More electric vehicle owners say their next car will be a hybrid or plug-in hybrid car, a sign that some want flexibility that battery power alone doesn’t deliver, according to the 2026 EV Index from mapping company Here Technologies and research firm SBD Automotive.

The share of EV drivers planning to buy a hybrid vehicle next rose to 28 percent in 2026 from 23 percent in 2025, the report said.

Hybrids appeal to drivers who want electrification but also flexibility on long trips or in areas where charging is unreliable, according to the report. More than 4,000 drivers across the U.S., France, Germany, Italy, Spain, the U.K., India and Australia took part in the survey.

Despite the rising interest in hybrids, most EV owners surveyed, 64 percent, are still likely to buy another EV, according to the index. That intent rises to 87 percent in the U.K. and 78 percent in Germany, compared with 48 percent in Italy.

“Most EV owners in our survey would buy another one, which is encouraging,” said Robert Fisher, senior consulting manager at SBD Automotive. “But when EV owners start looking at hybrids as their next vehicle, we need to understand why EVs don’t fulfill all of their mobility requirements.”

The EV transition is now shaped as much by driver confidence as by vehicle and charging technology, Fisher said. “EV markets gain momentum when charging infrastructure, vehicle adoption and the ownership experience develop in parallel,” he said.

Why the shift matters

The findings suggest that even EV owners who rate the experience highly may not stay with battery-electric power, a trend that could shape automakers’ product plans and EU emissions targets.

France and Germany agreed on Oct. 16 to ease EU car emissions targets, which originally required a 100 percent reduction in tailpipe CO2 emissions from new cars. Key committees in the European Parliament have also approved proposals to soften the 2035 targets.

Plug-in hybrids emit almost as much CO2 in real-world driving as conventional gasoline and diesel cars and far more than official figures suggest, according to Brussels-based green group Transport & Environment.

Among surveyed owners of internal-combustion vehicles, 17 percent said an EV is the vehicle type they would be most likely to buy or lease next.

Better value for money is the top motivator for buying an EV, cited by 36 percent of respondents, the survey found. Lower running costs followed at 34 percent, while environmental benefits ranked third at 33 percent. About 70 percent of respondents said higher fuel prices increased their interest in EVs.

Ownership often eases pre-purchase concerns. Among EV owners surveyed, 68 percent said the charging experience was better than expected, while 67 percent said the same about driving range.

Chinese brands trail Japanese, European rivals in consideration

Brand origin remains important. Japanese and European brands have the widest appeal, with 73 percent and 69 percent of respondents, respectively, saying they would consider buying from them. South Korean and U.S. automakers each scored 63 percent. Chinese and Indian automakers were at 45 percent and 42 percent, respectively.