European motorcycle registrations January–September 2026 ACEM, Digi Mart USA News (Europe): Nearly 945,000 new motorcycles were registered across five European markets in the first nine months of 2026, the highest total for those markets since 2019, according to a statistical release from the European Association of Motorcycle Manufacturers (ACEM) dated October 28, 2026. The five tracked markets are France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom, which together account for about 80% of registrations in the European Union and the United Kingdom combined.
The total reached 944,129 units, compared with 823,653 in the same period of 2025, an increase of 14.6%. All tracked countries recorded growth.
The association’s secretary general said the comparison covers the markets it surveys, not Europe as a whole.
Growth varied widely by country. Germany ranked first in percentage growth with 173,947 registrations, up 24.1%, after a decline of 24.4% a year earlier.
Spain registered 221,236 units, up 20.9%. The United Kingdom recorded 84,114 registrations, up 14.6%.
Italy, the largest market by volume with 313,095 motorcycles, grew 10.9%.
France closed the ranking with 151,737 registrations and growth of 4.8%, the lowest of the five countries. It ranked fourth by volume.
Adjusted for population, France registered 2,203 new motorcycles per million inhabitants, placing it third among the five markets after Italy and Spain and ahead of Germany and the United Kingdom.
The scooter segment, tracked across six markets including Belgium and the Netherlands, totaled 118,544 units, up 7%. France led that segment with 38,130 registrations, but its growth was only 0.3%, the lowest in the group.
The release does not state its own methodology for comparing the two panels, and the figures are not directly comparable because the country sets differ.
Calculations based on the association’s first-half and nine-month releases imply third-quarter 2026 growth of roughly 10.4%, compared with 16.8% for the first half. This figure is derived by subtraction between two official releases and is not published by the association as such.
Antonio Perlot, the association’s secretary general, attributed the trend to sustained consumer interest in two-wheeled motorized vehicles, citing cost-of-living pressures and urban congestion as factors. He called on public authorities to recognize the role of L-category vehicles in European mobility.
