Compare the2023 Mazda CX-50VS 2023 Kia Sportage

The Mazda CX-50 has standard driver and front passenger side knee airbags mounted low on the dashboard. These airbags helps prevent the driver and front passenger from sliding under their seatbelts or the main frontal airbags; this keeps them better positioned during a collision for maximum protection. Knee airbags also help keep the legs from striking the dashboard, preventing knee and leg injuries in the case of a serious frontal collision. The Sportage doesn’t offer knee airbags.

To provide maximum traction and stability on all roads, All-Wheel Drive is standard on the CX-50. But it costs extra on the Sportage.

The CX-50 has a standard blind spot warning system that uses sensors to alert the driver to objects in the vehicle’s blind spots where the side view mirrors don’t reveal them. Only the Sportage EX/SX/Prestige/X-Line/X-Pro offers a blind spot warning system.

To help make backing out of a parking space safer, the CX-50 has standard Rear Cross Traffic Alert and Rear Cross Traffic Braking on the Turbo Premium Plus automatically engages the brakes to help avoid a collision. Only the Sportage EX/SX/Prestige/X-Line/X-Pro offers Rear Cross-Traffic Collision Warning.

Both the CX-50 and the Sportage have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, 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 and available around view monitors.

For its performance in IIHS driver-side and passenger-side small overlap frontal, moderate overlap frontal, updated side impact, headlight, and daytime pedestrian crash prevention testing, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety grants the CX-50 the rating of “Top Safety Pick” for 2023, a rating granted to only 53 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The Sportage last would have qualified as a “Top Safety Pick” in 2022.

The CX-50’s 5 year corrosion warranty has no mileage limitations, but the corrosion warranty on the Sportage runs out after 100,000 miles.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2023 Auto Issue reports that Mazda vehicles are more reliable than Kia vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Mazda fourth in overall reliability. Kia is ranked 9th.

The CX-50’s standard 2.5 DOHC 4-cylinder produces 8 lbs.-ft. more torque (186 vs. 178) than the Sportage’s 2.5 DOHC 4-cylinder. The CX-50’s optional 2.5 turbo 4-cylinder produces 69 more horsepower (256 vs. 187) and 142 lbs.-ft. more torque (320 vs. 178) than the Sportage’s 2.5 DOHC 4-cylinder.

As tested in Motor Trend the Mazda CX-50 4 cyl. is faster than the Kia Sportage:

On the EPA test cycle the CX-50 gets better mileage than the Sportage:

An engine control system that can shut down some of the engine’s cylinders helps improve the CX-50 (except Turbo)’s fuel efficiency. The Sportage doesn’t offer a system that can shut down part of the engine.

The CX-50 has 1.5 gallons more fuel capacity than the Sportage (15.8 vs. 14.3 gallons), for longer range between fill-ups.

The CX-50 stops much shorter than the Sportage:

For better traction, the CX-50 Premium Plus/Turbo’s tires are larger than the largest tires available on the Sportage (245/45R20 vs. 235/65R17).

The CX-50 Premium Plus/Turbo’s tires provide better handling because they have a lower 45 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the Sportage SX Prestige/X-Line’s 55 series tires.

For better ride, handling and brake cooling the CX-50 Premium Plus/Turbo has standard 20-inch wheels. The Sportage’s largest wheels are only 19-inches.

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the CX-50’s wheelbase is 2.3 inches longer than on the Sportage (110.8 inches vs. 108.5 inches).

For better handling and stability, the average track (width between the wheels) on the CX-50 is 1.4 inches wider in the front and 1.3 inches wider in the rear than the average track on the Sportage.

The CX-50 2.5 Turbo handles at .87 G’s, while the Sportage X-Pro Prestige pulls only .84 G’s of cornering force in a Car and Driver skidpad test.

For better maneuverability, the CX-50’s turning circle is 2.6 feet tighter than the Sportage’s (36 feet vs. 38.6 feet).

For greater off-road capability the CX-50 Premium/Turbo has a greater minimum ground clearance than the Sportage (8.6 vs. 8.3 inches), allowing the CX-50 to travel over rougher terrain without being stopped or damaged.

Maximum trailer towing in the Kia Sportage is limited to 2500 pounds. The CX-50 offers up to a 3500 lbs. towing capacity.

The CX-50 uses gas struts to support the hood for easier service access. The Sportage uses a prop rod to support its heavy hood. It takes two hands to open the hood and set the prop rod, the prop rod gets in the way during maintenance and service, and the prop rod could be knocked out, causing the heavy hood to fall on the person maintaining or servicing the car.

The CX-50 Premium Plus/Turbo Premium has a standard 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 Sportage doesn’t offer a heads-up display.

The CX-50’s 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 Sportage’s standard power window switches have to be held the entire time to close them fully. Only its driver’s window opens automatically. With the Sportage EX/SX/Prestige/X-Line/X-Pro’s power windows, only the front windows open or close automatically.

The CX-50’s rain-sensitive wipers adjust their speed and turn on and off automatically based on the amount of rainfall on the windshield. This allows the driver to concentrate on driving without constantly adjusting the wipers. The Sportage’s manually variable intermittent wipers have to be constantly adjusted.

Consumer Reports rated the CX-50’s headlight performance “Very Good,” a higher rating than the Sportage’s headlights, which were rated “Fair.”

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) conducts detailed tests on headlights for their range both straight ahead and in curves and to be certain they don’t exceed acceptable amounts of glare to oncoming drivers. The CX-50’s headlights were rated “Good” to “Acceptable” by the IIHS, while the Sportage’s headlights are rated “Acceptable” to “Poor.”

To help drivers see further while navigating curves, the CX-50 Turbo has standard adaptive headlights to illuminate around corners automatically by reading vehicle speed and steering wheel angle. The Sportage doesn’t offer cornering lights.

The CX-50’s optional rear and side view mirrors have an automatic dimming feature. These mirrors can be set to automatically darken quickly when headlights shine on them, keeping following vehicles from blinding or distracting the driver. The Sportage offers an automatic rear view mirror, but its side mirrors don’t dim.

Both the CX-50 and the Sportage offer available heated front seats. The CX-50 Turbo Premium Plus also has standard heated rear seats to keep those passengers extremely comfortable in the winter. Heated rear seats aren’t available in the Sportage.

Consumer Reports® recommends both the Mazda CX-50 and the Kia Sportage, based on reliability, safety and performance.