Compare the2023 Hyundai Santa Fe HybridVS 2023 Lexus RX

Both the Santa Fe Hybrid and RX have child safety locks to prevent children from opening the rear doors. The Santa Fe Hybrid has power child safety locks, allowing the driver to activate and deactivate them from the driver's seat and to know when they're engaged. The RX’s child locks have to be individually engaged at each rear door with a manual switch. The driver can’t know the status of the locks without opening the doors and checking them.

To provide maximum traction and stability on all roads, All-Wheel Drive is standard on the Santa Fe Hybrid. But it costs extra on the RX.

To help make backing out of a parking space safer, the Santa Fe Hybrid has standard Rear Cross-Traffic Collision Warning with Rear Cross-Traffic Collision-Avoidance Assist, systems which detect vehicles approaching from the sides and can automatically apply the brakes to prevent a collision. Parking Support Brake costs extra on the RX.

Both the Santa Fe Hybrid and the RX 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, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras, rear cross-path warning, driver alert monitors and available around view monitors.

For its top level performance in IIHS driver and passenger-side small overlap frontal, moderate overlap frontal, side impact, roof strength and head restraint tests, its standard vehicle-to-vehicle front crash prevention system, its standard vehicle-to-pedestrian front crash prevention system, and its standard headlight’s “Good” rating, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety grants the Santa Fe Hybrid its highest rating: “Top Safety Pick Plus” for 2022, a rating granted to only 126 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The RX has not been fully tested, yet.

The Santa Fe Hybrid comes with a full 5-year/60,000-mile basic warranty, which covers the entire truck and includes 24-hour roadside assistance. The RX’s 4-year/50,000-mile basic warranty expires 1 year or 10,000 miles sooner.

Hyundai’s powertrain warranty covers the Santa Fe Hybrid 4 years and 30,000 miles longer than Lexus covers the RX. Any repair needed on the engine, transmission, axles, joints or driveshafts is fully covered for 10 years or 100,000 miles. Coverage on the RX ends after only 6 years or 70,000 miles.

The Santa Fe Hybrid’s corrosion warranty is 1 year longer than the RX’s (7 vs. 6 years).

Hyundai pays for scheduled maintenance on the Santa Fe Hybrid for 2 years and 26000 miles longer than Lexus pays for maintenance for the RX (3/36,000 vs. 1/10,000).

There are over 3 times as many Hyundai dealers as there are Lexus dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the Santa Fe Hybrid’s warranty.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2022 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the statistics that show that Hyundai vehicles are more reliable than Lexus vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Hyundai third in reliability, above the industry average. With 11 more problems per 100 vehicles, Lexus is ranked 6th.

The Santa Fe Hybrid’s 1.6 turbo 4-cylinder hybrid produces 25 lbs.-ft. more torque (258 vs. 233) than the RX 350h’s standard 2.5 DOHC 4-cylinder hybrid.

On the EPA test cycle the Santa Fe Hybrid gets better mileage than the RX:

To lower fuel costs and make buying fuel easier, the Hyundai Santa Fe Hybrid uses regular unleaded gasoline. The RX requires premium, which can cost 20 to 55 cents more per gallon.

The Santa Fe Hybrid has standard front and rear gas-charged shocks for better control over choppy roads. The RX base model’s suspension doesn’t offer gas-charged shocks.

For greater off-road capability the Santa Fe Hybrid has a greater minimum ground clearance than the RX 350 (8.2 vs. 8.1 inches), allowing the Santa Fe Hybrid to travel over rougher terrain without being stopped or damaged.

The Santa Fe Hybrid is 4.1 inches shorter than the RX, making the Santa Fe Hybrid easier to handle, maneuver and park in tight spaces.

The design of the Hyundai Santa Fe Hybrid amounts to more than styling. The Santa Fe Hybrid has an aerodynamic coefficient of drag of .33 Cd. That is lower than the RX (.35) and many sports cars. A more efficient exterior helps keep the interior quieter and helps the Santa Fe Hybrid get better fuel mileage.

The Santa Fe Hybrid has 1.7 inches more front headroom, 3 inches more front legroom, .8 inches more front hip room, 1 inch more front shoulder room, .4 inches more rear headroom, 3.4 inches more rear legroom, .3 inches more rear hip room and 1.8 inches more rear shoulder room than the RX.

The Santa Fe Hybrid has a much larger cargo volume with its rear seat up than the RX with its rear seat up (36.4 vs. 29.6 cubic feet). The Santa Fe Hybrid has a much larger cargo volume with its rear seat folded than the RX with its rear seat folded (72.1 vs. 46.2 cubic feet).

The Santa Fe Hybrid’s standard towing capacity is much higher than the RX’s (2000 vs. 0 pounds).

To quickly and conveniently keep personal devices charged without cables tangling and wearing out, the Hyundai Santa Fe Hybrid has a standard wireless phone charging system (Qi) in the center console. Wireless charging costs extra on the RX.

Consumer Reports® chose the Hyundai Santa Fe Hybrid as its “Top Pick,” the highest scoring vehicle in its category, based on reliability, safety and performance. The Lexus RX isn't recommended.

The Hyundai Santa Fe outsold the Lexus RX by 25% during 2022.