BETA is conducting primary research to better understand how Australian consumers make decisions about what sorts of cars they consider or purchase when buying a new car. Our primary research focus is the barriers and enablers that influence consumer decision making about whether to buy an electric vehicle.
In 2025 we surveyed 3,756 Australian consumers who had either recently purchased a vehicle or were planning to purchase one in the next 12 months. A key finding from this survey research was that that 1 in 4 consumers would be interested in a resource to help them answer the question ‘Is an EV for me?’.
In 2026, BETA is partnering with DCCEEW to design and test behaviourally informed resources for ev.gov.au to support consumers who are considering buying an electric vehicle. As part of this research, we will conduct another survey of Australian consumers to test the effectiveness of different ways of providing information about electric vehicles. We will also measure how consumer views on electric vehicles have changed between early 2025 and late 2026.
Detailed information about our 2025 electric vehicle survey and a de-identified version of the unit record data is available on the Australian Data Archive (ADA). There are no restrictions on access to this data beyond the standard terms and conditions used by the ADA.