CALSTART’s Zeroing in on Zero-Emission Trucks report is out, and the results are in: after getting off to a slow start in the first half of 2025, zero-emission truck deployment in the US picked up steam in the second half, climbing to 4.14% of all new deployments.
That 4.14% share for zero-emission truck (ZET) deployments may not sound impressive at first glance, but it represents remarkable growth from the 1.32% ZET deployment rate in the first half of 2025. More importantly, though, it reflects real momentum we’ve already seen carry into H1 2026, where all signs suggest the trend is continuing to accelerate.
Significantly, this growth in ZET deployments is happening even as the overall commercial truck market contracted significantly throughout the year.
ZET deployments saw their best 6-month performance period to date in the second half of 2025, with a deployment share of 4.14% (Figure 2). The previous high was 3.13%, which was set in the first 6 months of 2023. Total truck sales declined in the back half of the year, with only 314,067 reported sales (-35% year-over-year).
CALSTART
By the end of 2025, total ZET deployments reached 72,309 nationwide, with 12,996 of those coming in the second half of 2025. That’s up from ” marks an increase from “just” 52,787 ZETs in the field at the close of 2024, with the overall number of ZET deployments increasing a staggering 37% year-over-year.
Even CALSTART, typically known for delivering relatively sterile data reporting, seems to be optimistic for what the numbers will look like in 2026 and beyond.
Looking ahead, 2026 will be a decisive year for understanding the next phase of ZET adoption. The pace of future deployments will be heavily influenced by how effectively states, infrastructure providers, fleets, and other stakeholders work together to address practical barriers that shape adoption. Financial support, infrastructure planning, policy certainty, and education will remain important in determining how quickly the market continues to expand. The results in this update point to a market that is still advancing, with stronger progress to come where policy, planning, and deployment conditions are aligned.
CALSTART
Looking back on most of H1 2026, historic high fuel costs, oil shortages, new state and utility incentive programs, novel applications of US tax code, and the broader acceptance of electric trucks among larger logistics operators are likely to be fueling ZET orders – but the most significant change in 2026 compared to previous years is likely to be the arrival of the Tesla Semi, which is hitting the market at a competitive $290,000 for its super-efficient, 500-mile tractor.
You can check out the full CALSTART report, below, then let us know what you think the future holds for ZET and battery-electric truck deployments in the comments section at the bottom of the page.
ZIO ZET Report
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