2017 Kia Soul
Starting Price: $16,100 (Details Below)
The Kia Soul was the winner of U.S. News & World Report’s 2017 Best Compact Car for the Money and Best Compact Car for Families awards. Aside from its low price, the Soul combines the most important qualities that shoppers are seeking in a small car, including roomy seats, a spacious cargo area, and a newly available turbocharged engine. The Soul’s safety and reliability scores are among the best in the class.
2017 Mazda3
Starting Price: $17,845 (Details Below)
The Mazda3 is a top performer in our compact cars category, due to its dynamic driving characteristics, impressive fuel economy, and outstanding safety ratings. It also has a high-quality interior with an intuitive infotainment system. However, many competing models offer more rear-seat and cargo space. If you require greater cargo capacity, the Mazda3 hatchback model is the way to go.
2017 Chevrolet Malibu
Starting Price: $21,680 (Details Below)
The Chevrolet Malibu was the winner of our 2017 Best Midsize Car for Families award. The Malibu earns excellent safety and reliability scores, and delivers a supple ride. Its comfortable interior features intuitive infotainment, roomy rear seats, and plenty of space for cargo. Unfortunately, it offers limited standard features compared to some competitors.
2017 Honda Civic
Starting Price: $18,740 (Details Below)
The Honda Civic is one of America’s top-selling cars, and for good reason. With a perfect safety score, spacious seats, impressive cargo capacity, and outstanding fuel economy, the Civic is a solid choice. A new hatchback model provides even more space and versatility. Critics were impressed with the Civic’s hushed, upscale cabin, as well as its pleasant ride quality and confident handling. However, the touch screen makes for frustrating audio controls.
2017 Hyundai Sonata
Starting Price: $21,600 (Details Below)
The Hyundai Sonata tops our list of midsize cars, partly because it is safe and reliable. It was also the winner of our 2017 Best Midsize Car for the Money award. The Sonata provides a comfortable ride, returns excellent fuel economy, and has a spacious trunk. It comes with a long list of standard and available features, including a standard 7-inch touch-screen infotainment system with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.
2017 Honda Fit
Starting Price: $16,090 (Details Below)
The Honda Fit was the winner of the U.S. News 2017 Best Subcompact Car for the Money award. Despite its small footprint, it offers spacious and versatile cargo options. It also offers an impressive safety score. It features one of the most upscale interiors in its class. You’ll also cruise past gas station after gas station, as the Fit gets up to 33 mpg in the city and 40 on the highway. However, critics noticed a lack of power at highway speeds and the cabin fails to adequately mask road noise.
2017 Toyota Prius
Starting Price: $24,685 (Details Below)
The Toyota Prius is known for its exceptional fuel economy. It comes as no surprise that it was the winner of our 2017 Best Hybrid Car for the Money award. Safety Sense is now standard on all 2017 Toyota models, so the Prius comes equipped with a full suite of active safety technology. The Prius also offers substantial cargo capacity. Performance is not the Prius’ strong suit, and reviewers weren’t impressed with its finicky smartphone integration.
2017 Volkswagen GTI
Starting Price: $24,995 (Details Below)
The Volkswagen GTI ranks well on our list of compact cars due to its nimble handling and peppy acceleration. It also has an upscale interior, which is complete with comfortable seats and excellent cargo capacity. The GTI also earns good crash test results, however, it is among the least reliable vehicles in the class, and it is the most expensive vehicle on this list. Critics also mentioned that it has a small infotainment screen when compared to rival’s offerings.
2017 Honda Accord
Starting Price: $22,455 (Details Below)
The Honda Accord is one of the best-selling vehicles in America due to its low price, consistent reliability, good safety scores, outstanding fuel economy, and comfortable ride quality. It also offers one of the largest trunks in its class and features a stylish, well-constructed interior. While it’s not lauded for its sporty performance, either of its engines provide adequate power for most driving situations.
2017 Toyota Camry
Starting Price: $23,070 (Details Below)
The Toyota Camry performs well in our midsize cars category, partly because of its good safety scores and its history of excellent reliability. Its quality interior provides adequate comfort, and even the tallest passengers will find plenty of space in the rear seats. However, it hasn’t been significantly updated since 2012, so its infotainment system is outdated, and Toyota has no plans to add Apple CarPlay or Android Auto.
2017 Mazda6
Starting Price: $21,945 (Details Below)
If driving dynamics top your list of qualities that exemplify a good car, the Mazda6 is tough to beat. It delivers agile handling and responsive steering, all while providing a smooth and comfortable ride. To top it off, the Mazda6 returns impressive fuel economy and exceptional safety scores. Its attractive cabin offers adequate space and comfort for all passengers. This model year adds a standard 7-inch touch-screen infotainment system and a standard rearview camera.
More Shopping Tools From U.S. News & World Report
Did you find a new car that satisfies your priorities and fits your budget? To research further and see how these vehicles fare against the competition, visit our new car rankings. When you’re ready to buy, check out the U.S. News Best Price Program, where buyers have saved an average of $3,279 off their new car purchase.
These Impressive Cars Will Keep Some Extra Money in Your Wallet
Getting a quality car doesn’t necessarily have to cost you a lot of money. There are many worthy vehicles in today’s market that have much to offer and won’t break the bank. With a myriad of excellent reasonably-priced choices, automakers are compelled to keep prices competitive.
All the vehicles in this slideshow come from our subcompact, compact, and midsize car rankings. Due to the wide variety of offerings, there should be a vehicle on this list that possesses the attributes you are seeking. Your priorities, coupled with U.S. News Best Cars’ scoring data in performance, interior, reliability, and safety, should help you determine the best affordable vehicle to meet your needs.
Many of the following vehicles are also winners of our 2017 Best Cars for the Money or Best Cars for Families awards. Click through to learn about the best news cars under $25,000.