The average transaction price (ATP) for a new vehicle hit a record high in December, driven largely by huge demand for full-size pickup trucks, according to Kelley Blue Book.
First things first: Estimates from the Cox Automotive insights team show that while new-vehicle prices typically peak in the final month of the year, both ATPs and manufacturer's suggested retail price (MSRPs) climbed sharply in December, along with incentives.
The average price paid for a new vehicle in December was $50,326, up 0.8% year over year and 1.1% from November.
MSRP also set a record at $52,627, up 1.2% year over year, marking eight straight months above the $50,000 mark.
Incentives rose to 7.5% of ATP, the highest level of 2025 and up 10.7% from November, though still lower than a year ago.
Via Cox Automotive
Why it matters: Record ATPs (powered by high-margin full-size pickups) mean stronger front-end grosses and better overall profitability, even as incentives creep higher. But those price points shrink the buyer pool, making smart financing structures, aggressive but disciplined trade valuations, and tight inventory/pricing strategy essential to keep volume moving.
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Digging deeper: Strong demand for midsize SUVs and full-size pickups was a major driver of December’s higher ATP, with retail and fleet sales of full-size trucks setting new records.
More than 233,000 full-size pickups were sold in December, the best month for the segment in five years and the sixth-best in the past decade.
The average price paid for a full-size pickup was $66,386, just below the record set in October 2025.
Combined revenue from retail and fleet sales of full-size pickups topped $15 billion for the first time, according to Cox.
What they’re saying: “That $15 billion pickup milestone signals the market's fundamental restructuring,” Erin Keating, executive analyst at Cox Automotive, told CDG News. “Five years ago, manufacturers would chase volume to spread fixed costs. Now they're engineering portfolio strategies around high-margin segments and deliberately constraining supply to defend pricing power.”
Bottom line: Tighter inventory discipline and affordability constraints are tilting the market toward pricing power over pure volume growth, reinforcing the industry’s shift to margin-over-volume strategies, explained Keating. “Case in point, days' supply for full-size pickups tightened from 104 days in December 2024 to 87 days in December 2025,” she said.
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