
Away from Canstar, Bruce creates puzzles for magazines including Woman’s Day and New Idea. He is also the co-author of the murder-mystery puzzle book 5 Minute Murder.


Important Information

For those that love the detail

This advice is general and has not taken into account your objectives, financial situation or needs. Consider whether this advice is right for you.