Saudi Arabia remains the largest car market in the Gulf, recording about 410,000 vehicles in the first half of 2026, down 23.5% overall on the comparable period.
Toyota holds a comfortable lead with a 30.8% share and sales of 126,300 cars, close to a third of the entire market, and more than double the share of second-placed Hyundai.
Saudi Arabia’s best-selling marques — first half 2026
| # | Marque | Sales | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Toyota | 126,300 | 30.8% |
| 2 | Hyundai | 53,300 | 13.0% |
| 3 | Kia | 34,400 | 8.4% |
| 4 | Nissan | 25,800 | 6.3% |
| 5 | Ford | 21,300 | 5.2% |
| 6 | MG | 17,600 | 4.3% |
| 7 | Isuzu | 15,600 | 3.8% |
| 8 | Haval | 14,800 | 3.6% |
| 9 | Jetour | 11,500 | 2.8% |
| 10 | Changan | 11,100 | 2.7% |
Total market about 410,000 cars in the first half of 2026, down 23.5%. Shaded rows are Chinese marques. — Source ↗
But the real story in this table is not at the top; it is in the lower half: four Chinese marques — MG, Haval, Jetour and Changan — occupy sixth, eighth, ninth and tenth with a combined 13.4% share.
The four Chinese marques combined hold more than double Ford’s share, and approach Kia and Nissan put together.
For comparison, those four combined hold more than double the share of fifth-placed Ford, and approach Kia and Nissan put together.
The more important difference is in direction rather than size: in a market down 23.5%, Haval and Jetour were the only two marques in the top ten that grew, up 48% and 22.6% respectively.
For anyone building an estimate of Saudi market size, three methodological points deserve attention: the figures represent retail sales rather than shipments to dealers; shares are calculated against the total passenger car market; and the general decline makes relative growth more revealing than absolute volume.
The question the table puts to Japanese and Korean manufacturers is not about this half but the next: will Chinese growth stay confined to the economy and mid-range segments, or move into the segments where Toyota and Hyundai earn their highest margins?
