19 mpg→26 mpg
Across every configuration the EPA listed that year.
1984–2026
US car MPG
by model year
Every configuration the EPA recorded as sold in the United States since 1984, counted year by year. Not a survey and not a forecast — just what was on sale, and what it ran on.
The EPA publishes one record per configuration and no sales volumes, so a powertrain offered on many trims counts many times and one sold in huge numbers on a single trim counts once. Read these as what manufacturers put on the price list, not as what Americans drove home. The underlying figures are EPA test results, not real-world economy.
The headline shifts
1984 against 2026.
Four measures where the change is large enough to be unambiguous in the record.
46.1%→2.6%
Share of configurations offered with a manual transmission.
15.3%→67.1%
Includes all-wheel, four-wheel and part-time four-wheel drive.
0.0%→27.4%
Configurations whose primary fuel the EPA records as electricity.
Year by year
The whole record.
Bars are scaled within each column, so they compare years against each other and against nothing else.
| Year | Configs | Median MPG | Manual | AWD / 4WD | Electric | Hybrid | Most common class |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2027part year | 374 | 28 | 2.1% | 68.7% | 36.1% | 23.5% | Standard Sport Utility Vehicle 4WD |
| 2026 | 1,172 | 26 | 2.6% | 67.1% | 27.4% | 22.4% | Standard Sport Utility Vehicle 4WD |
| 2025 | 1,273 | 25 | 3.0% | 67.4% | 25.6% | 22.9% | Standard Sport Utility Vehicle 4WD |
| 2024 | 1,277 | 24 | 5.5% | 63.7% | 20.8% | 17.9% | Small Sport Utility Vehicle 4WD |
| 2023 | 1,330 | 23 | 6.6% | 59.5% | 10.8% | 16.8% | Small Sport Utility Vehicle 4WD |
| 2022 | 1,321 | 23 | 6.6% | 56.9% | 6.7% | 14.7% | Small Sport Utility Vehicle 4WD |
| 2021 | 1,286 | 23 | 6.9% | 53.3% | 4.0% | 13.7% | Small Sport Utility Vehicle 4WD |
| 2020 | 1,258 | 23 | 8.0% | 48.6% | 3.0% | 10.2% | Midsize Cars |
| 2019 | 1,347 | 23 | 11.2% | 45.1% | 2.6% | 7.3% | Midsize Cars |
| 2018 | 1,350 | 23 | 13.2% | 43.9% | 1.8% | 5.9% | Midsize Cars |
| 2017 | 1,296 | 23 | 14.9% | 40.9% | 2.3% | 4.8% | Midsize Cars |
| 2016 | 1,264 | 23 | 15.9% | 37.9% | 2.5% | 5.1% | Midsize Cars |
| 2015 | 1,281 | 22 | 16.4% | 36.7% | 1.4% | 4.5% | Compact Cars |
| 2014 | 1,222 | 22 | 17.2% | 35.4% | 1.2% | 5.1% | Midsize Cars |
| 2013 | 1,180 | 21 | 20.1% | 33.1% | 1.2% | 4.7% | Compact Cars |
| 2012 | 1,146 | 21 | 21.9% | 32.2% | 0.7% | 4.0% | Compact Cars |
| 2011 | 1,126 | 20 | 22.5% | 33.8% | 0.4% | 4.0% | Sport Utility Vehicle - 4WD |
| 2010 | 1,106 | 20 | 24.4% | 33.7% | 0.0% | 3.1% | Sport Utility Vehicle - 4WD |
| 2009 | 1,181 | 20 | 23.8% | 34.3% | 0.0% | 2.4% | Sport Utility Vehicle - 4WD |
| 2008 | 1,187 | 19 | 25.3% | 33.8% | 0.1% | 1.9% | Sport Utility Vehicle - 4WD |
| 2007 | 1,126 | 19 | 25.8% | 34.0% | 0.0% | 1.7% | Sport Utility Vehicle - 4WD |
| 2006 | 1,104 | 19 | 27.8% | 32.9% | 0.0% | 1.5% | Sport Utility Vehicle - 4WD |
| 2005 | 1,166 | 19 | 29.8% | 32.0% | 0.0% | 1.2% | Compact Cars |
| 2004 | 1,122 | 19 | 29.1% | 30.8% | 0.0% | 1.0% | Compact Cars |
| 2003 | 1,044 | 19 | 30.3% | 28.7% | 0.1% | 0.7% | Compact Cars |
| 2002 | 975 | 19 | 31.8% | 25.7% | 0.2% | 0.3% | Compact Cars |
| 2001 | 911 | 19 | 32.1% | 24.0% | 0.5% | 0.4% | Compact Cars |
| 2000 | 840 | 19 | 32.4% | 21.3% | 0.5% | 0.1% | Compact Cars |
| 1999 | 852 | 19 | 32.9% | 21.9% | 0.8% | 0.0% | Compact Cars |
| 1998 | 812 | 19 | 34.1% | 21.8% | 0.4% | 0.0% | Subcompact Cars |
| 1997 | 762 | 19 | 34.4% | 21.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | Special Purpose Vehicles |
| 1996 | 773 | 19 | 34.8% | 19.8% | 0.0% | 0.0% | Compact Cars |
| 1995 | 967 | 18 | 36.3% | 20.3% | 0.0% | 0.0% | Standard Pickup Trucks |
| 1994 | 982 | 18 | 38.9% | 21.5% | 0.0% | 0.0% | Standard Pickup Trucks |
| 1993 | 1,093 | 18 | 40.7% | 20.2% | 0.0% | 0.0% | Subcompact Cars |
| 1992 | 1,121 | 18 | 41.3% | 20.8% | 0.0% | 0.0% | Subcompact Cars |
| 1991 | 1,132 | 18 | 44.3% | 21.6% | 0.0% | 0.0% | Subcompact Cars |
| 1990 | 1,078 | 18 | 43.6% | 22.4% | 0.0% | 0.0% | Standard Pickup Trucks |
| 1989 | 1,153 | 19 | 45.3% | 19.7% | 0.0% | 0.0% | Subcompact Cars |
| 1988 | 1,130 | 19 | 45.8% | 19.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | Standard Pickup Trucks |
| 1987 | 1,247 | 19 | 46.9% | 17.6% | 0.0% | 0.0% | Subcompact Cars |
| 1986 | 1,210 | 19 | 47.4% | 16.8% | 0.0% | 0.0% | Subcompact Cars |
| 1985 | 1,701 | 19 | 46.1% | 15.1% | 0.0% | 0.0% | Subcompact Cars |
| 1984 | 1,964 | 19 | 46.1% | 15.3% | 0.0% | 0.0% | Subcompact Cars |
Source: FuelEconomy.gov configuration records; projection generated UTC. Years marked part year are still being certified by the EPA, so their shares are not comparable with a settled year — electric models are certified early, which pushes their EV share up. The headline comparison above ends at 2026 for that reason. “Top class” is the EPA vehicle class appearing on the most configurations that year — which is why it moves from subcompact cars to sport utility vehicles without anyone taking a survey.
From the market to the metal
See it in one model.
These trends are the sum of individual nameplates. Open any make to follow one through its own model years.
Acura1986–202641 years →Aston Martin1984–202736 years →Audi1984–202743 years →Bentley1998–202730 years →BMW1989–202739 years →Buick1984–202744 years →Cadillac1984–202744 years →Chevrolet1984–202744 years →Chrysler1984–202744 years →Dodge1984–202744 years →Ferrari1985–202637 years →Ford1984–202744 years →