Compare the2024 Subaru OutbackVS 2024 Hyundai Santa Fe

The Outback has standard Whiplash-Reducing Front Seats, which use a specially designed seat to protect the driver and front passenger from whiplash. During a rear-end collision, the Whiplash-Reducing Front Seats system allows the backrest to travel backwards to cushion the occupants and the headrests move forward to prevent neck and spine injuries. The Santa Fe doesn’t offer a whiplash protection system.

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

Both the Outback and the Santa Fe have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, front and rear 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, available blind spot warning systems, rear parking sensors, rear cross-path warning and driver alert monitors.

The Subaru Outback achieved a “Top Safety Pick” rating from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) for the 2024 model year. This recognition was based on its impressive performance in the small overlap frontal crash test, updated side impact crash test, headlight evaluations, and pedestrian crash prevention testing. The Santa Fe has not yet been evaluated by the IIHS for 2024.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2023 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Subaru vehicles are better in initial quality than Hyundai vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Subaru above average in initial quality. With 3 more problems per 100 vehicles, Hyundai is rated lower.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2024 Auto Issue reports that Subaru vehicles are more reliable than Hyundai vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Subaru 5 places higher in reliability than Hyundai.

As tested in Car and Driver the Outback XT/Wilderness 2.4 turbo 4-cylinder is faster than the Hyundai Santa Fe:

The flat cylinder configuration of the boxer engine in the Outback lowers its center of gravity, enhancing handling stability (That’s why Porsche uses boxer engines.). The Santa Fe doesn’t offer a boxer engine configuration.

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

The Outback 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 Santa Fe doesn’t offer a CVT.

The Outback’s standard front and rear disc brakes are vented to help dissipate heat for shorter stops with less fading. The rear discs on the Santa Fe are solid, not vented.

The Outback Wilderness/Onyx XT has a standard full size spare tire so a flat doesn’t interrupt your trip. A full size spare isn’t available on the Santa Fe; it requires you to depend on a temporary spare, which limits mileage and speed before replacement.

For better maneuverability, the Outback’s turning circle is 1.8 feet tighter than the Santa Fe’s (36.1 feet vs. 37.9 feet).

For greater off-road capability the Outback has a 1.7 inches greater minimum ground clearance than the Santa Fe (8.7 vs. 7 inches), allowing the Outback to travel over rougher terrain without being stopped or damaged. The Outback Wilderness’ minimum ground clearance is 1.2 inches higher than on the Santa Fe XRT (9.5 vs. 8.3 inches).

The Subaru Outback may be more efficient, handle and accelerate better because it weighs about 550 to 700 pounds less than the Hyundai Santa Fe.

The Outback has a much larger cargo volume than the Santa Fe with its rear seat up (32.6 vs. 14.6 cubic feet).

A standard locking glovebox (which can’t be accessed with the valet key) keeps your small valuables safer in the Outback. The Santa Fe doesn’t offer locking storage for small valuables.

The engine in the Outback is mounted longitudinally (North-South), instead of sideways, as in the Santa Fe. This makes it easier to service and maintain, because the accessory belts are in front.

The Outback’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 Santa Fe’s standard passenger windows don’t open or close automatically. The Outback Limited/Wilderness/Touring/Onyx Edition’s front and rear power windows all open or close with one touch of the switches.

In case you lock your keys in your vehicle, or don’t have them with you, you can let yourself in using the Outback’s available exterior PIN entry system (not available on Outback Base). The Santa Fe doesn’t offer an exterior PIN entry system, and its Blue Link can’t unlock the doors if the vehicle doesn’t have cell phone reception or the driver can’t contact the service.

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

The Outback’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 Santa Fe offers an automatic rear view mirror, but its side mirrors don’t dim.

Consumer Reports® recommends the Subaru Outback, based on reliability, safety and performance.

The Subaru Outback outsold the Hyundai Santa Fe by 23% during 2023.