The 25 Bestselling Cars, Trucks, and SUVs of 2023
As the industry continued to recover from supply-chain issues, many models were way up in this past year of U.S. auto sales.
We tracked a few different storylines as collected U.S. auto sales numbers throughout 2023. Many of the narrative arcs were looking up: the sales numbers were strong, in large regard thanks to increasing inventory. Many automakers were finally able to produce more cars to keep up with demand as supply-chain issues continued to ease. It’s not all rosy, as Stellantis didn’t quite keep up with the previous year’s sales pace, but other major players—namely Ford, GM, Toyota, and Honda—were all up compared with 2022. Here we’ve ranked the 25 bestselling models by nameplate. Interestingly, it’s not just SUVs and trucks that posted big sales increases; even many sedans were up and make up a significant chunk of the list.
- Ford Escape (140,968 units sold)
Although the more rugged-looking Bronco Sport is hot on its heels, Ford’s more mainstream compact crossover still managed to eke its way onto the bestseller list. The Escape received a refresh for the 2023 model year but still offers the same range of nonhybrid, hybrid, and plug-in-hybrid powertrain options as before. - Subaru Forester (152,566 units sold)
The Forester may not sell as well as the Outback and Crosstrek, but it still managed a respectable showing considering that this is the last year of the current generation. A new 2025 Forester has already been revealed, and yet the outgoing model still managed to jump 34 percent compared with 2022. - Mazda CX-5 (153,808 units sold)
The CX-5 compact crossover has been Mazda’s bestselling model for a while now, and it managed to make it onto the overall bestseller list despite a meager 2 percent increase in sales compared with 2022. - Jeep Wrangler (156,581 units sold)
Wrangler sales were down a significant 14 percent compared with 2022. The refreshed 2024 model that went on sale later in the year may continue to improve those numbers throughout 2024, but the Wrangler—and the Jeep brand overall—could be suffering from increased competition from the Ford Bronco lineup.
