Which car model holds the record for the most units sold worldwide?

The Toyota Corolla holds the record for the most units sold worldwide by a car nameplate. Introduced in Japan in 1966, the Corolla became Toyota’s global compact-car success story through its affordability, reliability, and broad range of body styles.

Toyota expanded the Corolla across international markets, adapting engines, equipment, and body designs to local needs. The nameplate reached more than one million cumulative sales within four years of its launch and was recognized as the world’s best-selling nameplate in 1997. Toyota reported cumulative Corolla-series sales of 55 million units by the end of 2024.

The comparison can become confusing because different rankings count nameplates, individual generations, body styles, or commercial derivatives differently. The Volkswagen Beetle and Ford F-Series are historic high-volume sellers, while the Honda Civic is another major global nameplate, but the Corolla’s worldwide cumulative total is the standard answer to this question.