This is a complete list of up-to-date motorcycle sales statistics – both in the United States and worldwide.
In this statistic roundup, we will discuss:
- Motorcycle Market Overview
- Motorcycle Unit Sales
- Motorcycle Market Revenue
- Motorcycle Sales by Type
- Motorcycle Market Share by Manufacturer
- Global Motorcycle Market Share by Country
So, without further ado, here’s a roundup of the most newsworthy and a few jaw-dropping stats about motorcycles.
Let’s dive right in:
Motorcycle Statistics (Editors’ Picks)
- Global motorcycle market: estimated to be $106 Billion in 2022.
- The United States motorcycle market: estimated to be $5.13 Billion in 2022.
- Global motorcycle sales: 42.8 Million unit sales with an estimated value of $106.7 Billion.
- The US motorcycle sales: 430 Thousand unit sales with an estimated value of $5.13 Billion.
- Registered motorcycles: There are currently around 9.2 Million motorcycles in the US.
- Global motorcycle sales by type: On-road motorcycles make up 70.7% of the market, scooters, and off-road motorcycles have a share of 23.2% and 6.1% respectively.
- US motorcycle sales by type: On-road motorcycles make up 85.5% of the market, scooters, and off-road motorcycles have a share of 1.8% and 12.7% respectively.
- Global motorcycle manufacturers: Honda is the largest motorcycle manufacturer in the world. Both in terms of unit sales as well as revenue.
- US motorcycle manufacturers: In the United States, Harley-Davidson is the largest motorcycle manufacturer. Both in terms of unit sales as well as revenue.
- Global motorcycle market share by country: China is the biggest market for motorcycles in the world. Followed by India, Thailand, the United States, Indonesia, and Brazil.
Motorcycle Market Overview
The global motorcycle market is valued at a size of $109 Billion in 2021 and estimated to be $106 Billion in 2022. The motorcycle market is projected to reach $223 Billion by 2029 with an annual growth rate of 8.4% (Source).
Another forecast projects the motorcycle market to reach $158 Billion by 2026 with an annual growth rate of 7.6% (Source).
In the United States, there are ~9 Million motorcycles registered. The annual unit sales are ~430 Thousand motorcycles on average. And is estimated to bring in a revenue of $5.13 Billion in 2022.
However, the US market has not seen any substantial growth in motorcycle revenue over the last decade. The market revenue is projected to reach $6.42 Billion by 2026 with a growth rate of 5.7%.
Sources: Statista, FortuneBusinessInsights
Motorcycle Unit Sales
How Many Motorcycles Are Sold Each Year Worldwide
For the year 2021, around 44.1 Million motorcycles were sold worldwide. For 2022, global motorcycle sales are estimated to be 42.8 Million.
Over the last 10 years, the annual motorcycle sales are around 49 Million on average.
Worldwide motorcycle sales have been down since the Covid breakout. The sales have dipped post the year 2019.
The low sales in the last 3 years can also be attributed to the cyclical nature of the automobile industry. There were supply-side constraints as well due to the shortage of semiconductors and an increase in raw material costs.
The highest sales in the last 10 years were recorded in 2019 when global motorcycle sales clocked 52.9 Million units.
Here are the exact numbers:
| Year | Motorcycle Unit Sales |
|---|---|
| 2013 | 50.61 Million |
| 2014 | 50.47 Million |
| 2015 | 48.45 Million |
| 2016 | 49.30 Million |
| 2017 | 51.63 Million |
| 2018 | 52.74 Million |
| 2019 | 52.93 Million |
| 2020 | 47.19 Million |
| 2021 | 44.13 Million |
| 2022 | 42.81 Million (estimate) |
How Many Motorcycles Sold in the US
In the United States, around 441 Thousand units of motorcycles were sold in 2021. For the year 2022, motorcycle sales are estimated to be around 429 Thousand units.
On average, the annual motorcycle sales are around 455 Thousand over the last 10 years in the United States alone.
The year 2019 saw the highest motorcycle sales in the US in the last 10 years, clocking over 468 Thousand units.
Again, the sales have dipped post covid and are reflected in the sales figure for the last 3 years.
One key thing is the popularity of off-road motorcycles has been steadily increasing over the years.
Whereas the sales of on-road motorcycles have been fairly constant. Scooters, on the other hand, have seen some degrowth over the last decade.
Off-road motorcycles sold in 2013 were just 77 Thousand units. The same figure has grown to 101 Thousand units for 2021.
Scooters, on the hand, have seen a decline from 29 Thousand units in 2013 to 17 Thousand units in 2021.
On-road motorcycles have largely been the same with the units sales at 342 Thousand in 2013 to 384 Thousand in 2020 and 323 Thousand in 2021.
Here are the exact motorcycle unit sales numbers in the United States:
| Year | US Motorcycle Unit Sales |
|---|---|
| 2013 | 448.5 Thousand |
| 2014 | 448.4 Thousand |
| 2015 | 448.2 Thousand |
| 2016 | 448.0 Thousand |
| 2017 | 447.8 Thousand |
| 2018 | 447.4 Thousand |
| 2019 | 467.8 Thousand |
| 2020 | 521.1 Thousand |
| 2021 | 441.3 Thousand |
| 2022 | 429.5 Thousand (estimate) |
How Many Motorcycles Are There in the US
In 2020, the number of registered motorcycles in the US was 8.31 Million.
Considering the unit sales in the last 2 years, there are 9.18 Million motorcycles in the US as of 2022.
The 2022 figures are an estimate and the actual figures are yet to be known.
Going by the trend, the number of motorcycles in the US should cross 10 Million units in the next 2 years, i.e., by 2024.
There are currently around 9.2 Million motorcycles in the US.
Sources: Statista1, Statista2, Statista3, Statista4, FortuneBusinessInsights, iiiorg
Motorcycle Market Revenue
Global Motorcycle Market Value
Worldwide motorcycle market value is $109.1 Billion in 2021 and is estimated to be $106.7 Billion in 2022.
The motorcycle market has seen degrowth for the last three years. The slowdown can mainly be attributed to Covid and the cyclical nature of the industry.
The highest revenue grossed was in the year 2019 when the motorcycle revenue reached $124.4 Billion worldwide.
Pre-covid, the motorcycle market was seeing decent growth as can be witnessed in the period 2015 to 2019. The revenue went from $104.1 Billion to $124.4 Billion globally.
In the next few years, the market is expected to recover and grow at a modest rate. The motorcycle market is projected to reach $223 Billion by 2029 with an annual growth rate of 8.4% (Source).
Here are the exact revenue numbers:
| Year | Motorcycle Revenue (USD) |
|---|---|
| 2013 | 106.1 Billion |
| 2014 | 105.3 Billion |
| 2015 | 104.1 Billion |
| 2016 | 108.0 Billion |
| 2017 | 116.6 Billion |
| 2018 | 121.4 Billion |
| 2019 | 124.4 Billion |
| 2020 | 117.2 Billion |
| 2021 | 109.1 Billion |
| 2022 | 106.7 Billion (estimate) |
US Motorcycle Market Value
The US motorcycle market value is estimated to be $5.13 Billion in 2022.
Despite Covid, the United States had seen good growth in motorcycle sales in 2020. The growing popularity of off-road motorcycles contributed a lot towards this increased sales.
In the last decade, motorcycle sales have largely been stagnant over the years.
The US motorcycle market is expected to reach $6.42 Billion by 2026 with a decent growth of 5.8%.
Here are the exact numbers:
| Year | US Motorcycle Revenue (USD) |
|---|---|
| 2013 | 5.26 Billion |
| 2014 | 5.27 Billion |
| 2015 | 5.28 Billion |
| 2016 | 5.29 Billion |
| 2017 | 5.29 Billion |
| 2018 | 5.30 Billion |
| 2019 | 5.55 Billion |
| 2020 | 6.18 Billion |
| 2021 | 5.25 Billion |
| 2022 | 5.13 Billion (estimate) |
Sources: Statista1, Statista2, iiiorg
Motorcycle Sales by Type
Global Motorcycle Sales by Type
On-road motorcycles are the most popular motorcycle type. Going by the unit sales, on-road motorcycles have a market share of 60.4% in the world.
Scooters are the second most popular motorcycle type. Especially in the Asian markets. Their vast presence in these markets makes up for 36.8% totally in global motorcycle unit sales.
Lastly, off-road motorcycles have a 2.8% unit sales global market share. But, their popularity has been steadily increasing in the past few years.
In terms of revenue market share, on-road motorcycles are still the most popular ones making up 70.7% of total revenue.
Scooters are again the second. But their market share is lower in terms of revenue when compared to that of unit sales. Off-road motorcycles, on the other hand, have a higher market share in terms of revenue compared to that of unit sales.
This is because the average price of an off-road motorcycle is far higher than that of a scooter. At least on a scale factor of 3x.
Motorcycle Sales by Type in the US
Even in the United States, on-road motorcycles are the most popular type. They make up 72.8% of motorcycles sold in 2022.
But, unlike the global trend, scooters are not popular in the US. Making up only 3.6% of motorcycles.
Off-road motorcycles are immensely popular in the US. Far higher than the global trend. Off-road motorcycles make up for 23.6% of motorcycle unit sales in the US.
Even in terms of revenue, on-road motorcycles are the most popular type with a market share of 85.5%.
Followed by off-road motorcycles and scooters with a share of 12.7% and 1.8% respectively.
Sources: Statista1, Statista2, Statista3, Statista4
Motorcycle Market Share by Manufacturer
Honda is the largest motorcycle manufacturer in the world. Both in terms of unit sales as well as revenue – Honda has the largest market share in the world.
In the United States, Harley-Davidson is the largest motorcycle manufacturer. Again both in terms of unit sales and revenue market share, Harley-Davidson is the biggest player.
Market Share by Unit Sales
Honda is the largest motorcycle manufacturer in the world. Their unit sales far exceed the second-biggest manufacturer, Hero.
Based on motorcycle unit sales, Honda motorcycles is the market leader with a unit sales market share of 23%. Followed by Hero, Yamaha, and Haojue at 10.1%, 6.3%, and 4.3% market share respectively.
The main reason for Honda being the world’s largest motorcycle manufacturer is its presence in countries across the world. Apart from Japan, which is their home market, they also have huge sales in the United States, China, India, Vietnam, Thailand, Indonesia, and Brazil.
Market Share by Unit Sales in the US
Harley-Davidson is the largest motorcycle manufacturer in the US. And Honda is the second largest manufacturer.
Based on motorcycle unit sales, Harley-Davidson is the market leader with a unit sales market share of 21.1%. Followed by Honda, Kawasaki, and Yamaha at 17.5%, 12.8%, and 11.3% market share respectively.
Market Share by Revenue
Even in terms of value (or revenue), Honda has the largest market share in the global motorcycle market. Honda has a worldwide market share of 24.8%.
Yamaha and Hero are the next biggest motorcycle players with a market share of 9.4% and 4.1% respectively.
Surprisingly, Harley-Davidson, which is not in the top 10 when it comes to motorcycle unit sales, is the fourth-largest motorcycle manufacturer in terms of revenue. Harley-Davidson has a worldwide revenue market share of 2.8%.
But, apart from Honda, no motorcycle manufacturer has a dominant presence throughout different continents across the world.
As a result, the global motorcycle market is far from consolidated with manufacturers outside the top 10 still making up 46.2% of revenue market share.
Market Share by Revenue in the US
In the United States, Harley-Davidson is the largest motorcycle manufacturer both in terms of unit sales as well as revenue.
Harley-Davidson has a revenue market share of a whopping 36.8% in the US motorcycle market.
Honda and Kawasaki are the second and third largest players in terms of value with a market share of 18.4% and 12.7% respectively.
Unlike the global motorcycle market, the US market is fairly consolidated by the top few motorcycle manufacturers.
The top 6 players – Harley-Davidson, Honda, Kawasaki, Yamaha, BMW Motorrad, and Suzuki – account for ~85% of the market share.
Sources: Statista1, Statista2, Statista3, Statista4
Global Motorcycle Market Share by Country
The global motorcycle market is concentrated in Asian markets, followed by South America and North America continents.
China is the biggest market for motorcycles in the world. The motorcycle market in China is estimated to be $22 billion.
As of 2022, China’s market share in the global motorcycle market is at 21.5%, making up for more than 1/5th of the global market.
India, Thailand, the United States, Indonesia, and Brazil are the next big markets for motorcycles in the world.
The top 5 countries make up a market share of 56%. And the top 15 countries account for 81% of the worldwide motorcycle market share.
Here are the exact figures for the top 10 countries:
| Year | Motorcycle Market Share |
|---|---|
| China | 21.5% |
| India | 18.3% |
| Thailand | 6.5% |
| United States | 5.0% |
| Indonesia | 4.9% |
| Brazil | 4.6% |
| Bangladesh | 3.5% |
| Vietnam | 3.3% |
| Philippines | 2.3% |
| Argentina | 2.2% |
Sources: Statista
Conclusion
That’s a wrap for our roundup of motorcycle statistics.
As motorcycle enthusiasts, we loved putting this list of stats together. Some stats were as expected. And some were eye-opening.
Now we would like to hear from you:
What stat surprised you the most? What else would you like to see added to this roundup? Or have a question?
Either way, drop us a message.
Also, if you are interested in statistics and data, here is our post on motorcycle crash and accident statistics.