Nissan vs Volkswagen: Revenue, Profit and Business Model
Nissan had ~$80.5B of annual revenue in FY2026 and a net loss of ~$3.6B. Volkswagen had ~$363.8B of annual revenue in FY2025 and ~$7.5B of net income.
Latest financial snapshot
Nissan
- Latest annual revenue
- ~$80.5B (FY2026)
- Net income
- ~-$3.6B
- Net margin
- -4.4%
- Revenue growth
- +9.3% a year, FY2022–FY2026
Volkswagen
- Latest annual revenue
- ~$363.8B (FY2025)
- Net income
- ~$7.5B
- Net margin
- 2.1%
- Revenue growth
- +4.5% a year, FY2016–FY2025
Financial summary
Nissan
Revenue peaked at ~$85 billion (¥12.69 trillion) in FY2023 (ended March 2024), with net income of ~$2.86 billion (¥426.6 billion). Then weak U.S. pricing, an ageing lineup and share losses in China hit results. FY2024 revenue was ~$84.6 billion (¥12.63 trillion) with a ~$4.5 billion (¥670.9 billion) net loss, driven by impairments and restructuring charges. FY2025 revenue fell 4.9% to ~$80.4 billion (¥12.0 trillion) and the net loss narrowed to ~$3.57 billion (¥533.1 billion), while operating profit stayed positive at ~$389 million (¥58.0 billion) (0.5% margin). Automotive free cash flow was minus ~$3.22 billion (¥480.8 billion) for the year but turned positive (~$750 million (¥112 billion)) in the second half. Nissan ended FY2025 with ~$7.84 billion (¥1.17 trillion) of automotive net cash and ~$24.1 billion (¥3.6 trillion) of total liquidity, and paid no dividend. In Q1 FY2026 (April to June 2026), revenue rose 9.5% to ~$19.9 billion (¥2.964 trillion) and operating profit was ~$522 million (¥77.9 billion), against a ~$530 million (¥79.1 billion) loss a year earlier. Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. is a colossal Japanese multinational automobile manufacturer and a core member of the Renault–Nissan–Mitsubishi Alliance, commanding a market valuation generally exceeding $15 billion.
Volkswagen
Volkswagen Group reported ~$364 billion (EUR 321.9 billion) in 2025 sales revenue, slightly below ~$367 billion (EUR 324.7 billion) in 2024, and an operating result of ~$10.1 billion (EUR 8.9 billion), a 2.8% margin. Earnings were held down by U.S. tariffs, restructuring provisions, the cost of Porsche's product strategy change, and weaker results from the Chinese joint ventures. Deliveries were broadly stable at 8.984 million vehicles. The December 2024 agreement with IG Metall for the Volkswagen brand in Germany avoids compulsory redundancies but plans to cut more than 35,000 jobs by 2030 through attrition and early retirement, and to reduce German plant capacity. In the first half of 2026 sales revenue was about $179 billion (EUR 158.1 billion), roughly flat, while the operating result fell 11.6% to about $6.67 billion (EUR 5.9 billion) (3.8% margin). In September 2026 Volkswagen cut its full-year forecast to about $356 billion (EUR 315 billion) in sales revenue and an operating margin of up to 1%, citing China, a faster shift to EVs, a roughly $6.78 billion (EUR 6 billion) goodwill impairment on the Porsche segment, and extra restructuring and China impairments. The Volkswagen Group is one of the largest automakers in the world by sales, with a market valuation hovering around $70 billion.
Revenue and profit by year
Nissan
| Year | Revenue | Net income | Margin | Growth | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2026 | ~$80.5B | ~-$3.6B | -4.4% | -4.9% | Source |
| FY2025 | ~$84.6B | ~-$4.5B | -5.3% | -0.4% | Source |
| FY2024 | ~$85B | ~$2.9B | 3.4% | +19.7% | Source |
| FY2023 | ~$71B | ~$1.5B | 2.1% | +25.8% | Source |
| FY2022 | ~$56.4B | ~$1.4B | 2.6% | — | Source |
Volkswagen
| Year | Revenue | Net income | Margin | Growth | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2025 | ~$363.8B | ~$7.5B | 2.1% | -0.8% | Source |
| FY2024 | ~$366.9B | ~$12.1B | 3.3% | +0.7% | Source |
| FY2023 | ~$364.2B | ~$18B | 4.9% | +15.5% | Source |
| FY2022 | ~$315.3B | ~$16.8B | 5.3% | +11.5% | Source |
| FY2021 | ~$282.7B | ~$16.8B | 5.9% | +12.3% | Source |
| FY2020 | ~$251.9B | — | — | -11.8% | Source |
| FY2019 | ~$285.5B | — | — | +7.1% | Source |
| FY2018 | ~$266.5B | — | — | +2.2% | Source |
| FY2017 | ~$260.7B | — | — | +6.2% | Source |
| FY2016 | ~$245.5B | — | — | — | Source |
Where the revenue comes from
Nissan
- Vehicle Core Manufacturing88
Wholesale deliveries of passenger sedans, crossover SUVs, pickup trucks, and EVs through franchised global dealer networks.
- Sales Financing10
Retail auto purchase loans, consumer vehicle leases, and wholesale dealer inventory floorplan financing yields.
- Aftermarket, Software & Licensing2
Distribution of genuine replacement parts, Nismo performance tuning kits, NissanConnect digital subscriptions, and battery recycling.
Volkswagen
- Passenger vehicle sales
- Premium and luxury vehicle sales
- Commercial vehicles
- Parts and aftersales
- Financial services
- Leasing and fleet services
- Software and mobility services
Business model and strategy
Nissan
How it makes money
Nissan makes money in two segments. The automobile business designs, builds and wholesales Nissan, Infiniti and NISMO vehicles (crossovers such as the Rogue/X-Trail, Kicks and Qashqai, sedans such as the Sentra and Altima, pickups such as the Frontier/Navara, and EVs such as the Leaf, Ariya and Sakura) to franchised dealers, and also sells parts.
Growth strategy
Re:Nissan, announced in May 2025, is a restructuring plan before it is a growth plan. It targets ~$3.35 billion (¥500 billion) in fixed and variable cost savings against FY2024, about 20,000 job reductions, and cutting vehicle plants from 17 to 10 by FY2027. Vehicle production at Oppama will end in FY2027 and move to Nissan Motor Kyushu.
Competitive advantage
Nissan's advantage is a global manufacturing footprint and long experience with electric vehicles. It launched the mass-market Leaf in 2010, which gives it more than a decade of data on how batteries perform in everyday use. Its e-POWER system, in which a petrol engine charges the battery and never drives the wheels, offers an option for markets with few EV chargers.
Volkswagen
How it makes money
Volkswagen earns most of its revenue by selling new cars, vans, trucks and buses through brand groups: Core (Volkswagen, Skoda, SEAT/CUPRA, Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles), Progressive (Audi, Bentley, Lamborghini, Ducati), Sport Luxury (Porsche) and TRATON (Scania, MAN, International, Volkswagen Truck & Bus).
Growth strategy
Volkswagen's growth strategy centers on cost reduction, platform simplification, brand accountability, premium profitability, China-specific EV development, battery and software investment, hybrid and combustion optimization where demand remains strong, and selective partnerships such as Rivian and XPeng.
Competitive advantage
Volkswagen's advantage is industrial scale plus brand breadth. Few competitors can cover entry-level European cars, global volume SUVs, Audi premium vehicles, Porsche sports cars, Lamborghini supercars, Bentley luxury cars, Ducati motorcycles, Scania and MAN trucks, and a major financial services arm. The purchasing leverage and installed dealer base are hard to replicate.
Questions about Nissan vs Volkswagen
Which company has higher revenue — Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. or Volkswagen Aktiengesellschaft?
Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. had ~$80.5B (FY2026), while Volkswagen Aktiengesellschaft had ~$363.8B (FY2025). By latest annual revenue, Volkswagen Aktiengesellschaft is the larger business, with Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. showing a smaller revenue base. Note: these are from different fiscal years and are not a direct like-for-like comparison.
What is the market cap of Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. vs Volkswagen Aktiengesellschaft?
Nissan Motor Co., Ltd.'s market capitalisation stands at $7.0B, while Volkswagen Aktiengesellschaft's is $35.5B. Volkswagen Aktiengesellschaft carries the higher market valuation, reflecting investors' expectations of its future earnings power relative to Nissan Motor Co., Ltd..
How does revenue per employee compare for Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. and Volkswagen Aktiengesellschaft?
Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. has $670k / employee in revenue per employee, while Volkswagen Aktiengesellschaft has $549k / employee. Headcounts may use different dates, so the ratio alone does not establish which business operates more efficiently.
How do Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. and Volkswagen Aktiengesellschaft make money?
Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. and Volkswagen Aktiengesellschaft generate revenue in fundamentally different ways. Nissan Motor Co., Ltd.: Nissan makes money in two segments. Volkswagen Aktiengesellschaft: Volkswagen earns most of its revenue by selling new cars, vans, trucks and buses through brand groups: Core (Volkswagen, Skoda, SEAT/CUPRA, Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles), Progressive (Audi, Bentley, Lamborghini, Ducati), Sport Luxury (Porsche) and TRATON (Scania, MAN, International, Volkswagen Truck & Bus).
Which company is valued higher relative to revenue — Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. or Volkswagen Aktiengesellschaft?
On a price-to-sales (P/S) basis, Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. trades at 0.1x P/S and Volkswagen Aktiengesellschaft at 0.1x P/S. Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. commands a higher revenue multiple, typically indicating that investors expect faster growth or higher future margins compared to Volkswagen Aktiengesellschaft. A higher multiple is not inherently better — it may also signal that the stock is priced for perfection.
Is Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. bigger than Volkswagen Aktiengesellschaft?
By last reported revenue, Volkswagen Aktiengesellschaft (~$363.8B (FY2025)) is the larger company compared to Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. (~$80.5B (FY2026)). Revenue scale is one dimension of size — market capitalisation, employee count, and geographic reach are also relevant depending on the context.
Figures come from each company's filings and the sources linked beside them. Amounts reported in another currency are shown in US dollars at an approximate rate and marked with ~. Back to the Nissan vs Volkswagen overview