Who Sold More Bikes Last Year?

Yamaha and Harley-Davidson are both famous names in the motorcycle world, albeit for different reasons. While Yamaha’s motorcycles have developed a reputation for being reliable and reasonably priced, Harley-Davidson’s bikes sell on style, image, and power. Harley-Davidson also has a much higher cost of entry, with its cheapest new motorcycle in America, the Nightster, starting from $9,999 (before an undisclosed destination fee). In contrast, Yamaha’s cheapest U.S. market offering is the $3,799 (plus $450 destination) Zuma 125 scooter. Given Yamaha’s strong presence in global markets and its more accessible price point, it shouldn’t be a surprise to find out that the Japanese brand sold more motorcycles globally than Harley-Davidson in 2024.

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However, the difference in scale between the two brands is more significant than some enthusiasts might assume. Harley-Davidson sold 151,229 motorcycles globally in 2024, while Yamaha sold a reported 4.96 million motorcycles. That means that, across the year, Yamaha sold almost 33 times more bikes worldwide than Harley-Davidson.

A key difference between the two brands is the importance of the North American market to each. The most recent data published by Yamaha shows that North America accounted for just over a quarter of its overall sales revenue, with this figure including all Yamaha products, not just motorcycles. Asia, in contrast, made up the largest proportion of its overall sales revenue, accounting for nearly 40% of total sales.

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Its third-largest market was Europe, which made up around 13% of its overall sales. This isn’t a perfect picture, as the Japanese brand doesn’t publish region-specific figures for just its motorcycle division, but it gives an idea of how well spread out the brand’s market share is across the globe.

Harley-Davidson’s sales, in comparison, are much more dependent on American buyers. Over two-thirds of the brand’s total reported motorcycle sales in 2024 came from either the U.S. or Canada, with European, Middle Eastern, and African buyers making up just a sixth of total sales. The remaining one-sixth of the brand’s sales total is attributed to the Asia Pacific region.

Looking back at previous years’ figures, it’s evident that neither brand is necessarily booming. Yamaha’s sales have remained mostly steady over the last few years, although the brand recently reported increased sales in multiple key markets in Asia and South America. The numbers probably won’t have the company’s investors jumping for joy, but its steady growth means they won’t be worried either. Plus, Yamaha’s back catalog of highly successful models proves that the brand has always been good at innovating when it needs to.

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The same can’t be said about Harley-Davidson’s sales figures, which have been on a consistent decline for several years now. The brand shifted 194,256 motorcycles in 2021, but sales have dropped every year since. The brand’s popularity in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa has seen an even more pronounced decline, with 36,906 sales in the region in 2020 and just 24,082 sales in 2024. That’s around a 35% drop in popularity in less than half a decade. Clearly, Harley-Davidson needs a shift in strategy if it’s to find a way out of its recent financial troubles. As part of its turnaround plan, the company is seeking a new CEO to replace current CEO Jochen Zeitz, who retires later in 2025.