Does Kia Have Electric Vehicles? Here's the Full Kia EV Lineup (and Why Export Buyers Are Paying Attention)

Short answer: yes, and the range is bigger than most people realize.

When overseas buyers email us asking "does Kia have an electric vehicle?" they usually think Kia = ICE + a bit of hybrid. That was fair three years ago. Today, Kia has six EVs sitting on the shelf — from a city runabout to a three-row family hauler — and one of them is actually built in China and shipped out globally, which is where our story as an export operator starts to overlap with theirs.

Below is the full Kia electric vehicles rundown as of 2025, then the part that matters for anyone trying to buy one out of China: which ones actually make sense to export, and where a Chinese EV might beat Kia at its own game.

The "Big Two": EV6 and EV9 on E-GMP

If you've read anything about Kia EVs, it's probably these two. Both sit on Hyundai-Kia's E-GMP 800V platform, which means 10–80% DC fast charging in about 18 minutes when you're on a 350kW stall.

Kia EV6 (compact crossover, 5 seats)

• Battery: 77.4 kWh (2025 also gets a standard 63 kWh option on lower trims)

  
  

• Power: 225–320 hp (RWD single motor → AWD dual motor); GT trim pushes 576 hp

  
  

• EPA range: up to 319 mi (RWD long-range 2025)

  
  

• Positioning: the "electric car" for people who wanted a Sportage but don't want gas

  
  

• Built: GA, USA (most trims); Korea for GT

  
  

  
  

Kia EV9 (full-size SUV, 3 rows, 6/7 seats)

• Battery: 99.8 kWh

  
  

• Power: 215–379 hp; EV9 GT lands 501 hp / 0–100 km/h ~4.5 s

  
  

• EPA range: 230–304 mi depending on trim

  
  

• Towing: 5,000 lbs

  
  

• Built: Korea

  
  

  
  

These two carry the brand. If someone asks "does Kia have electric vehicles" and stops there, they're thinking EV6 and EV9. But the family's bigger now.

The Rest of the Garage: Niro EV, EV5, EV3, EV4

Kia Niro EV — the entry point. 64.8 kWh, 201 hp, 253 mi EPA, positioned under the EV6 in both size and price. Not E-GMP (shares the Niro hybrid architecture), so charging is slower, but it's the cheapest way into a Kia badged electric car. For export buyers on a tight budget, this one keeps coming up.

Kia EV5 — this is the one you should care about if you're buying through China. It's a C-segment SUV (4,615 mm long, think Sportage-sized), built at Kia's Yancheng plant in Jiangsu via the Dongfeng-Yueda-Kia JV. China domestic gets a 64.2 / 88.1 kWh BYD Blade LFP pack (FinDreams, BYD's battery arm), CLTC 530–720 km. Export versions get an 82 kWh NMC pack instead, and an AWD option (160 kW front + 70 kW rear, 0–100 km/h ~6.1 s). RHD rolled off the Yancheng line in April 2024 for Thailand, Australia, New Zealand, then Latin America and the Middle East (Saudi etc.). Kia is targeting 200,000 units/year export from Yancheng by 2026, across 80 countries.

Why this matters for you: if your market is RHD (UK, Japan, Australia, Thailand, South Africa), the EV9 isn't coming your way — but the EV5 RHD from Yancheng is. And it's wearing a Kia badge with BYD chemistry underneath. We'll come back to that.

Kia EV3 — the "city-to-city" compact, sized below the EV5. Europe gets up to ~605 km range, 10–80% in 31 min. Think urban family runabout.

Kia EV4 — fastback sedan/hatch, launched Q3 2025. Up to ~625 km range (European cycle), meant to fight the Model 3 crowd.

So the full house, in order: Niro EV → EV3 → EV4 → EV5 → EV6 → EV9. Six EVs, three platforms (Niro shares ICE arch, the rest are E-GMP 400V or 800V), price spread from ~$29K to ~$78K.

Why Overseas Buyers Keep Asking Us This Question

We had a Dubai client last month ask "does Kia have an electric vehicle? I only see Sportages and Sonet in the local dealer lot." That's the gap — Kia's ICE distribution in the Gulf is decades deep, but the EV side is still patchy per market. Some markets (Korea, US, NZ, Germany) get the full spread; others get two or three models and that's it.

If you're buying from outside those core markets, your realistic access paths are:

1. Korean-built EV6 / EV9 → parallel export out of China/Korea, LHD, FOB floats with quota

   
   

2. China-built EV5 → Yancheng direct, LHD and RHD both available depending on destination

   
   

3. Niro EV → small batch, easier certification for Central Asia / Africa

   
   

GCC, EEC, ADR certifications aren't automatic across the lineup — EV9 GCC is common, EV6 less so, EV5 RHD already cleared for Thailand/Australia/NZ and moving into Saudi.

The Part They Don't Put in the Brochure

Here's the thing nobody tells you when you're googling "Kia electric vehicles": Kia is already using China as its EV export hub. The EV5 is the pilot, Yancheng is the base, and the same port system that ships Chinese brands (Shanghai, Ningbo, Yantai) is shipping Kias now.

Which means if you're already sourcing Chinese NEVs — BYD Seal, Tang EV, Li Auto L9, NIO ES8 — you're competing and cooperating with Kia in the same lane. We see this every week at the port: a buyer comes in for an EV9 quote, sees the 4-month wait and the FOB number, then looks at a Tang EV or an EV5 RHD and pivots.

Quick sense-check we give clients:

• Want the badge + 3 rows + wait is fine → EV9 (Korea build)

  
  

• Want city 5-seat + sharper drive → EV6, or honestly the BYD Seal undercuts it

  
  

• Want RHD + 5-seat C-SUV → EV5 RHD from Yancheng (this one's pure China play)

  
  

• Want RHD + 3 rows → forget Kia, go Tang EV / Li Auto L9

  
  

Does Kia Have Electric Vehicles? Yes. Should You Buy One Out of China? Depends.

The short answer to the search query is easy. The buying answer isn't.

Kia's EV6 and EV9 are genuinely good pieces of hardware — the 800V charging alone puts them ahead of most Chinese rivals except the top trims (Xiaomi SU7 Max, Zeekr 001, etc.). The EV5 is the sleeper: China-built, BYD-bladed, priced to undercut a Model Y by ~$14K in China (149,800 RMB starter), and Kia is pushing it hard into emerging markets.

But if you're an export buyer, the question isn't "does Kia have electric vehicles." It's:

• Which one clears my market's certification?

  
  

• LHD or RHD?

  
  

• Can I get quota, or am I waiting 4 months?

  
  

• And — quietly — is there a Chinese EV that does the same job 25% cheaper FOB?

  
  

That last question is why we don't just sell Kias. We ship both sides out of Shanghai and Ningbo, and the math flips per client.

FAQ

Q: Does Kia have an electric vehicle, or only hybrids?

A: Kia has six EVs as of 2025: Niro EV, EV3, EV4, EV5, EV6, and EV9. The hybrid/PHEV side (Niro HEV/PHEV, Sorento PHEV) is separate — the six above are battery-electric only.

Q: Which Kia EV is built in China?

A: The Kia EV5. It's made at the Yancheng plant (Jiangsu) by Dongfeng-Yueda-Kia JV and is Kia's first China-built global EV. Domestic China gets a BYD Blade LFP pack; export versions get an 82 kWh NMC pack.

Q: Is the Kia EV9 available in RHD?

A: No. The EV9 is LHD only. If you need RHD, Kia points you to the EV5 RHD (also China-built) or the Niro EV in some markets.

Q: Are Kia EVs available for parallel export from China?

A: The EV5 is the straightforward one — it's China-built for export markets. The EV6 and EV9 are Korea-built; parallel export out of China exists but quota is tighter and lead times longer. FOB quotes vary by configuration, destination, and certification status — best to confirm per market.

Looking at a Kia EV for your market? Drop your destination country + seat count + budget in the comments. We'll tell you whether the EV6, EV9, EV5, or a Chinese alternative makes the cleaner case.

Written by Allen, Export Operations at GuangDong Auto, We handle Kia parallel export (EV6/EV9/EV5) and Chinese NEVs (BYD, Li Auto, NIO) out of Guangzhou, China.