Economy
INSTAT: 1,115,221 road vehicles in circulation, up 8.7% in a year; new registrations fall 4.8%
Tirana holds more than a third of the country's vehicles, while Volkswagen and Mercedes-Benz lead among first-time registrations.
By ANN Newsroom · Newsroom
October 30, 2026, 20:05 · Updated 19:02 · 1 min read
In brief
- At the end of the third quarter of 2026, 1,115,221 road vehicles were in circulation in Albania.
- Passenger cars make up 80.6% of the total; Tirana accounts for 34.7% of vehicles and Durrës for 13.7%.
- Some 25,338 vehicles were registered for the first time, 4.8% fewer, with Volkswagen on top at 16.6%.
The number of road vehicles in circulation in Albania reached 1,115,221 in the third quarter of 2026, up 8.7% from the same period a year earlier, according to data released by INSTAT on Friday evening.
Passenger cars dominate
Passenger cars make up most of the fleet, at 80.6% of the total. They are followed by motorcycles at 6.5% and mixed-transport vehicles at 5.7%.
The geographic distribution remains uneven. Tirana County accounts for 34.7% of all vehicles, followed by Durrës at 13.7%. At the other end are Gjirokastra and Kukës, with 2.1% and 2.4% of the total respectively.
Fewer new registrations
While the overall fleet is growing, the pace of new registrations has slowed. During the quarter, 25,338 vehicles were registered for the first time, 4.8% fewer than a year earlier. Of these, 80.0% were passenger cars, and Tirana again led with 40.0% of registrations.
Among the brands of first-time registered vehicles, Volkswagen ranks first at 16.6%, followed by Mercedes-Benz at 15.1%. The annual growth of 8.7% shows the fleet keeps expanding, even though fewer vehicles are being registered for the first time.
The data come as the government has proposed in the 2027 Fiscal Package removing the circulation tax from fuel and shifting it to annual vehicle taxes, a change that, according to Finance Minister Petrit Malaj, leaves the budget with a shortfall of about 5 billion lek. According to him, not all the revenue the 27-lek levy on fuel used to bring in has been transferred to the annual vehicle taxes.
