Compare the2022 Toyota PriusVS 2022 Honda Civic

The Prius has standard Active Headrests, which use a specially designed headrest to protect the driver and front passenger from whiplash. During a rear-end collision, the Active Headrests system moves the headrests forward to prevent neck and spine injuries. The Civic doesn’t offer a whiplash protection system.

The Prius offers all-wheel drive to maximize traction under poor conditions, especially in ice and snow. The Civic doesn’t offer all-wheel drive.

Both the Prius and the Civic have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front and rear side-impact airbags, driver knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, front wheel drive, height adjustable front shoulder belts, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, rearview cameras, driver alert monitors, available blind spot warning systems, rear parking sensors and rear cross-path warning.

For its top level performance in IIHS driver-side small overlap frontal, moderate overlap frontal, side impact, rear impact and roof-crush tests, its standard front crash prevention system, its “Acceptable” rating in the new passenger-side small overlap crash test, and its headlight’s “Acceptable” rating, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety grants the Prius the rating of “Top Pick” for 2019, a rating granted to only 162 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The Civic has not been tested, yet.

Toyota pays for scheduled maintenance on the Prius for 2 years and 25000 miles. Toyota will pay for oil changes, lubrication and any other required maintenance. Honda doesn’t pay scheduled maintenance for the Civic.

There are over 16 percent more Toyota dealers than there are Honda dealers, which makes it easier should you ever need service under the Prius’ warranty.

The Civic’s redline is at 6600 to 6700 RPM, which causes more engine wear, and a greater chance of a catastrophic engine failure. The Prius has a 4000 RPM redline.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2021 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the long-term dependability statistics that show that Toyota vehicles are more reliable than Honda vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Toyota fourth in reliability, above the industry average. With 47 more problems per 100 vehicles, Honda is ranked 27th.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2021 Auto Issue reports that Toyota vehicles are more reliable than Honda vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Toyota second in reliability. Honda is ranked fifth.

On the EPA test cycle the Prius gets better mileage than the Civic:

Regenerative brakes improve the Prius’ fuel efficiency by converting inertia back into energy instead of wasting it. The Civic doesn’t offer a regenerative braking system.

To lower fuel costs and make buying fuel easier, the Toyota Prius uses regular unleaded gasoline. The Civic EX/Touring requires premium for maximum efficiency, which can cost 20 to 55 cents more per gallon.

In its Green Vehicle Guide, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rates the Toyota Prius higher (7 out of 10) than the Honda Civic (6 to 7). This means the Prius produces up to 24.5 pounds less smog-producing pollutants than the Civic every 15,000 miles.

The EPA certifies the Toyota Prius as a “Partial Zero Emissions Vehicle” (PZEV). The Honda Civic is only certified to “Super Ultra Low Emissions Vehicle” (SULEV) standards.

The Prius stops shorter than the Civic:

The Prius Limited handles at .90 G’s, while the Civic Touring Sedan pulls only .88 G’s of cornering force in a Motor Trend skidpad test.

The Prius Limited executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver quicker than the Civic Touring Sedan (26.3 seconds @ .64 average G’s vs. 26.7 seconds @ .64 average G’s).

For better maneuverability, the Prius’ turning circle is 2.6 feet tighter than the Civic LX/EX’s (33.5 feet vs. 36.1 feet). The Prius Limited/XLE FWD’s turning circle is 2.7 feet tighter than the Civic Sport/Touring’s (35.4 feet vs. 38.1 feet).

The front grille of the Prius uses electronically controlled shutters to close off airflow and reduce drag when less engine cooling is needed. This helps improve highway fuel economy. The Civic doesn’t offer active grille shutters.

The Prius has .1 inches more front headroom, .3 inches more rear headroom and 2.9 inches more rear hip room than the Civic.

The Prius has a much larger trunk with its rear seat up than the Civic Hatchback (27.4 vs. 25 cubic feet).

To allow full utilization of available cargo room, the Prius’ hatch uses gas strut supported hinges that don’t intrude into the cargo area. Its intrusive beam hinge reduces the Civic’s useful trunk space.

The Prius’ standard folding rear seats are split to accommodate bulky cargo. The Civic LX/Sport’s standard single piece folding rear seat is not as flexible; long cargo and a passenger can’t share the rear seat.

The Prius (except L/LE) offers an available heads-up display that projects speed, warning and navigation instruction readouts in front of the driver’s line of sight, allowing drivers to view information without diverting their eyes from the road. The Civic doesn’t offer a heads-up display.

The Prius’ front and rear power windows all open or close fully with one touch of the switches, making it more convenient at drive-up windows and toll booths, or when talking with someone outside the car. The Civic’s rear power window switches have to be held the entire time to open or close them fully.

If the windows are left open on the Prius the driver can close them all at the outside door handle. On a hot day the driver can lower the windows at the outside door handle or from a distance using the keyless remote. (Your Toyota service department must activate this window function.) The driver of the Civic can only close the windows from inside the vehicle, with the ignition on.

The Prius L Eco/LE’s standard variable intermittent wipers have an adjustable delay to allow the driver to choose a setting that best clears the windshield during light rain or mist. The Civic LX/Sport’s standard fixed intermittent wipers only have one fixed delay setting, so the driver will have to manually switch them between slow and intermittent.

To help drivers see further while navigating curves, the Prius (except L/LE) offers optional adaptive headlights to illuminate around corners automatically by reading vehicle speed and steering wheel angle. The Civic doesn’t offer cornering lights.

The Prius’ standard outside mirrors include heating elements to clear off the mirrors for better visibility. Honda only offers heated mirrors on the Civic EX/Touring.

On extremely cold winter days, the Prius XLE/Limited’s standard heated steering wheel provides comfort, allowing the driver to steer safely and comfortably before the car heater warms up. The Civic doesn’t offer a heated steering wheel.

The Prius Limited’s standard GPS navigation system has a real-time traffic update feature that plots alternative routes to automatically bypass traffic problems. (Service not available in all areas.) The Civic’s navigation system doesn’t offer real-time traffic updates.

The Prius LE/XLE/Limited’s Intelligent Parking Assist can parallel park or back into a parking spot by itself, with the driver only controlling speed with the brake pedal. The Civic doesn’t offer an automated parking system.

The Toyota Prius has won recognition from these important consumer publications: