Compare the2023 Honda CR-V HybridVS 2023 Kia Niro

For enhanced safety, the front and rear seat shoulder belts of the Honda CR-V Hybrid have pretensioners to tighten the seatbelts and eliminate dangerous slack in the event of a collision. The Kia Niro doesn’t offer pretensioners for its rear seat belts.

The Honda CR-V Hybrid 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 Niro doesn’t offer a front passenger side knee airbag.

Using vehicle speed sensors and seat sensors, smart airbags in the CR-V Hybrid deploy with different levels of force or don’t deploy at all to help better protect passengers of all sizes in different collisions. The CR-V Hybrid’s side airbags will shut off if a child is leaning against the door. The Niro’s side airbags don’t have smart features and will always deploy full force.

The CR-V Hybrid offers all-wheel drive to maximize traction under poor conditions, especially in ice and snow. The Niro doesn’t offer all-wheel drive.

Both the CR-V Hybrid and the Niro have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, 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, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras, rear cross-path warning, driver alert monitors and available rear parking sensors.

The Honda CR-V Hybrid weighs 505 to 855 pounds more than the Kia Niro. The NHTSA advises that heavier vehicles are much safer in collisions than their significantly lighter counterparts.

The CR-V Hybrid’s 5 year corrosion warranty has no mileage limitations, but the corrosion warranty on the Niro runs out after 100,000 miles.

Honda pays for scheduled maintenance on the CR-V Hybrid for 2 years and 24,000 miles. Honda will pay for oil changes, lubrication and any other required maintenance. Kia doesn’t pay scheduled maintenance for the Niro.

There are over 37 percent more Honda dealers than there are Kia dealers, which makes it easier should you ever need service under the CR-V Hybrid’s warranty.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2021 Auto Issue reports that Honda vehicles are more reliable than Kia vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Honda 10 places higher in reliability than Kia.

The CR-V Hybrid’s 2.0 DOHC 4-cylinder hybrid produces 65 more horsepower (204 vs. 139) and 52 lbs.-ft. more torque (247 vs. 195) than the Niro’s 1.6 DOHC 4-cylinder hybrid.

As tested in Motor Trend the Honda CR-V Hybrid is faster than the Kia Niro:

The CR-V Hybrid has 2.9 gallons more fuel capacity than the Niro (14 vs. 11.1 gallons), for longer range between fill-ups.

The CR-V Hybrid has a standard cap-less fueling system. The fuel filler is automatically opened when the fuel nozzle is inserted and automatically closed when it’s removed. This eliminates the need to unscrew and replace the cap and it reduces fuel evaporation, which causes pollution. The Niro doesn’t offer a cap-less fueling system.

The CR-V Hybrid has a standard continuously variable transmission (CVT). With no “steps” between gears, it can keep the engine at the most efficient speed for fuel economy, or keep it at its peak horsepower indefinitely for maximum acceleration. The Niro doesn’t offer a CVT.

For better stopping power the CR-V Hybrid’s brake rotors are larger than those on the Niro:

For better traction, the CR-V Hybrid has larger tires than the Niro (235/60R18 vs. 205/60R16). The CR-V Hybrid’s tires are larger than the largest tires available on the Niro (235/60R18 vs. 225/45R18).

For better ride, handling and brake cooling the CR-V Hybrid has standard 18-inch wheels. Smaller 16-inch wheels are standard on the Niro. The CR-V Hybrid Sport Touring’s 19-inch wheels are larger than the 18-inch wheels on the Niro Touring.

For better handling and stability, the average track (width between the wheels) on the CR-V Hybrid is 1.2 inches wider in the front and 1.4 inches wider in the rear than the average track on the Niro.

The CR-V Hybrid’s front to rear weight distribution is more even (58.4% to 41.6%) than the Niro’s (61% to 39%). This gives the CR-V Hybrid more stable handling and braking.

For greater off-road capability the CR-V Hybrid has a 1.9 inches greater minimum ground clearance than the Niro (8.2 vs. 6.3 inches), allowing the CR-V Hybrid to travel over rougher terrain without being stopped or damaged.

The CR-V Hybrid uses computer-generated active noise cancellation to help remove annoying noise and vibration from the passenger compartment, especially at low frequencies. The Niro doesn’t offer active noise cancellation.

The CR-V Hybrid has 10.2 inches more front hip room, 1.7 inches more front shoulder room, .6 inches more rear legroom and .5 inches more rear shoulder room than the Niro.

For enhanced passenger comfort on long trips the CR-V Hybrid’s rear seats recline. The Niro’s rear seats don’t recline.

The CR-V Hybrid has a much larger cargo volume with its rear seat up than the Niro with its rear seat up (39.3 vs. 22.8 cubic feet). The CR-V Hybrid has a much larger cargo volume with its rear seat folded than the Niro with its rear seat folded (76.5 vs. 63.7 cubic feet).

A standard locking glovebox (which can’t be accessed with the valet key) keeps your small valuables safer in the CR-V Hybrid. The Niro doesn’t offer locking storage for small valuables.

The CR-V Hybrid has a 1000 lbs. towing capacity. The Niro has no towing capacity.

The CR-V Hybrid’s standard front power windows 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 Niro’s standard passenger windows don’t open or close automatically. The CR-V Hybrid Sport Touring’s front and rear power windows all open or close fully with one touch of the switches. With the Niro SX’s power windows, only the front windows open or close automatically.

The CR-V Hybrid’s standard speed-sensitive wipers speed up when the vehicle does, so that the driver doesn’t have to continually adjust the speed of the wipers. The Niro’s standard manually variable intermittent wipers have to be constantly adjusted.

The CR-V Hybrid’s LED headlights produce a whiter, brighter light (up to 3x) using five times less power than the Niro’s standard projector halogen headlights and light instantly. LED lights also last over twenty times longer than halogen.

The CR-V was chosen as one of Car and Driver’s “Top Five/10Best Trucks” for 3 of the last 21 years. The Niro has never been a Car and Driver “Top Five/10Best Truck” pick.

Motor Trend selected the CR-V as their 2018 Sport Utility of the Year. The Niro has never been chosen.

The Honda CR-V outsold the Kia Niro by almost 10 to one during the 2022 model year.