Peugeot 208 Review & Prices

Think of the Peugeot 208 as the chocolate truffle of the small hatchback market, where the alternatives are an assortment of tarts and pastries. It’s a bit smaller than you might want at times, but ultimately it feels that little bit more special and luxurious.

That doesn’t mean it’s the obvious choice though, because the Renault Clio runs the 208 close for style points, the Audi A1 might just have the Peugeot edged out on badge appeal and the Skoda Fabia brings a heavy dose of practicality to the table.

Yet for its numerous alternatives, the 208 certainly stands out on the road. Though the latest model was launched back in 2019, the 208 looks bang up to date after a 2024 refresh.

Lion claw-themed running lights and an intricate grille tie the car’s front end in with a similar motif for the LED taillights. A retro side-window shape inspired by the iconic 205, chunky gloss-black wheel arches and a selection of intricate wheel designs all add some flair to the chic, sporty looking hatchback.

Peugeot has done just as good a job with the 208’s interior, which looks and feels as though it’s been taken out of a much more expensive car. The dashboard is intricate without feeling fussy, wrapping around the driver and passenger while clearly displaying the standard-fit 10.0-inch touchscreen infotainment display.

GT-spec models get an uber-cool 3D-effect driver’s screen, though lesser trims still get a digital display, and all models have soft-touch materials in abundance. There is the odd scratchy plastic on the door cards and lower dashboard, but other aspects such as the lovely, clicky dashboard button are nice to the touch.

The 208 is fitted with Peugeot’s i-Cockpit dashboard layout, where the steering wheel is small and mounted low down. Long-legged drivers may find it odd to get used to, but the small wheel adds to the car’s agile feeling around corners.

Sadly, it’s not very spacious inside; squeezing four adults into the 208 makes for a rather cosy environment, and fitting one six-footer behind another is best saved for emergencies. The boot is smaller than in the Renault Clio and Volkswagen Polo at 311 litres, and you’ve got a high load lip to contend with when loading heavy items too.

Entry-level 208 Style models are powered by a 1.2-litre petrol engine with a manual gearbox, but Allure, GT and GT Premium cars have an automatic, hybrid unit instead. They’re all fuel efficient and smooth, but the hybrid options are far punchier and add some extra sportiness to the 208’s driving experience.

The additional power makes the hybrid 208 easier to dart around town in, and it’s more relaxing to drive with its automatic gearbox - though it can be a bit lethargic when changing gear. It’s an easy car to pile motorway miles on too, with only a little wind noise to contend with.

Country roads are quite fun, and the hybrid models have plenty of punch to accelerate between corners, though the Renault Clio has it pipped when it comes to sporty driving. Still, the 208 can put a smile on your face when hustling along on a bendy road.

As far as small hatchbacks go, the Peugeot 208 may not be the most practical option, but it’s got enough charisma and style about it to tempt you away from cars with posher badges on the back.

Check out new Peugeot 208 deals on Carwow, or Peugeot 208 lease deals. There are also used Peugeot 208s available from our network of trusted dealers, and other used Peugeots for sale if you need something a little bigger. Carwow can even help you sell your existing car when you’re ready to make the change.

The Peugeot 208 starts at a smidge under £20,000 for the entry-level Style model, with a rather large jump to the hybrid Allure model. GT and GT Premium models are a couple of thousand more on top, each.

All 208 models come equipped with the 10.0-inch infotainment display as standard, as well as rear parking sensors and a leather steering wheel. Style cars come with 16-inch steel wheels with diamond cut-effect trims, which feels a bit outdated, but Allure models get alloy wheels and a body-coloured grille as standard.

GT-trim cars upgrade to the 3D instrument display, sports seats and 17-inch alloy wheels, plus you get auto-high beam LED headlights and a funky interior with green stitching to match the lime-green paint finish. GT Premium trim adds heated and electrically adjustable, Alcantara-trimmed seats too.

Petrol and hybrid engines are eager and efficient, and the 208 is great to drive - though a Renault Clio is more fun

In town

The 208’s small steering wheel and light steering make it extremely easy to thread about urban streets. Visibility is good straight ahead, but to the sides and behind, the 208’s swoopy styling makes for rather large blind spots. 

Still, all-round parking sensors and a reversing camera are standard, so you should have no trouble when it comes to slotting it into small spaces.

The smaller-wheeled Allure model is more comfortable over bumps at low speeds than the sportier, larger-wheeled GT. Even then, the 208 isn’t as settled over broken urban road surfaces as a Polo, but it never frustrates.

All of the engines cope well with traffic but the hybrids are the nicest to drive in town. They can drive on electric power for short periods, and they also come with automatic gearboxes to take the strain off your left leg.

On the motorway

All 208s are pretty good on the motorway. Even the basic 100hp petrol has enough punch to easily get up to speed, and as it's a six-speed manual gearbox the top gear is enough for comfortable cruising without the engine revving too fast.

The hybrids are better still as they have a bit of extra punch, though all the engines can be quite noisy when you're revving them hard.

The comfort over bumps improves the faster you go in all models, and the 208 stays nicely planted at speed on the motorway. Avoiding the larger alloy wheels means less road noise, too, and the only wind noise is a faint bit around the door mirrors at 70mph.

On a twisty road

The 208’s small steering wheel and light steering make it feel sporty and fun to thread around twisty roads, although ultimately the 208 doesn’t feel as fun as Renault Clio. Its steering isn’t as communicative and it doesn’t contain its body lean in bends quite as well either, but there’s nothing alarmingly bad about the way it corners. 

It has high grip levels and enough steering accuracy to be confident in what you’re doing.

Two adults will have no issues in the front, but space in the back is more limited and the 208’s boot is average in size for the class

The 208 is a small car, so owners won’t be expecting miracles, but it is worth noting that the Peugeot isn’t going to cut it as a family car once your children grow into lanky teens as it starts to get tight on head and legroom in the back.

Two adults will have no problems getting comfortable in the front seats and the driver gets loads of standard manual seat and wheel adjustment. Electric adjustment is optional if preferred. Taller drivers will note, however, that the seat sits quite far back - actually behind the B-pillar - so getting in can be a little awkward and the seatbelt doesn't always sit very comfortably.

There’s not quite as much headroom as you’d find in taller cars such as a Volkswagen Polo or Honda Jazz though, but it won’t be an issue unless you are much bigger than average. However, the tiny and oddly shaped steering wheel can cause issues - depending on your driving position - as it blocks the view to some of the instruments when in its most comfortable position.

Between the front seats is an armrest which covers a storage space which is big enough for a purse or phone. Elsewhere in the cabin there are quirky features such as a flip-down smartphone ledge, along with decent sized (but more conventional) door pockets and a small glovebox. As you’d expect, there are also cupholders behind the gear lever.

Space in the back seats

Adults in the back seats will find their knees brushing the front seat backs even if their heads are clear of the ceiling. They will also have to fold themselves up in order to access the back seats in the first place. The door openings are deceptively small, which will make it tricky for those of larger proportions or who are less mobile.

The two outer seats are comfortable enough once the headrests have been moved up, but the sculpting of the bench means anyone in the middle is going to feel short changed. The door bins are smaller but still take a litre bottle of water. The nets on the backs of the front seats are pretty shallow, though, and there’s no rear armrest or cupholders.

Boot space

At 311 litres the Peugeot 208’s boot is average compared with its alternatives. To put it into context, it’s slightly larger than the boot in a Vauxhall Corsa, but around 10% smaller than the Volkswagen Polo and Seat Ibiza.

There’s quite a pronounced lip to lift your bags over, but the access is good via the opening and once your bags are inside the space on offer is a usefully square shape – albeit on the narrow side. You have to do without any handy extras such as hooks, lashing points or 12v sockets, and there’s no option of a variable height boot floor either.

The Peugeot 208’s interior not only looks stylish, it is also well built from quality materials. Its infotainment system has all the kit you want, too, although it can be fiddly to use

Not only does the 208 look striking outside, it stands out for its interior design and quality too. There are some cheaper feeling plastics on the door tops and lower-down areas, but overall the soft-touch dashboard and classy, nicely damped switches help the 208 feel a cut above the rest.

The two-tier, concave dash design is striking, too, and touch-sensitive buttons for the infotainment and heated seat controls (if fitted) that help make the 208 feel more expensive inside.

Entry-level models get part-leather seats and a leather steering wheel, while the GT upgrades this to full faux leather.

On the tech front, a 10.0.0-inch touchscreen infotainment system sits atop the 208’s dashboard as standard, which includes DAB radio and Bluetooth, but more importantly Apple CarPlay and Android Auto too.

Peugeot’s new 3D digital dials are standard from Allure trim. They’re projected onto different layers to give a three-dimensional effect and look superb, but importantly also display key information clearly and are customisable so you can choose what you want to see.

Wireless charging also comes as standard for the GT model, but if your smartphone can’t handle that then the USB connections are plentiful – there are two in the front (one standard, one USB-C) and you get a further two in the back. There’s just one six-speaker audio system across the range and no option to upgrade, but it offers a good sound in any case.

The 208 should prove pretty cheap to run, with all engines providing good fuel economy. Sadly the mega-efficient diesel is no longer available, but in its place you'll find a couple of hybrids which promise to come close to it in terms of real-world running costs.

The entry-level 1.2-petrol should be good for around 50mpg if driven carefully, while both the 110hp and the 145hp hybrid options should return in excess of 40mpg and 50mpg respectively.

The hybrids are also great for round-town economy, where the stop-start nature allows them to make the most of their battery assistance - though they're not quite as accomplished as the diesel was when it comes to long-distance fuel economy.

Other running costs should be low. Insurance is reasonable, though there's no real entry-level petrol model to keep costs down for the youngest drivers. As for road tax, CO2 emissions are low enough to give either a £195 or a £220 bill for the first year - not too unreasonable.

They also result in palatable Benefit-In-Kind costs for company car drivers, though the all-electric E-208 is the much more obvious choice for this.

In terms of safety, the 208 scored four stars in the independent Euro NCAP safety assessment, which is average for a car of this size and price.

All versions have Automatic Emergency Braking, road sign recognition and a lane departure warning system as standard, but the AEB is more sophisticated on the GT models as it will also spot (and stop for) pedestrians and cyclists.

Top-spec models also add adaptive cruise control and active lane positioning on the automatic gearbox equipped models.

In terms of security, all 208s have an alarm and remote central locking as standard.

Peugeot doesn’t historically have the greatest of reputations for reliability, but it is getting better and this is reflected in customer satisfaction surveys, where it now rates above average. A sixth-place finish in the 2024 Driver Power owner satisfaction survey is particularly impressive, ranking just behind Citroen but importantly many places ahead of Renault, Volkswagen and even Toyota.

The company’s three-year warranty offering is only average, although it does cover you for unlimited miles in the first two years. The third year only covers up to 60,000 miles though.