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The Tesla Model Y (along with the Model 3) helped bring electric vehicles to the mainstream. In 2020, Tesla sold over 440,000 Model Y and Model 3 units globally combined (the company didn’t break out sales by nameplate). That represented over 88% of the automaker’s deliveries that year. So, to call the 2020 Model Y popular is an understatement.
Yet, with a five-year depreciation rate of about 60%, the 2020 Model Y proves that sales success doesn’t translate into better resale value. To put that number in perspective, iSeeCars estimates a 49.0% depreciation rate for all SUVs over the same period and a 45.5% loss in value across all vehicle types. We’re not here to debate what caused plunging prices: questions about reliability, aggressive Tesla price increases, a soft EV market, or Elon Musk’s political leanings — take your pick. We’re just here to report the facts, ma’am, and it’s not a pretty sight.
While 2020 is the Model Y’s debut year, it represents another key milestone: a five-year-old automobile that balances pricing and age in the used-car market. For some, this is the sweet spot for buying second-hand vehicles. We’ll look at what iSeeCars and CarEdge have to say about depreciation for the 2020 Tesla Model Y and other EVs from the same year.
Five-year depreciation for the 2020 Tesla Model Y
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iSeeCars reports a 60.8% depreciation rate for the 2020 Tesla Model Y over five years. In real-world terms, this means a $36,499 loss in value over this term. That works out to about $20 per day, leaving a resale value of $23,491. The data reveal that most of the loss occurs during the first three years, with depreciation reaching 56.1% or $33,653 (about $31 per day). The depreciation forecasts for seven and ten years are 72.3% and 80.1%, respectively. There’s no information on whether the refreshed Tesla Model Y changes any of these valuations.
CarEdge shows a near-identical five-year depreciation rate of 61.1%, reaffirming that the Model Y’s loss of value isn’t a fluke. Meanwhile, the calculations are even worse for three years (58.1%) and seven years (76.2%), but almost match for ten years (80.4%). The CarEdge assessments are based on a good-condition vehicle with an average annual mileage of 13,500. iSeeCars compares marketplace listings to original MSRPs, but doesn’t disclose vehicle condition requirements.
How Tesla Model Y depreciation compares to rivals
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Rewind to 2020, and the EV market was much less crowded than it is today. In terms of range and price, the only real competition to the Model Y was the Model 3 (let’s put aside the SUV-versus-sedan debate). According to iSeeCars, a 2020 Tesla Model 3 had 57.0% depreciation over five years, retaining 3.8% more of its original value than the Model Y.
Expanding the definition of EV competition for the 2020 model year, the Jaguar I-Pace has even worse depreciation over five years: 71.9%, per iSeeCars. In 2024, Jalopnik called out that Jaguar’s oddball EV could be had for Toyota Camry money. Meanwhile, the Hyundai Kona Electric has a 57.8% depreciation rate, about the same as the Model 3. The Nissan Leaf’s five-year decline in value is 64.5%. Neither iSeeCars nor CarEdge tracks depreciation for the Kia Niro EV, but Kelley Blue Book estimates a 64% depreciation rate over just three years.
