Volvo XC60 vs BMW X3: Mat Watson chooses his favourite posh SUV

Looking for a family SUV with a premium badge? The Volvo XC60 and the BMW X3 both fulfil a need for a posh family car with lots of space inside, a good amount of tech and a comfortable driving experience.

Which one is the best, though? I’ve thoroughly tested both cars, and here’s my pick of which one you should buy…

Volvo XC60 vs BMW X3: Price and deals

The Volvo has been around for the longest – this version of the XC60 was introduced way back in 2018, and it’s just been updated to keep it on sale alongside the new all-electric EX60. Prices start from just under £50,000, but there aren’t many deals available on new XC60s at the moment.

Seeing as it’s been on sale pretty much unchanged for eight years, you might be better off saving a few thousand pounds and checking out a used example.

When it comes to the X3, it’s a touch more expensive than the Volvo. It costs around £53,000, but with an average saving of over £6,000 through Carwow you can grab one for less than £50,000.

Volvo XC60 vs BMW X3: Design and desirability

The Volvo XC60 has had multiple facelifts over the years, and the latest round of changes brought along a new criss-cross grille at the front so you know it’s the new one. The rest is pretty much the same, which is OK as Volvo kind of got the XC60’s styling right the first time. It’s a subtle and handsome car, and there’s a refreshing lack of plastic cladding down the sides or around the wheelarches.

When it comes to the X3, we’ve kind of gotten used to BMW’s ‘Big Grille’ look, and it’s not too bad overall aside from the annoying plastic blanked-off bits. You do at least get some cool headlights. Avoid the basic 18-inch alloy wheels though – they look way too small for a car of this size. Even the top-spec 21-inch wheels don’t quite fill the arches. At the rear, the brake lights look smart, but the optional big diffuser shape in the back bumper is naff.

The Volvo’s the clear winner here, though. It’s just a naturally more handsome car, and if you’re buying the basic version, it looks just as smart as the higher-spec models — unlike the BMW.

Volvo XC60 vs BMW X3: Interior and technology

The XC60 has a great interior. It looks wonderful, and it feels fabulous – really well made. I’d go for the light-coloured leather option and the open-pore wood trim, and the seats are the best in the business (alongside Lexus, I reckon). Lovely. There’s an optional glass crystal gear selector too, which is nice.

The most recent update gave the XC60 a new touchscreen, which now sits up proud of the dashboard (it used to be flush) and while it does look a bit stuck-on, it also works better than the old screen. It has a faster processor and better resolution. It all works well, but you do have to turn to the screen for almost every major function, which can be a faff (Volvo’s hardly alone in that though). I do love the nifty function that allows you to adjust the passenger seat with the driver’s seat controls.

The BMW X3 is rather more chintzy inside. The big sweep of screens that runs across the top of the dashboard, combining the infotainment screen and the driver’s instruments into one panel, looks impressive but it’s not perfect – the one in our test car was noticeably glitchy and didn’t always work.

Still, the screen does look good, as does the minimalist style of the rest of the cabin. There’s a huge storage area at the base of the dash, which doesn’t have a cover and so it looks cheaper than you might expect. Also feeling cheap are the door handles and the air vent controllers, which are mounted on the forward edge of the doors. Although the inside of the X3 feels solidly built, there’s way too much in the way of scratchy, cheap plastic around.

When it’s working, the BMW’s infotainment system really is beautiful and it’s super-responsive, but again there’s too many controls on the screen, and not enough physical buttons. Oh, and the far corner of the screen is too far away from the driver. The steering wheel controls are also a bit too fiddly. The ambient lighting is gorgeous, though.

Volvo XC60 vs BMW X3: Space and practicality

Both cars are about the same inside for space, but the Volvo wins by having better comfort and quality levels.

The Volvo technically has the smallest boot – 468 litres – but only if you compare it to the non-hybrid versions of the X3, which have 570 litres of boot space. Go for the plug-in hybrid X3 – and remember that the Volvo is primarily sold these days as a plug-in hybrid – and it has 460 litres, so the two cars are about the same. Both boots are large and square, and have no loading lips. The Volvo’s optional air suspension allows you to lower the rear of the car by a couple of inches, using buttons in the boot, to make it easier to load heavy items.

Rear seat space is also about the same for both, but while the BMW technically has slightly more room in the back, its styling and cabin design makes the back of the car feel more closed-in, whereas the Volvo feels airier and more roomy.

Volvo XC60 vs BMW X3: Engines and driving

The BMW provides you with a full engine lineup of petrol, diesel, and plug-in hybrid options. The PHEV X3 gets a potential electric-only range of up to 56 miles on a charge, and it’s not too thirsty on a long run either, capable of nudging up to 50mpg actually, so it’s a great all-rounder. For driving thrills, you’ll want the top-spec 398hp M50 six-cylinder petrol, but it uses a lot of fuel.

Volvo has dropped diesel options from its lineup entirely, so the basic XC60 is now the mild-hybrid ‘B5’ turbo four-cylinder engine with 250hp. It’s fine, but with an average official fuel economy of 37mpg, it’s going to be quite thirsty.

A much better idea is to go for one of the two plug-in hybrids, the T6 or the T8. Both can manage around 47-49 miles on electric power (officially, anyway) and both are really quite powerful. The T6 has a very decent 335hp on offer, but the T8 is packing a whopping 406hp, with a 0-62mph time of just 4.9 seconds, just 0.3 seconds behind the hottest X3.

The T8 engine sounds a bit rougher than any of BMW’s petrol offerings, but while the X3 M50 is a touch quicker, there’s no plug-in flexibility.

Mind you, the BMW feels more overtly sporty to drive, with meatier steering and tighter suspension control than that of the Volvo. The XC60 is a bit more comfort-oriented, but to be fair that’s a better fit for the kind of family-friendly day-to-day driving it’s going to be doing.

Volvo XC60 vs BMW X3: my final verdict

Surprisingly, it’s the older car that wins. BMW only introduced this version of the X3 two years ago, so it really should have a technical and development edge over the Volvo. However, as we’ve also seen with the bigger XC90, Volvo has a genius touch at keeping an older model feeling fresh and sprightly, and so it proves with the XC60. It’s the older design, and on a twisty road the BMW has the edge on fun, but overall the XC60’s quality, its cabin design and layout, and its comfortable driving experience give it the win.

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