Expert juries have handed top prizes to battery-powered models for years, and the winners range from performance sedans to family crossovers and a hatchback that outscored its finalists. The honors below come from the World Car Awards, North American Car of the Year and Wards 10 Best, each tied to a published source. Here are twelve electric winners, with the award, the year and what the record actually says.
1. Jaguar I-Pace: A World Car Winner From Jaguar
The Jaguar I-Pace took the 2019 World Car of the Year title, according to the World Car Awards’ official history, a record kept by the awarding body itself. That puts the electric Jaguar at the top of a global jury’s ballot for its year, rather than in a segment or regional class.
For shoppers, the I-Pace is a documented case of an electric model winning the overall prize outright. Used buyers weighing one should treat the award as a statement about the 2019 judging, and check condition and battery health on any individual car separately.
2. Porsche Taycan: A Performance Prize For Porsche
Porsche’s Taycan was named 2020 World Performance Car, as the World Car Awards history records. That category is distinct from the overall World Car of the Year prize, so the honor describes how the electric sedan stacked up against other performance entries, not against every new car of the year.
The Taycan therefore carries a driving-focused credential rather than an efficiency or value one. Buyers comparing it with rivals can use the title as one data point, while remembering that a 2020 verdict does not cover later model-year changes or current pricing.
3. Audi e-tron GT: Another Performance Honor
Audi’s e-tron GT earned 2022 World Performance Car honors, as listed in the official awards history PDF. It followed the Taycan, which took the same title two years earlier, so Volkswagen Group’s electric grand tourers claimed that category in both 2020 and 2022.
The result gives the e-tron GT a credential in the same class as its Porsche counterpart. Anyone cross-shopping the two will find that the history confirms the wins but says nothing about price, range or ownership costs, which need separate checking.
4. Kia EV6: The GT Version Takes The Prize
The Kia EV6 won 2023 World Performance Car as the EV6 GT, according to the World Car Awards’ history. The wording matters: the award went to the high-performance GT variant, not to the whole EV6 range. It also added a third electric name to the performance list in this gallery, after the Taycan and the e-tron GT.
Buyers should note the distinction before assuming the honor applies to every trim. Lower versions were not the named winner, so the trophy speaks mainly to the GT’s performance rather than to the rest of the lineup.
5. Volkswagen ID.4: Volkswagen’s Electric-Era Landmark
Volkswagen’s ID.4 was the 2021 World Car of the Year, and Motoring Research’s winners slideshow treats the result as a landmark for the electric era. The write-up singles out the victory as an overall prize, the top honor in the program, not a class award or a runner-up finish.
As an electric crossover, the ID.4 marks a mainstream model reaching the top prize. The award reflects 2021 judging, though, and says nothing about later pricing or updates, so buyers should evaluate the current version on its own merits.
6. Hyundai Ioniq 5: A Sweep For Hyundai
Hyundai’s Ioniq 5 was named 2022 World Car of the Year, and Motoring Research’s winner list says it ‘swept the floor with a trio of prizes.’ The wording points to a multi-category haul rather than a single trophy, though the excerpt does not itemize the other two awards.
The result makes the Ioniq 5 one of the stronger award winners in this group. Buyers can treat the overall title as a signal of jury approval, while checking trim, range and charging details on the specific car they are considering.
7. Hyundai Ioniq 6: Edging Out The BMW X1
Hyundai’s Ioniq 6 followed its stablemate to the top, taking 2023 World Car of the Year, according to Motoring Research’s winner list. The write-up says it ‘pipped the BMW X1 and iX1, and the Kia Niro,’ language that suggests a close contest against named rivals.
The Ioniq 6 gave Hyundai consecutive overall titles, with the Ioniq 5 winning a year earlier. Anyone shopping the sedan can read the result as a narrow jury preference, not a sweeping verdict, and compare it directly against the rivals the list names.
8. Kia EV9: The Brand-Defining Winner
The Kia EV9 won 2024 World Car of the Year, and Motoring Research’s winner slideshow calls it ‘the brand-defining Kia EV9.’ That language positions the electric SUV as a statement for the whole company, not merely another trophy on a crowded shelf.
The EV9 is the latest World Car of the Year winner in this set, which gives it the freshest award of that kind. Buyers should still separate the brand-level praise from practical questions about trim, range and cost on the version they intend to buy.
9. Chevrolet Bolt: Outscoring The Finalists
The Chevrolet Bolt won 2017 North American Car of the Year, and Motoring Research’s NACTOY list says it ‘substantially outscored its rival finalists.’ That wording describes a decisive margin, not a narrow call, among the vehicles that reached the final round.
The Bolt is the oldest award year in this group, which makes it the winner most likely to turn up on the used market. Buyers considering an older example should treat the trophy as a verdict on the car’s debut and verify battery condition and service history separately.
10. Nissan Ariya: A Wards Pick With A Wide Range
Nissan’s Ariya made the 2023 Wards 10 Best Engines and Propulsion Systems list, which The Car Guide’s recap summarizes as ‘Single or dual motors, 214-389 hp, 330-490 km of range.’ The span shows how widely the lineup varies by configuration, from the lowest output to the highest.
Those figures describe the range of Ariya configurations, and the distances are quoted in kilometres. Shoppers should match a specific trim to its own rating rather than assume the top numbers apply to every version on a dealer lot.
11. Hyundai Ioniq 9: Dual Motors And Up To 422 Horsepower
The 2026 Hyundai Ioniq 9 earned a place on the 2025 Wards 10 Best Engines and Propulsion Systems list, which The Car Guide’s 2025 roundup describes as dual electric motors making ‘up to 422 hp.’ The honor attaches to the powertrain rather than to the vehicle as a whole.
As the newest award winner in this set, the Ioniq 9 has the shortest track record. Its recognition rests on the propulsion system, a narrower judgment than a whole-vehicle prize, which buyers should keep in mind when comparing it with the older winners.
12. Lucid Gravity: The Horsepower Leader
The 2026 Lucid Gravity also landed on the 2025 Wards 10 Best list, per the same Car Guide 2025 roundup. Its entry lists dual electric motors and ‘up to 828 hp,’ the highest output quoted for any item in this gallery.
That figure applies to the top configuration, and the ‘up to’ wording signals that lesser versions make less. Buyers should look up the output of the exact trim they want, and remember that the award covers the powertrain, not the whole SUV.
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