What is happening on the Russian tire market
The situation on the Russian tire market has changed radically in recent years, and analysts interviewed by the Autonews.ru portal say that currently, tire prices are stable, and there is no need to worry about shortages - which is not surprising given the influx of Chinese brands, whose number has already exceeded two hundred.
According to the CPRP (operator of the "Honest Sign" marking), from January 1 to March 3, 2026, the retail price of passenger tires in Russia decreased by 7% to 6 thousand rubles. This low indicator is most likely due to the growing popularity of budget tires, since, as reported by the NRA, in 2025, the price of a premium summer tire was 31.3 thousand rubles, and a winter one was 28 thousand rubles.
The NRA also recorded a decline in prices for non-premium summer tires. According to analysts, over the year from February 2025 to February 2026, the cost of summer tires of the mentioned class decreased from 10.7 to 9.8 thousand rubles, while in the winter segment, the cost increased from 9.6 to 9.9 thousand rubles.
Ilya Plisov, a member of the board of the Union of Autorepair Services of Russia, provided Autonews.ru with statistics on the availability of the 20 most popular passenger tire sizes from suppliers:
175/65 R14
185/60 R14
185/65 R14
185/60 R15
185/65 R15
195/60 R15
195/65 R15
185/75 R16
205/55 R16
205/60 R16
215/65 R16
215/50 R17
215/55 R17
215/60 R17
225/45 R17
225/60 R17
225/65 R17
235/65 R17
225/60 R18
235/60 R18
In the CPRP, they say that from January 1 to March 3, 2026, the greatest demand on the Russian market was for passenger tires with a diameter of 16 inches, the sales of which jumped by 45% at once. In addition, 15-inch tires are still popular (growth by 41%), while the demand for 17-inch tires increased by 43%, and in the 14th and 18th segments, growth was recorded by 59% and 36%, respectively. According to the CPRP, sales of summer tires grew by 45%, and the average price decreased by 6%, from 6.8 to 6.4 thousand rubles.
According to Plisov (7,220 product lines were analyzed), if in the 10th week of 2025, the average cost of a passenger tire was 15,003 rubles, a year later, this figure decreased to 14,476 rubles, and a decline in prices by 10-20% was noted, which applies to tires of Chinese brands such as Tracmax, Goodride, Triangle, Landspider, Leao, Antares, Hifly, RoadX, and Fortune.
Regarding forecasts for the future, Nikолай Pogulyaev, the owner and head of the Fit Service car service, noted that a multidirectional price dynamics is expected, and "premium and Russian tires will rise in price."
"At the same time, for Chinese tires, on the contrary, a decrease in cost can be expected: the yuan exchange rate has weakened, warehouse balances have accumulated, from which it is necessary to get rid of them," he said. "High competition among suppliers from the PRC will also restrain the growth of prices in this segment."
According to the head of Fit Service, this situation means that it is possible to find profitable offers among Chinese brands without losing quality." Although, we add, it is not possible for even an experienced expert to understand such a large number of brands from China.
In recent years, almost all key premium tire brands have left Russia, and of foreign ones, only Pirelli remains, to which Ikon (produced at the former Nokian Tyres facilities in the Leningrad region) and Gislaved (owned by the mid-price class, but in Russia was "raised" by Cordiant after the departure of Continental) have been added, and Pogulyaev admits that "the situation in the premium segment remains tense" and "demand partially exceeds the available offer".
According to Plisov, in all segments of the Russian market, there is currently an overabundance of supply: "The leaders in terms of the width of the range are now Yokohama [like Pirelli, it has preserved production in Russia], Ikon Tyres/Nokian, Pirelli, Kumho, and Hankook - these brands have more than 400 types of tires. In terms of warehouse stock, the leaders are Pirelli, Michelin, Continental, Nortec [a Russian brand owned by ASK], Nokian, and Roadcruza [tires are produced by the Chinese New Continent Tire]."
Pogulyaev notes that in the country, there is a growing demand for tires with a diameter of 18 to 21 inches, which is associated with the popularity of Chinese crossovers. According to him, "reorientation to 'Chinese' tire sizes is not going on." At the same time, both Ikon Tyres and Cordiant are working to meet the emerging demand, and, for example, new winter tires Gislaved One W will be available in sizes up to 22 inches.
"We do not observe a reorientation of the market to 'Chinese' tire sizes, and in the near future, there will be no such changes: most cars from China come to us already equipped with summer tires, which are designed for a mileage of 50-80 thousand km. Mass demand for replacing tires on new Chinese cars will arise only after several seasons, so there will be no rush to rebuild the range," he said.
In Ikon, they say that a shortage of tires of the necessary sizes is "unlikely", since Russian brands "quickly adapt". "The range of Ikon tires can cover 93% of the country's car fleet (according to data on the structure of the car fleet in 2024), and 99% of cars of 2024-2025 model years can be equipped with tires produced in Vsevolozhsk," the company's statement says, which is quoted by RBC Avto.
Pogulyaev adds that the share of Chinese tires in the domestic market is growing, and now there are about 200 brands from China available - Ikon has already counted 250. According to him, "the mass buyer continues to focus on more affordable options, and the budget segment traditionally forms about 70% of the market. This proportion remains unchanged regardless of external changes. The share of premium buyers continues to decline: when the price difference with Chinese analogs is five to ten times, many people reconsider their priorities in favor of more affordable tires."
In Pirelli, they say that currently, Russian plants are able to fully meet the demand for tires for Chinese cars, as well as for most "traditional brand" cars. "The combination of domestic production and growing imports forms a surplus of tire products on the Russian market, which is expressed in a wide range of products in each of the sizes and creates conditions for choice on the part of the buyer," the company said.
Regarding the budget segment, Ikon notes that it is experiencing "colossal pressure" from Chinese manufacturers, and the company intends to compete with them through a new brand called Credo.
Russian manufacturers de facto acknowledge that they cannot withstand the powerful competition from Chinese brands, and, as reported by Ikon, "to protect the market from the pressure of Chinese imports, the authorities are considering issues related to the carcinogenic safety of tires [apparently, we are talking about a new eco-fee that was officially introduced to protect the health of the Russian population], limiting imports through marketplaces, controlling the certification of winter tires, and prioritizing the use of Russian-made tires for OEM".
According to Pirelli, the share of Chinese tires on the Russian market reaches 35%, and "this factor has become one of the key reasons for the reduction in the volume of local production of passenger tires in 2025 by more than 20%, and the level of utilization of domestic plants decreased to 55%".
In Cordiant, they confirm that Chinese tires have occupied a third of the domestic market, but add that their share "has stabilized and is no longer growing": "The main mass of these tires belongs to the budget segment. People choose what is cheaper, and the perception of tires as a product that ensures safety, unfortunately, is not very developed in Russia yet."
According to the company, currently, in the Russian car fleet of 47.5 million cars, there are just over three million Chinese cars, and most drivers use domestic cars (30% account for the Lada brand), so "it's too early to talk about reorienting to 'Chinese' tire sizes".
Representatives of Russian tire enterprises also say that the change of suppliers of raw materials and the restructuring of logistics chains did not affect the characteristics of the products, and in Cordiant, they claim that "the quality has even become better, since from the moment of the departure of foreign companies, Russian manufacturers not only used foreign developments and modern equipment but also developed their own teams of product developers, launched new, more technological lines of tires".
In Pirelli, they assure that, "being still part of a transnational corporation, we maintain an uncompromising focus on quality and strictly adhere to the uniform quality standards of the group. This ensures our leading positions in the premium segment".
Regarding forecasts, Pirelli notes that prices for premium summer tires are currently stable, and in the middle and lower price segments, they are even decreasing. "Such dynamics are due to increased competition from cheap imports against the background of the strengthening of the ruble exchange rate," the company believes.
In Cordiant, they predict a price increase of 5-7% and say that the cost of tires will change "plus or minus at the level of the overall inflation in the country".
In Ikon, they do not give forecasts for prices, noting only that the company offers tires not only under the premium brand but also under budget brands such as Attar and Bars, to which Credo will be added.