The best SUVs – tested, rated and ranked
The commercial rise of the sports utility vehicle (SUV) over the past 25 years has been so vast that it has forever changed the way cars are designed.
And despite their flaws, we have to admit that the very best SUVs provide comfort and convenience, space and versatility and chunky-cornered design appeal.
The market segments have mushroomed in popularity and continue to grow. Now you will find small SUVs, family SUVs, sports SUVs, luxury SUVs, hybrid SUVs and electric SUVs, and even that isn’t an exhaustive list.
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This article is a broad one, encompassing everything between the Suzuki Jimny and the Rolls-Royce Cullinan.
While it’s hard to narrow the field down to 10 cars, our team of road testers – who have collectively driven every model on sale – have done just that.
And at the top of the list lies the Citroën C5 Aircross. Its overall value, ride comfort and space make it extremely versatile and a car that would suit a great many people.
Those who are looking for more dynamism, space or off-roading ability should keep reading this list to discover what we recommend.
1. Citroën C5 Aircross
Pros Spacious for its sizeComfortable seats and rideLots of space for the price Cons Frustrating, unintuitive driver assistanceLaid-back dynamic character is divisiveInterior is cheap-feeling in places
Best for: ride comfort
A great many of us just expect top-level ride comfort from a high-riding SUV. Given the natural advantages that these cars have, by virtue of their weight and long-travel suspension, it’s perhaps surprising how few make a real selling point of an isolated, comfortable ride. But there are a few – and not all of them are expensive, luxury-market pariahs.
The Citroën C5 Aircross, for example, stands out among its rivals for supple ride comfort – just as you’d hope a Citroën family car would. Fairly gently rated suspension naturally soaks up bigger inputs from an uneven road surface without the need for more expensive technologies, although the car does use Citroën’s comfort-boosting hydraulic suspension bump stops as guard for the extremes of wheel travel.
The C5 Aircross is at its most supple and comfortable in its simpler, lighter-engined forms – think a conventional petrol or a hybrid, rather than a plug-in hybrid.
However, if you have a bigger budget to splash and would prefer an electric SUV, both the BMW iX and Lexus RZ also stand out as plush-riding SUVs of different sizes.
Read our Citroën C5 Aircross review
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2. Dacia Duster
Pros Plenty of space for the moneyGood range of powertrainsBi-fuel version innovative Cons Lacks refinement of larger SUVsCheap-feeling in placesNo engines particularly involving
Best for: value
It will surprise very few to find Dacia, the Renault Group’s Romanian budget brand, featuring here.
The Duster was the car with which Dacia relaunched in the UK market back in 2013, and this latest iteration remains a cornerstone of its business and one of the very best reasons for customers to get to know the brand.
The Duster has just entered its third generation, and it now sits on a new platform and features a wildly more modern and assertive look than the previous model.
Engine-wise, there's a 1.2-litre mild-hybrid petrol, a 1.6-litre hybrid and a 1.0-litre LPG bi-fuel option. The 1.2 feels most at home here, as it's simple and no-nonsense to drive, as well as pretty economical. You can also order it with four-wheel drive.
Duster prices aren’t quite as low as they once were, but you can still pick one up for a little under £19,000 – which is considerably less than most brands ask for a supermini shopping car.
For that you get a roomy four-seat cabin, a good-sized boot, good driving and cruising manners and a pretty healthy equipment specification, even in entry-level form.
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3. Range Rover Sport
Pros Outstanding refinementBroad range of dynamic abilityDigital technology is top-class Cons 15-20% more expensive than rivalsExterior design might be too prissy for some tastesAlmost the same size as a full-fat Range Rover
Best for: opulence
The Range Rover Sport earns a place on this list by being almost as comfortable and as good off-road as the full-fat Range Rover while also being cheaper and better on the road.
Both cars sit on the same platform now, but the Sport’s ability to control its mass helps distinguish it. Its damping is taut and sophisticated, yet the steering is tactile and communicative for something this size. Diesels, V8 petrols and plug-in hybrids are on the cards too.
The standard of material quality is virtually the same as in the Range Rover and there are near endless possibilities in terms of fit and finish.
JLR’s excellent Pivo Pro infotainment system is easy to use, is lag-free and has one the most responsive touchscreens in the business.
Read our Range Rover Sport review
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4. Kia EV9
Pros Huge interior spaceImpressive performanceStrong electric range Cons ExpensiveLacks a little luxury cabin appeal for the priceEnormous on UK roads
Best for: design appeal
Big, square cars have a lot of car-park presence. That’s why people notice and are attracted to SUVs in the first place – and you’ll certainly notice the Kia EV9.
Roughly the size of a Range Rover Sport or Mercedes-Benz GLE, the EV9 takes Kia into the full-sized premium SUV segment for the first time – and with some impact. Chunky, square-cornered, sharply drawn and sternly detailed, it’s got a boldness about its appearance of the kind that inspired the smaller EV6, and that makes passers-by double-take and say things like: “That’s a Kia? Really? Wow!”
Available with both six- and seven-seat cabin layouts, it’s also as spacious as any other three-row SUV on the market, even if its interior perhaps lacks some of the material appeal you might expect for a £70k asking price. The car’s 99.8kWh drive battery endows a real-world electric range of between 260 and 320 miles depending on how and where you’re driving. Performance is strong from the twin-motor version, and ride and handling a little soft, but contained.
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5. Land Rover Defender
Pros Comfortable and well manneredSupremely easy to driveFashionable Cons 110 and 130 are hugeAll are heavyNot cheap
Best for: off-road ability
For most SUV owners, off-road capability is a ‘just in case’ type of quality, a reassurance in bad weather, or a card to play on the handful of occasions when you really need it. Nonetheless, brands like Land Rover realise that it’s a key part of the mystique of the ‘4×4’; and the success of the Land Rover Defender is proof that, while few of us may need a go-anywhere type of family car, there are plenty who like the idea of owning one.
The genius of the Defender is to cater to those buyers with just enough capability and accessibility. Despite its size and its off-road potential, this is an easy SUV to drive wherever you happen to point it. Height-adjustable air suspension and some suitably tough axle and drivetrain hardware are partnered with very effective off-road drive modes with sophisticated electronic traction controls – while a fine driving position and some clever camera technology shows you right where you are, where the wheels are pointing, and how much room you’ve got at all times.
There are tougher and more durable off-roaders than the Defender, and there are much smaller and nimbler ones. But nothing else makes dealing with mud, ruts, wet grass and sand so absurdly easy.
Read our Land Rover Defender review
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6. Mazda CX-60
Pros Big diesel torque ideal for towingGood off-road60mpg on the motorway Cons Ride comfort and isolation lacks fine tuningPremium car moneyDiesel might not have right image for some
Best for: real-world efficiency
You probably wouldn’t expect to find an SUV with a six-cylinder diesel combustion engine being praised for outstanding real-world efficiency; and yet, while many manufacturers have already given up on diesel altogether and plenty will soon rule out combustion engines of any kind, Mazda continues to innovate with its diesel tech – and to great effect.
The CX-60 is a mid-sized SUV about the size and price of a BMW X3, but it can be had with a 3.3-litre turbo diesel engine that, in entry-level form, earns the car a 56.5mpg WLTP combined efficiency rating. In practice, the lean-burn, low-combustion-temperature technology on the engine allows it to return more like 60mpg when cruising – and this, remember, from a big family holdall that also has 332lb ft of torque.
If you want to cut down on the number of times you visit a petrol pump, this may well be the family SUV you should investigate. If, on the other hand, you can accommodate an electrified SUV as an efficiency measure, consider the Honda CR-V e:PHEV and the Hyundai Tucson Hybrid.
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7. Mercedes-Benz EQS SUV
Pros Superb ride comfortLots of interior spaceGoes large on digital cabin tech Cons Six-figure pricingControversial looksNot the most efficient EV
Best for: luxury appeal
The ranks of electric SUVs that target outstanding refinement and luxury appeal are growing – and many are really beginning to deliver on their aims. There are still combustion-engined luxury SUVs to rival them, of course.
The Range Rover Sport is a recommendable for its all-round refinement and interior richness. But if you want cocooning luxury appeal in a big SUV, it’s becoming increasingly plain that electric power is the way to get it.
And, for now, nothing has more of it than Mercedes’ biggest EV: the EQS SUV. Although Mercedes’ current approach to cabin design (over-deliver on touchscreen tech, but undershoot slightly on old-fashioned tactile material allure) won’t please luxury car traditionalists, this car really does feel like a bubble of isolation. It rides supremely quietly and comfortably, soaking up and massaging away ride inputs as if they weren’t there, and keeping road and wind noise at bay like little else.
UK buyers get a choice between 450- and -580-badged versions, both with more than 100kWh of drive battery, both good for a real-world range of around 300 miles and both with prices starting well above £100,000.
Read our Mercedes-Benz EQS SUV review
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8. Porsche Macan
Pros Best in-class handlingBrilliant blend of space and paceWell thought-out interior Cons 2.0-litre not exciting enoughTop-end versions are priceySoon to be replaced
Best for: driver appeal
If any SUV is going to earn grudging respect from the dyed-in-the-wool sports car fan, then it's the Porsche Macan. Despite nearing its 10th birthday (and essentially being based on the original Audi Q5, which made its debut in 2008), Porsche’s entry-level off-roader continues to set the bar in this closely fought class, with a blend of pace, space and dynamic grace that makes even the greatest naysayers nod in approval.
With a new, electric Porsche Macan coming soon, Porsche both spruced up and pared back the current Macan line-up with an end-of-life facelift in 2023. The flagship Turbo has gone – but the GTS that effectively replaces it packs the same 434bhp turbocharged 2.9-litre V6, so there’s no loss in performance (you’ll be at 62mph from a standstill in just 4.5 sec while the top speed is a biscuit under 170mph).
Crucially, its subtly lowered and uprated suspension delivers the sort of involving and agile driving experience that has you convinced you’re in something smaller and more hot hatch-shaped. Its physics-defying antics beggar belief. The steering also has a similar weighting and response to the brand’s low-slung road-burners, while the expensively tuned dampers are cast iron in control but cushioned in operation.
Yet with its standard air suspension and cosseting, lavishly appointed interior, the Macan is as relaxed and easygoing as an executive saloon when you just want to cruise. It’s not quite as roomy as some of the younger entries here, but there’s enough space that you’ll get few complaints. If you only ever drive one SUV, make it this one.
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9. Skoda Karoq
Pros Load bay adaptabilityPracticality featuresCompetitive value Cons Dated cabinDiesel engine lacks flexibilityBusy motorway ride without adaptive dampers
Best for: everyday versatility
When buying an SUV, plenty of people just want a more practical, versatile and convenient family car for their money – and, now that SUVs come in so many different shapes and sizes, they needn’t pay a premium for it either.
The Skoda Karoq shows as much. Since its introduction in 2017, it’s been one of the compact SUV class’s better-kept secrets, offering a level of cabin configurability and simple passenger functionality thar its rivals stop well short of.
Did you know, for example, that you can get removable rear seats in this car, turning it from a decently roomy five-seat passenger car into something with the carrying capacity of a medium-sized van? Did you know that items such as back-seat picnic tables are standard fit, along with so many other Skoda-typical practicality touches?
The car’s engine range isn’t as broad as it used to be, but four-wheel-drive models and diesels remain within it, as does the economical and refined 1.0-litre TSI petrol, which would be our pick.
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10. Toyota Land Cruiser
Pros Abundant off-road capabilityGenerous interior spaceFour-cylinder diesel mechanical simplicity Cons Not as refined as less rugged rivalsRivals are better to drive on TarmacInterior not plush for the price
Best for: toughness and reliability
The Toyota Land Cruiser has historically been the workhorse of choice in the Australian outback, a place where breaking down simply won't do.
This is an old-school off-roader with a body-on-frame construction and big numbers in all departments. For towing, wading and low-ratio, grind-it-out driving across truly inhospitable ground, the Land Cruiser scores very highly.
But while you can specify it with air suspension and leather seats, don't expect it to ride and handle like a monocoque SUV from Audi or Mercedes-Benz. It's a different beast: less sophisticated on the motorway but in another league in places where you might actually need a car like this, with a reputation for mechanical dependability and unbreakable toughness that's jealously regarded by every one of its competitors.
Read our Toyota Land Cruiser review
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FAQs
How we tested
Our article is written by our group of road testers. Collectively, they have driven every SUV on sale in the UK. This list encompasses all different types of SUVs, and we include electric, PHEV and ICE cars in this article. The order of the list typically changes every few months as the rate of progression in this popular section is fast-paced.
What to look for when choosing
SUVs are ultimately practical cars. So bootspace, rear seat space and Isofix points should all be considered. If you’re after an off-roader specifically, ground clearance, the availability of four-wheel drive and driver tech should also be considered.
Are SUVs good off-road?
SUVs are typically better off-road than non-SUVs. This is because they have higher ground clearance than a hatchback, and often come with four-wheel drive and off-road specific software. But, it’s important to consider the trade offs. Four-wheel drive systems and torque-filled engines help off-road, but the trade-off is that they are typically less economical on it. You have to consider how often you’ll realistically be needing to go off-road. If you’re concerned about low traction situations, in the snow for instance, it’s worth remembering that a lot of two-wheel drive SUVs are front-engined and front-wheel drive. The engine puts weight over the driven axle, increasing traction in this situation.
Are SUVs expensive?
SUVs are fast becoming the norm and come in a huge variety of prices. But they do typically cost more than their hatchback counterparts. Lots of SUVs share platforms with hatchbacks. For instance, the Peugeot 2008 is a taller, slightly larger version of the Peugeot 208. Like-for-like the SUV is around £4,000 more expensive than the hatchback. But for that, you do get a car that’s easier to get in and out of, with more headroom and an altogether different silhouette. The SUV is also available for sub £25,000 – which in this day and age is relatively little for a new car
When did SUVs become so popular?
SUV sales in the UK increased by 23% from 2022-2023, which is no small feat. And seven of the 10 bestselling cars in the UK for 2023 were SUVs. The rise of the SUV has been prevalent in the last few years. But SUVs have been on the market for decades. The original Land Rover, for instance, was first introduced in 1948.