One Automaker Raised Prices By 46% And Still Sold More Cars In The U.S.

You know when you read a statistic and swear it’s a misprint? We read this stat, which is actually a year old, so you can’t blame tariffs, and figured the numbers didn’t add up. Then we did the math ourselves, and it’s just possible this mystery carmaker has actually increased prices closer to 50 percent since 2018—and continues to climb the sales charts.

So what’s the catch? There isn’t one.

• Their product mix keeps expanding, with increasingly better cars
• Their design has improved markedly
• They keep improving existing product

We’ll dig into the data and explain precisely why we think this carmaker deserves props, not pitchforks, for their efforts.

Hyundai, Yes, Hyundai!

According to the website, CarEdge, which is a seller/research site, Hyundai’s average transaction price has risen nearly 50 percent since 2018. But we dug a little further and have encountered some mixed data.

• CarEdge says that Hyundai’s market share has plateaued. Nope. 2023: 801,195 cars = 5.1 percent market share.
• 2024: Hyundai sales increased 4.4 percent, to 836,802 = 5.2 percent of U.S. sales.

Arguably, Hyundai sales have slowed their rapid rise from 2010-2018. Back before their rise, Hyundai was pretty much where Volvo is. Last year, Volvo cars accounted for just 0.7 percent of U.S. sales.

In 2018, Hyundai’s sales accounted for 3.92 percent of the market. So they’re rising steadily.

But here’s what matters: They’re selling their average car for nearly $10,000 more in 2025 vs. 2018. If you’re growing your overall pie—and increasing the sale price of each slice—you’re a darn good baker.

Hyundai’s Sales Winners

According to KBB, the average transaction price of a Hyundai-Kia vehicle was $25,279—in 2018. Today (as of April 2025), that price is $37,674, but includes Genesis and Kia. So, likely, just counting Hyundai, the average price will be a bit lower, since Genesis cars sell at an average higher sticker. True, there’s been a lot of inflation in that eight-year period, but CarEdge notes that Hyundai’s pricing has outpaced the bulk of carmakers. But a lot has changed for Hyundai’s sales winners, which are increasing overall sales volume.

Price Jumps for Hyundai’s Sales Leaders

Run these numbers on the sales leaders at Hyundai, and they all point to rising prices. Today, the starts well above where its top trim sold, and CarEdge says that in 2024 the average Santa Fe sold for over $37,000, a 30 percent increase on the average price in five years. But just have a gander at the 2018 Santa Fe vs. the 2025 model:

We’re not damning the old Santa Fe, but the new one (images 3-5) has won a ton of praise, both from TopSpeed and across the industry. The prior car was trying to bridge two segments, with more volume but a fairly cramped third row vs. the Palisade, a true, three-row car. The newest Santa Fe base model comes as a hybrid, with up to 37 MPG combined, and we think it’s Hyundai really hitting its stride. It’s simply a far better vehicle, and it’s highly cost-competitive against players such as the Toyota RAV4.

The Kona Is Proof Of Concept

The 2018 Hyundai Kona was funky. The 2025 is still funky—though now, if you scan from those first two, 2018 images, to the next two, you can see that Hyundai’s increased the refinement of the car. And also, you can get the Kona as an EV.

Regardless of powertrain, what’s improved a great deal in the intervening near-decade is a marked refinement of ride, quietness, fit, and materials. While sales of the Kona only grew four percent last year, they jumped 24 percent in 2023, largely because the Kona, starting at a mere $26,000, offers tremendous value. Sure, the starting MSRP in 2018 was $20,480, but it’s hard to find any car that starts beneath the $30,000 price bar these days.

There are even alternatives at Hyundai under that threshold. For instance, the Elantra Hybrid Blue gets 58 MPG and sells for $26,645, which is extraordinary. Like the Kona, the Elantra has become a more confident driver’s car. The cabin is more upscale, and the hybrid powertrain not only microdoses petrol, it’s also the far quicker Elantra vs. the rather anemic base powertrain. No, it is not the Elantra N, which slots as a semi hot-hatch. But the Blue sells for $7,000 less than the N—and delivers a whopping 100 percent better highway fuel economy.

TopSpeed’s Take

We didn’t even mention Hyundai’s EVs. For instance, the Ioniq 5’s sales jumped 31 percent last year, and were up 17 percent through the first quarter of this year. We’re bullish on the Ioniq 9 as well, and the carmaker’s EVs are pushing the marketplace in both stylish and performance directions simultaneously.

With the next Ioniq N model due to drop—and we expect, a twin of the Kia EV 4 as an Ioniq 3, almost for certain—Hyundai’s really hitting on just about every possible segment. It’s not really surprising their average price has increased, because they’re simply competing more broadly.

But they’re also making far better vehicles, from affordable city hoppers to legit, luxury three-row family haulers. Yes, Hyundai is crushing it. And we’re very certain they’ve hardly plateaued.