- The average new car buyer in America paid $50,326 in December, a record high.
- The figure came despite an increase in the average discount, as Americans chose more expensive pickups and SUVs.
The average new car buyer in December paid $50,326, a record high.
The average manufacturer’s suggested retail price (MSRP) was also a record, at $52,627, according to Kelley Blue Book data. Dealers discounted the average car by 7.5%, a high for the year but still below the double-digit discounts we saw before the COVID-19 pandemic.
Related: Is Now the Time to Buy, Sell, or Trade-In a Car?
Luxury Vehicles, Full-Size Pickups Driving Average Up
Consumer choice drove much of the increase. Shoppers bought more than 233,000 full-size trucks, a 5-year high. The average full-size truck sold for $66,386.
Automakers are tailoring their lineups for a market in which households making $150,000 or more buy 43% of new cars. As the year ended, Nissan canceled the last new vehicle with a sub-$20,000 price tag.
“We typically see elevated prices in December, as the market delivers a strong mix of high-end and luxury vehicle sales,” said Cox Automotive Executive Analyst Erin Keating. Cox Automotive is the parent company of Kelley Blue Book.
“It’s important to remember, the Kelley Blue Book ATP [average transaction price] is a reflection of what was sold in a given month, not what is available,” Keating said. “Last month, nearly 20% of shoppers bought luxury, a peak for 2025 – and that doesn’t include the volume of high-end pickups that were snapped up by affluent shoppers.”
The average electric vehicle (EV) sold for $58,034, with discounts making up 18% of the transaction price.
