As an electric automaker and builder of sports cars and now trucks, Tesla’s competitors comprise companies like Ford, Mercedes-Benz, Porsche, Lamborghini, Audi, Rivian Lucid Motors, Toyota, and more. At the same time, Tesla is an electric energy production and storage company (SolarCity); it competes with Sunrun, SunPower, and Vivint Solar. And as an autonomous driving company, it competes with companies like Zoox, Waymo, and Baidu with self-driving software.
Competitor
Description
Key Insights
Competitive Overlap
Differentiation
NIO
A Chinese electric vehicle manufacturer known for its premium EVs and innovative battery-swapping technology. NIO competes directly with Tesla in the electric vehicle market.
NIO offers premium electric vehicles and battery-swapping technology, directly competing with Tesla in segments like high-end EVs and innovation in EV technology, targeting customers seeking luxury EVs with unique features.
Both compete in the electric vehicle market, offering premium EVs and technological innovation, with NIO’s focus on its battery-swapping technology and customer experience.
NIO’s battery-swapping technology and customer-centric approach.
Rivian
An American electric vehicle startup specializing in electric trucks and SUVs. Rivian competes with Tesla in the electric truck and SUV segment.
Rivian produces electric trucks and SUVs, directly competing with Tesla in segments like electric adventure vehicles and off-road capability, targeting consumers looking for electric utility vehicles.
Both compete in the electric truck and SUV market, offering electric adventure vehicles with an emphasis on outdoor and off-road capabilities, with Rivian’s focus on ruggedness and utility.
Rivian’s rugged and off-road-capable electric vehicles.
Lucid Motors
An American electric vehicle manufacturer known for its luxury electric sedan, the Lucid Air. Lucid Motors competes with Tesla in the luxury EV and electric sedan space.
Lucid Motors offers luxury electric sedans, directly competing with Tesla in segments like high-performance EVs and luxury electric vehicles, targeting consumers seeking premium electric cars.
Both compete in the luxury EV and electric sedan market, offering high-performance electric sedans with a focus on luxury features and advanced technology.
Lucid Motors’ emphasis on luxury and cutting-edge technology.
Polestar
A Swedish electric vehicle brand owned by Volvo Car Group and Geely. Polestar specializes in electric performance cars. Polestar competes with Tesla in the electric performance vehicle market.
Polestar produces electric performance cars, directly competing with Tesla in segments like high-performance EVs and electric sports cars, targeting enthusiasts looking for electric driving excitement.
Both compete in the electric performance vehicle market, offering high-performance EVs with a focus on driving dynamics and sustainability, with Polestar’s association with Volvo and Geely.
Polestar’s connection to Volvo and its performance-oriented design.
Ford (Electric Vehicles)
A major American automaker that has expanded its electric vehicle lineup with models like the Mustang Mach-E and electric F-150 Lightning. Ford competes with Tesla in various electric vehicle segments.
Ford offers a range of electric vehicles, including SUVs and trucks, directly competing with Tesla in segments like electric SUVs and pickup trucks, targeting a broad customer base.
Both compete in various electric vehicle segments, with Ford’s focus on its established brand, wide distribution network, and electric versions of popular models.
Ford’s extensive dealer network and iconic vehicle models.
Volkswagen (ID. Series)
The Volkswagen Group has introduced the ID. series of electric vehicles, including models like the ID.3 and ID.4. Volkswagen competes with Tesla in the global electric vehicle market.
Volkswagen’s ID. series offers a range of electric vehicles, directly competing with Tesla in segments like compact electric cars and electric SUVs, targeting a global audience with a strong focus on European markets.
Both compete in the global electric vehicle market, offering a variety of electric models, with Volkswagen’s focus on its well-established brand and presence in Europe.
Volkswagen’s reputation, manufacturing scale, and European market strength.
Hyundai/Kia (EV Models)
Hyundai and Kia, both part of Hyundai Motor Group, have introduced various electric vehicle models, including the Hyundai Kona Electric and Kia Niro EV. They compete with Tesla in the electric vehicle market.
Hyundai and Kia offer electric cars and SUVs, directly competing with Tesla in segments like compact electric SUVs and urban electric vehicles, targeting consumers seeking affordable and practical EV options.
Both compete in the electric vehicle market, offering a range of electric models, with Hyundai and Kia’s focus on affordability, practicality, and a well-established global presence.
Hyundai/Kia’s reputation for value and global reach.
GM (Chevrolet and GMC EVs)
General Motors has expanded its electric vehicle portfolio with models like the Chevrolet Bolt EV and upcoming electric vehicles under the GMC brand. GM competes with Tesla in the electric vehicle market.
GM offers electric cars and SUVs, directly competing with Tesla in segments like compact electric cars and electric trucks, targeting a diverse customer base with a strong focus on the North American market.
Both compete in the electric vehicle market, offering a variety of electric models, with GM’s focus on its long history in the automotive industry and established dealer network.
GM’s established presence in the North American market.
BMW (i Series)
BMW has introduced its “i” series of electric vehicles, including models like the BMW i3 and iX3. BMW competes with Tesla in the luxury electric vehicle market.
BMW’s “i” series offers electric cars and SUVs, directly competing with Tesla in segments like luxury electric vehicles and performance electric cars, targeting affluent consumers looking for premium electric driving experiences.
Both compete in the luxury electric vehicle market, offering high-end electric models with a focus on performance and design, with BMW’s heritage in the luxury automotive segment.
BMW’s luxury brand reputation and performance-oriented design.
Table of Contents
Breaking down Tesla’s competitors
Tesla isn’t just an automaker; it is an electric-only car automaker, an electric storage company, and an autonomous driving player.
For that, we’ll have to analyzeTesla from these three perspectives.
Automaking
Within the automaking segment, Tesla has, over the years, diversified its product lines to cover different market segments.
While this model is still available, this is the highest-priced model and the product Tesla used to bootstrap its operations.
Indeed, at the time, Tesla couldn’t produce a lower-cost electric car (Model 3 will finally achieve this goal), and that is how Tesla made its business model viable as it entered the new market for electric cars.
A transitional business model is used by companies to enter a market (usually a niche) to gain initial traction and prove the idea is sound. The transitional business model helps the company secure the needed capital while having a reality check. It helps shape the long-term vision and a scalable business model.
Over the years, as the market matured, Tesla grew, an electric ecosystem was born, and the technology to enhance battery performance improved. Tesla also expanded its product lines to cover various segments.
Sport & Performance
The primary models covering these segments are:
Roadster: here, some of the competitors are Dodge Challenger, Porsche Chiron, and Bugatti
Model S: in this segment, Tesla competes with players like the Mercedes S-Class, BMW 7 Series, Porsche Panamera, Audi A7 & A8, and more.
Suv
The primary models covering these segments are:
Model X: here, some of the competitors are BMW X5, Mercedes-Benz GLS-Class, Volvo XC90, and Porsche Cayenne.
Model Y (compact SUV): in this segment, Tesla competes with Renault Zoe, Nissan LEAF, Volksvagen e-Golf, Audi e-tron, and more.
Truck
In this segment, Tesla just launched the Cybertruck:
Cybertruck’s competitors comprise Rivian, Ford, and Bollinger.
City Car
Tesla finally has its mass-market product, the Model 3. This model competes with BMW Series 2,3,4,5, Mercedes Class C, CLA, CLS, Audi A3, A4, A5, Lexus, ES, GS, and many others.
Energy Storage
Tesla acquired SolarCity back in 2016 for $2.6 billion.
With that, it competes in the electric production and storage industry with players like SunRun, SunPower, Vivint Sonar, Trinity Solar, and SolarWorld.
Autonomous driving
Tesla’s Autopilot is one of the critical ingredients of its technology and one of the most interesting future developments for the company.
In this segment, Tesla competes with other autonomous driving companies like Zoox (bought by Amazon), Waymo (an Alphabet bet), and Baidu.
Tesla, the insurance business, and non-linear competition
When assessing business competition, it’s critical to look at it, with a long-term eye.
For instance, if we look at Telsa’s insurance business, it’s interesting to notice how a small segment today has the potential to become a competitor in a legacy industry like insurance.
A real-time insurance business model enables Tesla to build its own insurance arm by dynamically adjusting the premiums based on real-time driving behavior. Reduced insurance premiums hooked with the leasing arm enable Tesla to scale its demand side of the business.
Therefore, if you were a legacy player like Geico, would you put Tesla on your potential (long-term) competitors’ map?
I guess not. Instead, with a non-linear approach, you know that Tesla is looking to leverage the insurance segment to sell millions of cars across the world. Given that the auto insurance business is an integral part of the overall insurance business, you get the point.
Therefore, a non-linear competition framework helps us look into how the market might evolve in the long term and place some bets on top of the existing business model to ensure we’re positioned for long-term survival and thrive!
Key Highlights
Tesla’s Multi-Faceted Presence: Tesla isn’t limited to being just an automaker; it encompasses electric vehicle manufacturing, energy storage solutions, and autonomous driving technology. Understanding Tesla requires analyzing it from these three angles.
Automaking Evolution: Over time, Tesla diversified its product lines within the automaking segment to cater to different market segments. It initially entered the market with the Roadster model, despite its high price, as part of a go-to-market strategy aligned with Elon Musk’s vision for mass-market electric cars.
Transitional Business Model: The Roadster’s high price initially allowed Tesla to bootstrap its operations. This approach, known as a transitional business model, involves entering a market (often a niche) to gain initial traction, secure capital, and shape a long-term scalable business model.
Expansion and Market Maturation: As the market matured, Tesla’s growth and technological advancements led to the emergence of an electric ecosystem. Battery performance technology improved, and Tesla expanded its product offerings to cover diverse segments.
Competing in Different Segments: Tesla competes in various vehicle segments:
Sport & Performance: Competitors include high-performance vehicles like Dodge Challenger, Porsche Chiron, and Bugatti.
SUV: Competitors range from BMW and Mercedes-Benz to Volvo and Porsche.
Compact SUV: Competitors include Renault, Nissan, Volkswagen, and Audi.
Truck: The newly launched Cybertruck competes with Rivian, Ford, and Bollinger.
City Car: The mass-market Model 3 competes with several BMW, Mercedes, Audi, and Lexus models.
Energy Storage and Autonomy:
Tesla’s acquisition of SolarCity enables competition in the electric production and storage industry.
Tesla’s Autopilot technology positions it as a key player in the autonomous driving segment, competing against companies like Zoox, Waymo, and Baidu.
Non-linear Competition: Tesla’s entrance into the insurance business through real-time insurance models introduces a non-linear competition approach. By adjusting premiums based on real-time driving behavior, Tesla leverages insurance to sell more cars globally, potentially disrupting the traditional insurance industry.
Long-term Perspective: When assessing business competition, it’s crucial to consider the long-term potential. Tesla’s insurance venture demonstrates how a seemingly small segment can evolve to become a major competitor in a legacy industry. A non-linear competition framework helps anticipate market evolution and positions businesses for long-term success.
Tesla was profitable in 2022, and it generated $12.55 billion in net profits. Tesla has been profitable since 2020. Indeed, Tesla generated $862 million in net profits in 2020. And it further generated $5.6 billion in net profits in 2021.
In 2022, Tesla generated $81.46 billion in revenues. Tesla’s business model primarily relies on automotive sales, $71.46 billion (almost 88% of the total revenues); services/others followed with over $6 billion; energy generation and storage generated over $3 billion in revenues.
Telsa’s profit margins moved from negative 3.15% in 2019 to over 15% in 2022. As Tesla scaled up manufacturing and improved its economies of scale (with new facilities) and scope, the company became extremely profitable by 2022.
Tesla’s profit margin per car in 2022 was $9580, compared to over $6000 in 2021 and over $1700 in 2020.
As Tesla was working toward mass manufacturing in 2020, the company’s profitability per car has increased slightly.
Elon Musk, seen as one of the most visionary tech entrepreneurs from the Silicon Valley scene, started his “career” as an entrepreneur at an early age. After selling his first startup, Zip2, in 1999, he made $22 million, which he used to found X.com, which would later become PayPal, and sell for over a billion to eBay (Musk made $180 million from the deal). He founded other companies like Tesla (he didn’t start it but became a major investor in the early years) and SpaceX. Tesla started as an electric sports car niche player, eventually turned into a mass manufacturing electric car maker.
Elon Musk, an early investor and CEO of Tesla, is the major shareholder with 21.7% of the stocks. Other major shareholders comprise investment firms like Baillie Gifford & Co. (7.7%), FMR LLC (5.3%), Capital Ventures International (5.2%), T. Rowe Price Associates (5.2%), and Capital World Investors (5%). Another major individual shareholder is Larry Ellison (co-founder and CEO of Oracle), with a 1.7% stake.
Founded in 2003 by Eberhard and Tarpenning, eventually, the initial co-founders left the company, and by 2004, Musk first became the main investor. After that, by 2008, he took over as CEO of the company. Tesla would go through many near-death experiences until 2018. And yet, by 2021, Tesla will become a trillion-dollar company.
Tesla is vertically integrated. Therefore, the company runs and operates the Tesla’s plants where cars are manufactured and the Gigafactory, which produces the battery packs and stationary storage systems for its electric vehicles, which are sold via direct channels like the Tesla online store and the Tesla physical stores.
As an electric automaker and builder of sports cars and now trucks, Tesla’s competitors comprise companies like Ford, Mercedes-Benz, Porsche, Lamborghini, Audi, Rivian Lucid Motors, Toyota, and more. At the same time, Tesla is an electric energy production and storage company (SolarCity); it competes with Sunrun, SunPower, and Vivint Solar. And as an autonomous driving company, it competes with companies like Zoox, Waymo, and Baidu with self-driving software.
A real-time insurance business model enables Tesla to build its insurance arm by dynamically adjusting the premiums based on real-time driving behavior. Reduced insurance premiums hooked with the leasing arm enable Tesla to scale its demand side of the business.
Zoominfo is an American software-as-a-service (SaaS) company founded by Henry Schuck and Kirk Brown in 2007. The company sells access to the most comprehensive B2B database in the world to help sales and marketing teams better communicate with prospects. Zoominfo held an IPO in June 2020 raising $935 million. Like similar software companies that are valuable to remote teams, demand for the Zoominfo platform increased because of the coronavirus pandemic. It is now used by over 20,000 businesses, with clients including T-Mobile, Zoom, Amazon, and Google.
Spotify is the world’s largest music streaming platform with over 381 million users across 184 markets around the world. The company was founded by Martin Lorentzon and Daniel Ek in 2008 in response to the shutdown of peer-to-peer music service Napster. Spotify became a success because it was the first company to determine how to distribute music legally and compensate the music industry at the same time. The platform now offers various curated music discovery services, music stations, audio customization, and private listening. In recent times, it has also ventured into the streaming of audiobooks, podcasts, comedy, poetry, and short stories.
Poshmark is a social commerce marketplace where users can buy and sell new or used clothing. The company was founded in 2011 by Manish Chandra, Tracy Sun, Gautam Golwala, and Chetan Pungaliya. Poshmark is one of many companies looking to profit from the explosive growth in the second-hand clothing and resale industry, which is expected to be worth around $51 billion by 2023. Scores of women, in particular, are opting to sell their unwanted fashion items online instead of donating them to charity or thrift stores.
Afterpay is an Australian fintech company operating in Australia, Canada, the United Kingdom, New Zealand, and the United States. Founded in 2014 by Nick Molnar and Anthony Eisen, the company enjoyed a first-mover advantage in the buy-now-pay-later (BNPL) space. Less than seven years later, the company reached 13.1 million active customers with gross sales amounting to $10.1 billion. Despite its success, some suggest the company has lost its edge in the buy-now-pay-later space with the emergence of several high-profile competitors exerting their influence and giving merchants more choice.
Carvana is an online used car retailer with vending machines located around the United States. The company was founded in 2012 by Ryan Keeton, Ben Huston, and Ernest Garcia III. The company is the fastest growing online used car retailer in North America and was recently one of the youngest companies to be added to the Fortune 500 list. While Carvana is currently the only American company selling cars in vending machines, its growth and success have not gone unnoticed by other players. In this article, we’ll take a look at some of the company’s major competitors.
Carvana is an online used car retailer with vending machines located around the United States. The company was founded in 2012 by Ryan Keeton, Ben Huston, and Ernest Garcia III. The company is the fastest growing online used car retailer in North America and was recently one of the youngest companies to be added to the Fortune 500 list. While Carvana is currently the only American company selling cars in vending machines, its growth and success have not gone unnoticed by other players. In this article, we’ll take a look at some of the company’s major competitors.
GoodRx is an American healthcare company known for its telemedicine platform and a website and mobile app that track prescription drug prices. As part of this service, the company makes drug coupons available for free to consumers. GoodRx was created by Trevor Bezdek, Doug Hirsch, and Scott Marlette. Hirsch, an early employee at both Yahoo and Facebook, got the idea for the company after picking up a prescription with private health insurance and still having to pay $450. Given the high variability in prices between different pharmacies, Hirsh went on a mission to make prescription drug prices more transparent and affordable for ordinary Americans. Revenue in the second quarter of 2021 amounted to $177 million with over 7.5 million app customers using the GoodRx app. While the company was the first to provide a comprehensive list of pharmacy drug prices, new players have entered the market. The rest of this article will be devoted to looking at the main GoodRx competitors.
DoorDash is an online food ordering and delivery platform founded by Tony Xu, Stanley Tang, Andy Fang, and Evan Moore in 2013. Together with its subsidiaries, DoorDash has a 56% market share in food delivery and a further 60% in the convenience delivery sector.
In 1965, PepsiCo acquired Frito-Lay in what the chairmen of both companies called a “marriage made in heaven”. The resultant company transformed PepsiCo from a soft drink organization and set it on a path to becoming one of the world’s leading food and beverage companies. Today, PepsiCo claims to operate in more than 200 countries and territories around the world with seven distinct divisions and many successful brands.
The Coca-Cola Company has 21 different billion-dollar brands or brands that generate more than $1 billion or more in revenue each year. The company also sells its products in nearly every country in the world, with Cuba and North Korea the only two countries where it is not sold officially. What’s more, the Coca-Cola brand is worth $87.6 billion, making it one of the most valuable among all companies. Though these figures allow Coca-Cola to enjoy market dominance in many countries, the company is nevertheless subject to intense competition.
Headquartered in Burbank, California, Disney has global reach and influence with its universally popular resorts, movies, streaming services, video games, and merchandise. But as one of the largest media conglomerates in the world with a diverse range of products in multiple marketplaces, Disney is no stranger to competition.
International Business Machines Corporation (IBM) is an American multinational technology company. It was founded in New York as the Computing-Tabulating-Recording Company in 1911 by Charles Ranlett Flint. IBM is a diverse company with a similarly diverse portfolio of products and services. It produces and sells hardware, middleware, and software. It also offers hosting and consultancy services in nanotechnology and mainframe computers. What’s more, IBM has a strong culture in research and development, filing the most U.S. patents of any business for the past 28 years.
Starbucks is a multinational coffee chain headquartered in Seattle, Washington. It was founded by Jerry Baldwin, Zev Siegl, and Gordon Bowker in 1971. From a single and very humble bean roasting store in Pike Place Market, the company is now a global giant operating almost 33,000 stores around the world. This large global footprint obviously increases the competition for Starbucks in many different markets. The coffee industry itself is also highly competitive, with established players including McDonald’s and Dunkin’ Donuts.
Boeing is best known for designing and manufacturing commercial aircraft, but the company also produces helicopters, rockets, satellites, spacecraft, missiles, and telecommunications infrastructure. Founded in 1916 by William Boeing in Seattle, Washington, the company is one of the largest aerospace manufacturers and defense contractors in the world.
While Google (now Alphabet) has been born as a search engine, it is now a diversified company, even though its core business remains search, as most of its revenues still come from Google, the search engine, and YouTube, the “video engine.” However, as a tech giant, which business is primarily based on advertising, the company does compete with Facebook, Twitter, Microsoft (with Bing), and Amazon (with e-commerce search and its advertising machine).
Peloton is a media and exercise equipment company primarily making money making money via its fitness products. The idea for the company came from John Foley, who argued that technology could help time-poor individuals get a full workout at home. The company competes with other players like Bowflex, NordicTrack, Life Fitness, MYX Fitness.
IKEA was founded in 1943 by Swedish businessman Ingvar Kamprad as a mail-order catalog business. The company is best known for selling affordable flat-pack furniture, but it also sells home accessories and kitchen appliances. Today, IKEA offers approximately 9,500 products across 445 stores in 52 countries. With such broad reach, IKEA is not immune to competition.
The Airbnb story began in 2008 when two friends shared their accommodation with three travelers looking for a place to stay. Just over a decade later, it is estimated that the company now accounts for over 20% of the vacation rental industry. As a travel platform, Airbnb competes with other brands like Booking.com, VRBO, FlipKey, and given its massive amount of traffic from Google. Also, platforms like Google Travel can be considered potential competitors able to cannibalize part of Airbnb’s market.
Salesforce is a cloud-based customer relationship management (CRM) provider, allowing businesses to build meaningful and sustained relationships with their customers. With robust, customizable software that integrates with social media, Gmail, and Microsoft Outlook, the Salesforce CRM platform is rated highly among businesses of all shapes and sizes. Recent data has shown that the company has captured 19.5% of the global CRM market.
In just fifteen short years, Shopify has grown from humble beginnings to become one of the fastest-growing eCommerce platforms online. The Shopify eCommerce solution is perhaps best suited to users who desire an easy, flexible and affordable starter solution for their online store. The provider now has upwards of 820,000 stores accounting for 20% of the total market share. However, the continued success of any company in the dynamic digital market is never guaranteed.
Netflix is the largest streaming video subscription service in the world. Created by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in 1997, the company has revolutionized the video content subscriptionmodel with over 139 million subscribers in 190 countries. The success of Netflix is due to two factors. The first is a recommendation system that gives suggestions on what customers should watch based on their viewing history. The second is the vast catalog of content on offer – produced by third parties and by Netflix itself. These factors have resulted in Netflix competing against influential TV networks and film producers for viewership.
YouTube is the most popular online video platform, a hybrid between a video search engine and a social media platform with a continuous feed prompted by social interactions and engagement. In fact, the platform is so popular that YouTube.com is the second most visited website on the internet. After being acquired by Google in 2006 for $1.65 billion, the platform now boasts over 2 billion registered users. Collectively, these users upload 500 hours of video every minute. The platform competes with other video engines like Vimeo, Dailymotion, and social platforms like IGTV, TikTok, and Twitch.
Zoom is a video platform, which enabled remote working. As such it competes with other large tech players like Google and Microsoft for the productivity space, and other startups like Slack and Go-To-Meetings.
As an electric automaker and builder of sports cars and now trucks, Tesla’s competitors comprise companies like Ford, Mercedes-Benz, Porsche, Lamborghini, Audi, Rivian Lucid Motors, Toyota, and more. At the same time, Tesla is an electric energy production and storage company (SolarCity); it competes with Sunrun, SunPower, and Vivint Solar. And as an autonomous driving company, it competes with companies like Zoox, Waymo, and Baidu with the self-driving software.
Amazon is a consumer e-commerce platform with a diversified business model spanning across e-commerce, cloud, advertising, streaming, and more. Over the years, Amazon acquired several companies. As it operates across several industries, Amazon has a wide range of competitors across each of those industries. For instance, Amazon E-commerce competes with Shopify, Wix, Google, Etsy, eBay, BigCommerce.
Gennaro is the creator of FourWeekMBA, which reached about four million business people, comprising C-level executives, investors, analysts, product managers, and aspiring digital entrepreneurs in 2022 alone | He is also Director of Sales for a high-tech scaleup in the AI Industry | In 2012, Gennaro earned an International MBA with emphasis on Corporate Finance and Business Strategy.
