Electric scooters are increasingly closing the upfront price gap with petrol models, giving a fresh boost to India’s scooter market with starting prices close to mainstream 110-125cc petrol scooters. Entry-level variants of popular electric scooters such as the Bajaj Chetak and TVS Orbiter start at around Rs 95,000, while the Ola S1 X starts at Rs 84,999, bringing the entry price lower. The recently launched Ather Konark starts at Rs 99,000. Most of these models were priced around Rs 15,000 higher a year ago. These prices are quite competitive with petrol models such as the Honda Activa 125, TVS Jupiter, Suzuki Access 125 and TVS NTORQ 125, which are priced in the Rs 80,000-1,00,000 range.
The narrowing gap is changing the purchase equation, particularly for high-mileage users. Lower running and maintenance costs, coupled with a growing charging network, can improve an EV’s total cost of ownership and offset differences in upfront prices.
The shift is already visible in industry sales. SIAM data shows overall scooter sales rose 31% year-on-year to 60,72,000 units during January-August 2026, from 46,48,000 units a year earlier. In August, scooter wholesales increased 23.8% to 8,55,715 units, their highest monthly volume, from 6,91,430 units a year earlier.
Motorcycles, in contrast, recorded much slower growth. August sales rose 2.4% to 11,33,047 units, although motorcycles continued to lead in absolute volumes. Overall two-wheeler sales increased by 1,93,000 units year-on-year in August, with scooters contributing 1,64,000 units, or roughly 85% of incremental wholesale growth.
Thanks to lower cost of acquisition, ownership and widening charging infrastructure, electric scooters are emerging as a key growth engine. SIAM data shows scooters with motor power above 250 watts accounted for 1,85,303 units in August, more than twice the 81,017 units recorded a year earlier.
Industry data puts total electric-scooter wholesales at around 1,89,000 units in August, up about 131% year-on-year and equivalent to roughly 22% of the scooter market. Also, the expanding range of EVs across price points is giving scooters a growth engine that motorcycles have yet to replicate.