The best SUVs for every budget

There are countless SUVs on sale today, with more and more popping up every year, making it increasingly hard to choose the best one for you. Our expert reviews team have tested every SUV for sale and put together this list of the best options, for a wide range of budgets

 

SUVs are far from the thirsty, expensive status symbols or rough-and-ready, agricultural 4x4s they used to be. You don’t need a farm or a manor house to justify one anymore, and there’s a mind-boggling array of small, affordable and easy-to park options to choose from these days.

Our expert reviews team has put their heads together to bring you this list of the best SUVs for every budget. There are some fantastic choices for high-riding motoring over a wide-range of price points, whether you’re a sensible shopper or looking to turn your neighbours green with envy.

 

Up to £25,000

Our recommendation: Citroen e-C3 – £22,095

The Citroen e-C3 isn’t just one of our favourite cheap cars, it’s one of our favourite SUVs on sale – period. It comfortably fits four adults and a decently-sized boot into dinky proportions, it drives well, is comfortable around town and looks great whilst doing so.

The concession you have to make for its cheap price is that it’s not got all that much range, managing 199 miles to a charge, in a best case scenario. That’s still enough for most peoples’ weekly commutes, but the lack of a heat pump means that number will drop substantially when it gets cold – though the small battery means it won’t be too much of a pain to keep the e-C3 topped up.

If an electric car doesn’t suit your lifestyle, the bigger but more barren Dacia Duster is another fantastic, budget-friendly SUV that should be high on your list of options. The Renault Captur is even more stylish than the e-C3, but you’ll need to stretch your budget a bit to get behind the wheel of the hybrid model – the best of the Captur range.

 

£25,000 – £40,000

Our recommendation: Dacia Bigster – £25,215

The Carwow award-winning Dacia Bigster builds on the success of the family favourite Duster by offering similarly rugged looks and low-frills practicality, but with even more space inside and decent drive comfort. It doesn’t feel barren, either, even if it’s far more affordable than its closest alternatives.

That being said, the engine options aren’t the most refined, and you’ll find more scratchy plastics in the cabin than you do in its alternatives. It’s not all that comfortable around town either, but the Bigster settles down nicely on the motorway and even manages to feel agile on a twisty road.

If you’re happy to reach deeper into the coffers then the super-comfortable Peugeot 5008 and uber-practical Skoda Kodiaq are both excellent family SUVs. They’re both seven seater cars, too.

 

£40,000 – £60,000

Our recommendation: Hyundai Santa Fe – £47,890

Hyundai’s Carwow award-winning Santa Fe is a value-for-money hero, offering seven-seater practicality, sci-fi looks, a comfortable drive and a solid-feeling cabin for a much smaller outlay than its posher-badged alternatives.

It may be a futuristic-looking tank of a car, but a perk of its large, squared-off body is just how much interior space the Santa Fe has. It’s a bit daunting to drive around town as a result, but the Santa Fe is comfortable over bad roads and well-insulated against noise on the motorway. Country lanes are best taken at a steady pace, though.

If the interior isn’t quite posh enough for you or you need some more space in the third-row of seats, the Land Rover Discovery ought to be up your street – for a good chunk more money – while the Volkswagen Tayron is just as good an all rounder.

 

£60,000 – 80,000

Our recommendation: BMW X5 – £68,135

The Carwow award-winning BMW X5 has been consistently at the top of the SUV table since its launch in the late 1990s. It looks fantastic, drives like a hot hatch on stilts while remaining comfortable, has a fantastic interior and a range of top-notch engine options.

It feels suitably luxurious too, with a great infotainment system and plush materials all around you. It’s great to drive in town and on the motorway, and unlike most big SUVs it’ll put a proper smile on your face on a country lane.The X5’s boot is smaller than its alternatives though, and if you go for the enormous optional wheels, it becomes crashy over big bumps.

The Range Rover Sport can’t keep up with an X5 on a country lane, but it does have a far bigger boot, and the Porsche Cayenne is the only SUV that’s even more fun to drive than the big BMW – at the expense of its comfort around town.

 

£80,000+

Our recommendation: Range Rover – £105,675

For utmost opulence with a high seating position, the Range Rover is the car to buy. The cabin is about as plush as you can get, it’s dripping in road presence, you can genuinely take it anywhere and it’s one of the most comfortable cars on sale today.

You do pay a hefty price for the privilege of owning a Range Rover though, and even the most performance-oriented models aren’t too fond of carving through corners on a back road. It’s a near-silent way to waft down the motorway though, and its lofty seating position makes it easy to look down upon traffic around town.

The Rolls-Royce Cullinan does have the Range Rover beaten for street cred, and the BMW X7 offers a more fun driving experience, but the Range Rover is an incredible all-rounder.

Car change? Carwow!

Looking for a new set of wheels? With Carwow you can sell your car quickly and for a fair price – as well as find great offers on your next one. Whether you’re looking to buy a car brand new, are after something used or you want to explore car leasing options, Carwow is your one stop shop for new car deals.

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