Tesla discloses ‘FSD subscriber’ count for the first time: 1.1 million

For the first time ever, Tesla has revealed how many people are actually paying for Full Self-Driving. The answer: 1.1 million, roughly 12% of its cumulative vehicle sales.

The disclosure came in Tesla’s Q4 2025 earnings report, where the company revealed “Active FSD Subscriptions” as a new metric. The number includes both upfront purchases and monthly subscribers, but excludes free trials.

Update: Tesla has since added a critical piece of information: 1.1 million “subscribers” actually includes people who bought the FSD package outright, which accounts for 70% of that number.

Tesla didn’t volunteer this information out of transparency. The disclosure is tied to Elon Musk’s 2025 CEO Performance Award, which uses active FSD subscriptions as one of its metrics.

In a footnote, Tesla explains:

In accordance with our 2025 CEO Performance Award, metric includes both up-front payment and monthly subscriptions and excludes free trials.

In other words, Tesla shareholders finally get to see this number because it’s now required for Musk’s compensation package.

Here’s what Tesla disclosed:

That’s 38% year-over-year growth, with monthly subscriptions “more than doubling” in 2025, according to Tesla.

But context matters. Tesla has delivered 8.9 million vehicles cumulatively. Even if we generously assume every one of those vehicles is still on the road and FSD-capable, the take rate is only about 12%.

Tesla stated in the earnings report:

Starting this quarter, we are transitioning access to FSD (Supervised) to monthly subscriptions only as we begin to sunset the up-front payment option.

1.1 million is a big number in absolute terms. But 12% of cumulative sales after nearly a decade of promising self-driving is around the corner? After price cuts, free trials, and relentless promotion? That’s not a ringing endorsement.

The timing is telling too. Tesla didn’t share this number because they wanted to, they shared it because Musk’s pay package requires it. When a company only discloses metrics because executive compensation demands it, you have to wonder what other numbers they’d rather keep quiet.

The subscription pivot makes financial sense for Tesla. Recurring revenue, reduced liability, and customers who can cancel anytime if FSD doesn’t deliver. But it also signals that Tesla has given up on convincing people to pay USD15,000 upfront for a feature that still requires constant supervision.

At USD99/month, Tesla needs about 12 years of continuous subscription to match that USD12,000 upfront price. Most people will cancel long before that, which might explain why Tesla finally decided subscriptions are the better business model.