Instant acceleration is what EVs are known for, and that’s true of an everyday commuter or the fastest cars on the planet. They all offer thrills from the first press of the accelerator, but not all are created equal.
While you can get a fair kick in something like a bog-standard Tesla Model 3 or Volkswagen ID.4, more enthusiast-oriented EVs are out there too for people who want more power, more torque and more excitement behind the wheel.
Even if electric cars are near-silent, they can get your heart racing fast. So if you’re in the market for something that can get your blood flowing, here are the best sports and performance EVs available right now.
This article was last updated on July 17, 2025.
How We Test
From New York to Shanghai and Bucharest, the editors at InsideEVs test dozens of new electric cars every year. With decades of combined experience in the car world, we strive to bring you the most up-to-date information and help you make informed choices when buying a new EV.
Every time we get to review a car, whether it’s during a first drive event, a week-long experience, or as part of our Annual Breakthrough Award evaluations, we assess each vehicle for comfort, practicality, and driving enjoyment. We look at how well an EV works as an everyday car, how good its infotainment is, how far it can drive on a single charge in the real world, and how fast it can charge.
In this article, we’ve narrowed our focus to the best sports and performance EVs money can buy in the North American market today. If you're interested in the top electric sedans in Europe, click here. For our full list of the best EVs across all categories, click here.
The Best Electric Sports Car For Most People: Tesla Model 3 Performance
Base price: $56,630
Range: 298 miles
Drive Type: Dual-Motor All-Wheel Drive
Power: 510 hp
0-60 mph sprint: 2.9 seconds
Top speed: 163 mph
This might seem tiring, but we have to say it like it is. Tesla has done a wonderful job of making the Model 3 Performance one of the best everyday sports cars out there, not just in the EV space. With a sub-three-second zero to 60 mph time, it’s a certified supercar-killer.
Its performance is largely on par with the latest BMW M3 Competition, although the Tesla is technically quicker in a straight line—and also $20,000 cheaper. That means the
Tesla Model 3 Performance can put a smile on your face every time you get on a twisty road. Despite its lack of a combustion engine soundtrack, the way it drives makes up for it.
That said, the traditionalists out there might complain about the sparse interior, and they wouldn’t necessarily be wrong. With a single center screen and no steering wheel column stalks, Tesla has taken minimalism to the extreme with the updated Model 3, so that might take some getting used to.
But one thing is clear: if you're driving a fast car and you're looking for a race, and you see those red brake calipers on the Model 3 Performance... well, you had better be sure that's a fight you want.
The Best Sports And Performance EVs, If You Don’t Want A Tesla
Hyundai Ioniq 5 N
Base price: $67,800
Range: 221 miles
Drive Type: Dual-Motor All-Wheel Drive
Power: 601 hp standard, 641 hp with N Grin Boost engaged
0-60 mph sprint: 3.25 seconds
Top speed: 161 mph
With more power, more torque and a track-ready cooling system, Hyundai's Ioniq 5 N is one of our favorite EVs. Despite not delivering the same driving range and being more expensive than the Tesla Model 3 Performance, Hyundai’s go-fast electric crossover is simply superb to drive–and it also has crossover capability that Tesla’s fast sedan can’t match..
It’s engaging, with fast steering and a drift mode that can fully decouple the front motor. If you’re into gaming, shifting through eight simulated gears might just be up your alley.
This is an EV that you can use every day and then take to the race track on the weekend. It’s a proper performance car with beefy brakes and solid acceleration every time you push the pedal to the metal.
Ford Mustang Mach-E Rally
Base price: $61,180
Range: 265 miles
Drive Type: Dual-Motor All-Wheel Drive
Power: 480 hp
0-60 mph sprint: 3.4 seconds
Top speed: 128 mph
The Ford Mustang Mach-E Rally is alone in the world, and that’s a good thing. Sure, the Hyundai Ioniq 5 XRT is also a dirt-ready EV, but it doesn’t quite rise to the occasion performance-wise as the 480 hp Mustang Mach-E Rally.
The electric crossover is just as usable day to day as the regular Mach-E, but if you find yourself on a winding dirt road, you can have a great time in Ford’s niche EV. It’s also a great rallycross car that you can use to go to work during the week.
The Ford Mustang Mach-E Rally features a 1-inch suspension lift, specially tuned MagneRide shocks for improved off-road handling, rally-specific springs and protective shielding for both the front and rear motors. It also includes a rear spoiler inspired by the Ford Focus RS, integrated fog lights in the front grille and striking white rally-style wheels.
BMW i4 M50
Base price: $71,875
Range: 227-267 miles
Drive Type: Dual-Motor All-Wheel Drive
Power: 536 hp
0-60 mph sprint: 3.7 seconds
Top speed: 127 mph
The BMW i4 in M50 guise (soon to be replaced with the M60) gets a lot right. It has superb handling, plenty of space for four adults and delivers solid range.
It’s not quite as efficient as the Tesla Model 3, but handling-wise, it can hold its own with the best out there. The interior is also a little more on the traditional side, with a driver display and physical stalks, and the quality of the materials is great.
It’s about $15,000 more expensive than the Tesla Model 3 Performance, though, which is a lot of money for a lot of people. However, if you can afford it and you don’t want to drive anything that has the T logo up front, the i4 M50 is a great way to enjoy BMW’s famous road manners in an all-electric package.
The Best Luxury Performance EVs
Audi E-Tron GT
Base price: $127,390
Range: 278 - 300 miles
Drive Type: Dual-Motor All-Wheel Drive
Power: 670 - 912 hp
0-60 mph sprint: 2.4 - 3.3 seconds
Top speed: 152 - 155 mph
Now we’re getting into more serious stuff. The Audi E-Tron GT, much like its more powerful and expensive cousin, the Porsche Taycan, is an absolute weapon–both on the road and on track.
With trick suspension, dual-motor all-wheel drive and a perfectly balanced chassis, the revised E-Tron GT is one of the fastest EVs in the real world. Audi’s electric four-door cruiser will obliterate most other cars with its seemingly unlimited torque, but coddle you on a commute with its luxurious cabin. But if this isn’t enough, the next car on this list might fit the bill.
Porsche Taycan
Base price: $106,250
Range: 255 - 318 miles
Drive Type: Dual-Motor All-Wheel Drive
Power: 402 - 1,019 hp
0-60 mph sprint: 2.1 - 4.4 seconds
Top speed: 143 - 190 mph
Yes, the Porsche Taycan offers variants that are even faster and tighter than its platform sibling, the Audi E-Tron GT. And if the lower starting price is confusing, it’s only because Porsche offers the Taycan with a single rear electric motor as an entry-level trim, while the E-Tron is only available with dual-motor all-wheel drive in the United States.
Make no mistake, though, Porsche will happily charge you $200,000 for a Taycan, if that’s what you want. For this kind of cash, you get an obscene amount of power–over 1,000 hp–and a performance chassis that won’t break a sweat on the infamous Nurburgring.
Tesla Model S Plaid
Base price: $101,630
Range: 368 miles
Drive Type: Dual-Motor All-Wheel Drive
Power: 1,020 hp
0-60 mph sprint: 1.99 seconds
Top speed: 149 mph
Despite its age, the Tesla Model S in Plaid spec is still worthy of a place on this list. Thanks to its high range rating and relatively low price in relation to its performance, the American EV can still hold its own with the competition.
It’s also very spacious inside and can use all the chargers on the Supercharger network without an adapter. Plus, you get Tesla’s software experience, which is the best in the business.
The Best Performance EVs When Money Is No Object
Lucid Air Sapphire
Base price: $225,500
Range: 427 miles
Drive Type: Tri-Motor All-Wheel Drive
Power: 1,234 hp
0-60 mph sprint: 1.89 seconds
Top speed: 205 mph
The Lucid Air is a range monster. The Dream Edition recently set the world record for the longest electric drive on a full battery, but the Sapphire is all about the performance.
The top-spec Air EV is the only one with three electric motors, churning out no less than 1,234 hp. That’s a ridiculous amount of power, and it will propel the American-made EV from a standstill to 60 miles per hour in a face-bending 1.89 seconds.
Handling is also up there, with the Air Sapphire clinging to the asphalt like a cat with an upcoming vet appointment. Add a top-notch interior and ultra-fast charging speeds to the mix and you get an extremely rare and extremely fast EV.
Maserati GranTurismo Folgore
Base price: $197,800
Range: 233 miles
Drive Type: Dual-Motor All-Wheel Drive
Power: 751 hp
0-60 mph sprint: 2.6 seconds
Top speed: 202 mph
Maserati has been in limbo for decades. Despite this, the Stellantis-owned brand—one of the oldest in the world—managed to come up with yet another good-looking supercar, and one for the electric age.
The Maserati GranTurismo Folgore keeps true to the GranTurismo nameplate that has been associated with V-8 engines and Italian pizzazz over the years, only this time it manages to do that in silence.
It has great handling, a great cabin and a price to match.
Rimac Nevera
Base price: $2.2 million (estimated)
Range: 304 miles (WLTP)
Drive Type: Quad-Motor All-Wheel Drive
Power: 1,914 hp
0-60 mph sprint: 1.74 seconds
Top speed: 256 mph
Rimac went from operating from a garage in Croatia to sticking its logo on the final boss of EVs. The Rimac Nevera is so fast, so taught and so direct that it seems to bend the laws of physics. It’s infinitely configurable, so you can drive it confidently as a daily, but when you need it, you can turn things up to 11 to leave everything else in the dust.
The Nevera holds two dozen world records for speed, acceleration and braking. All of this comes at a cost, though. The standard variant costs about $2.2 million, while the even more hardcore Nevera R has an estimated price tag of around $2.7 million. Good luck getting one, though, as most of them have already been sold.
Conclusion
Gasoline-powered enthusiast cars might be a dying breed, but ultra-fast EVs are just getting started. Sure, you don’t get the old-school sound of a gas-burning engine, but an electric sports car makes up for that with more torque, more power and an overall better package.
