Compare the2024 Honda AccordVS 2023 Toyota Prius Prime

The Honda Accord 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 Prius Prime doesn’t offer knee airbags.

Both the Accord and the Prius Prime have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front and rear side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, front and rear 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.

Side impacts caused 23% of all road fatalities in 2018, down from 29% in 2003, when the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety introduced its side barrier test. In order to continue improving vehicle safety, the IIHS has started using a more severe side impact test: 37 MPH (up from 31 MPH), with a 4180-pound barrier (up from 3300 pounds). The results of this newly developed test demonstrates that the Honda Accord is safer than the Prius Prime:

For its performance in IIHS driver-side and passenger-side small overlap frontal, moderate overlap frontal, updated side impact, headlight, daytime pedestrian crash prevention, and nighttime pedestrian crash prevention testing, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety grants the Accord its highest rating: “Top Safety Pick Plus” for 2023, a rating granted to only 36 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The Prius Prime is only a standard “Top Safety Pick” for 2023.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2023 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Honda vehicles are better in initial quality than Toyota vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Honda above average in initial quality. With 4 more problems per 100 vehicles, Toyota is rated below average.

The Accord’s standard 1.5 turbo 4-cylinder produces 192 lbs.-ft. more torque (192 vs. ) than the Prius Prime’s 2.0 DOHC 4-cylinder hybrid. The Accord Hybrid’s standard 2.0 DOHC 4-cylinder hybrid produces 247 lbs.-ft. more torque (247 vs. ) than the Prius Prime’s 2.0 DOHC 4-cylinder hybrid.

In heavy traffic or at stoplights the Accord’s engine automatically turns off when the vehicle is stopped, saving fuel and reducing pollution. The engine is automatically restarted when the driver gets ready to move again. If the conditions warrant or the driver wishes, the system can be manually disabled at any time for the duration of a trip (1.5T only). The Prius Prime doesn’t offer an automatic engine start/stop system.

The Accord Hybrid’s standard fuel tank has 2.2 gallons more fuel capacity than the Prius Prime (12.8 vs. 10.6 gallons), for longer range between fill-ups. The Accord’s standard fuel tank has 4.2 gallons more fuel capacity than the Prius Prime (14.8 vs. 10.6 gallons).

The Accord 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 Prius Prime doesn’t offer a cap-less fueling system.

For better stopping power the Accord Hybrid’s brake rotors are larger than those on the Prius Prime:

The Accord stops shorter than the Prius Prime:

For better traction, the Accord has larger standard tires than the Prius Prime (225/50R17 vs. 195/60R17). The Accord Sport/Touring’s tires are larger than the largest tires available on the Prius Prime (235/40R19 vs. 195/60R17).

The Accord LX/EX/EX-L’s standard tires provide better handling because they have a lower 50 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the Prius Prime SE’s standard 60 series tires. The Accord Sport/Touring’s tires have a lower 40 series profile than the Prius Prime XSE’s 50 series tires.

The Accord has a standard space-saver spare (not available on Hybrid) so you can replace a flat tire and drive to have the flat repaired or replaced. A spare tire isn’t available on the Prius Prime; it requires you to depend on roadside assistance and your vehicle will have to be towed.

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the Accord’s wheelbase is 3.1 inches longer than on the Prius Prime (111.4 inches vs. 108.3 inches).

For better handling and stability, the average track (width between the wheels) on the Accord is 1.3 inches wider in the front and 1.4 inches wider in the rear than the track on the Prius Prime.

The Accord Sport-L Hybrid handles at .84 G’s, while the Prius Prime XSE pulls only .82 G’s of cornering force in a Motor Trend skidpad test.

The Honda Accord may be more efficient, handle and accelerate better because it weighs about 50 to 200 pounds less than the Toyota Prius Prime.

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

Because it has more passenger and cargo room, the EPA rates the Accord a Large car, while the Prius Prime is rated a Mid-size.

The Accord has 14.5 cubic feet more passenger volume than the Prius Prime (105.7 vs. 91.2).

The Accord has 1.5 inches more front headroom, .7 inches more front hip room, 2.6 inches more front shoulder room, .9 inches more rear headroom, 4.9 inches more rear legroom, 3.7 inches more rear hip room and 3.7 inches more rear shoulder room than the Prius Prime.

With its sedan body style, valet key, locking rear seatbacks and remote trunk release lockout, the Accord offers cargo security. The Prius Prime’s hatchback body style, non-lockable folding seat and non-lockable remote release defeat cargo security.

A standard locking glovebox (which can’t be accessed with the valet key) keeps your small valuables safer in the Accord EX/Sport/EX-L/Touring. The Prius Prime doesn’t offer locking storage for small valuables.

The Accord uses gas struts to support the hood for easier service access. The Prius Prime 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 Accord has a standard remote vehicle starting system, so the vehicle can be started from inside the driver's house. This allows the driver to comfortably warm up the engine before going out to the vehicle. The climate system will also automatically heat or cool the interior. The Prius Prime doesn’t offer a remote starting system.

The Accord Touring has a standard heads-up display that projects speed, navigation instruction and driver assistance information readouts in front of the driver’s line of sight, allowing drivers to view information without diverting their eyes from the road. The Prius Prime doesn’t offer a heads-up display.

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 Accord’s headlights were rated “Good” by the IIHS, while the Prius Prime’s headlights are rated “Acceptable.”

The Accord has a standard automatic headlight on/off feature. When the ignition is on, the headlights automatically turn on at dusk and off after dawn. When the ignition turns off, the headlights turn off after a delay timed to allow you to securely get to your front door. The Prius Prime has an automatic headlight on/off feature standard only on the XSE.

When the Accord Touring is put in reverse, the passenger rearview mirror tilts from its original position. This gives the driver a better view of the curb during parallel parking maneuvers. Shifting out of reverse puts the mirror into its original position. The Prius Prime’s mirror doesn’t automatically adjust for backing.

The Accord EX/Sport/EX-L/Touring’s standard dual zone air conditioning allows the driver and front passenger to choose two completely different temperatures so people with different temperature preferences won’t have to compromise. This makes both the driver and front passenger as comfortable as possible. The Prius Prime doesn’t offer dual zone air conditioning.

Consumer Reports® recommends the Honda Accord, based on reliability, safety and performance.

The Honda Accord outsold the Toyota Prius by over four to one during 2022.