by Although there are rumors that BMW and Porsche earn the most from options alone, this is not actually the case. Or rather, not entirely true. If we talk about the past year 2024, the absolute champion in profitability turned out to be Ferrari.
Last year, the Italian brand sold 13,752 cars—but this brought the company a net profit of 1.88 billion euros. Per car, that’s over 136,000 euros. And this is not revenue, but pure profit!
The reason for this success lies in exclusivity. Ferrari does not chase the mass market. Its business is built on image, individuality, and high markups. At the same time, the company does not spend huge budgets on dealer networks, as, for example, Toyota—the global leader in sales volume—does. To earn the same 136,000 euros, the Japanese giant has to sell approximately 50 cars.
The list of the most profitable brands also includes Porsche (approximately 18,140 euros per car), Mercedes-Benz, BMW, and Tesla, but they are far from Ferrari’s level. Tesla, despite the electric vehicle revolution, earns only about 3,800 euros per car on average.
The most modest figures belong to Suzuki and Renault: 1,130–1,140 euros per car. But where the real financial losses lie is among the newcomers to the electric vehicle industry. The American brand Lucid, for example, lost over 283,000 euros on each car sold in 2024. Losses are also recorded by Rivian, Nio, Xpeng, and Leapmotor. The reasons are obvious: massive investments in technology, logistics, and infrastructure, as well as insufficient production volume for profitability.
