Compare the2025 Kia SoulVS 2025 Toyota Corolla Hatchback

In the past twenty years hundreds of infants and young children have died after being left in vehicles, usually by accident. When turning the vehicle off, drivers of the Soul are reminded to check the back seat if they opened the rear door before starting out. The Corolla Hatchback doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.

Both the Soul and Corolla Hatchback offer rear cross-traffic warning, but the Soul with Rear Cross-Traffic Collision Warning also has Rear Cross-Traffic Collision-Avoidance Assist (automatically applies the brakes) to better prevent a collision when backing near traffic. The Corolla Hatchback’s Rear Cross-Traffic Alert doesn’t automatically brake.

Both the Soul and the Corolla Hatchback have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, front 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 and available blind spot warning systems.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does 35 MPH front crash tests on new vehicles. In this test, results indicate that the Kia Soul is safer than the Toyota Corolla Hatchback:

New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.

The Soul comes with a full 5-year/60,000-mile basic warranty, which covers the entire truck and includes 24-hour roadside assistance. The Corolla Hatchback’s 3-year/36,000-mile basic warranty expires 2 years or 24,000 miles sooner.

Kia’s powertrain warranty covers the Soul 5 years and 40,000 miles longer than Toyota covers the Corolla Hatchback. Any repair needed on the engine, transmission, axles, joints or driveshafts is fully covered for 10 years or 100,000 miles. Coverage on the Corolla Hatchback ends after only 5 years or 60,000 miles.

J.D. Power and Associates rated the Soul third among small suvs in their 2024 Initial Quality Study. The Corolla Hatchback isn’t in the top three in its category.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2024 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Kia vehicles are better in initial quality than Toyota vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Kia fourth in initial quality, above the industry average. With 29 more problems per 100 vehicles, Toyota is ranked 17th.

As tested in Motor Trend the Kia Soul is faster than the Toyota Corolla Hatchback:

In heavy traffic or at stoplights the Soul’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. The Corolla Hatchback doesn’t offer an automatic engine start/stop system.

The Soul has 1.1 gallons more fuel capacity than the Corolla Hatchback (14.3 vs. 13.2 gallons), for longer range between fill-ups.

The Soul stops much shorter than the Corolla Hatchback:

For better traction, the Soul GT-Line’s tires are larger than the largest tires available on the Corolla Hatchback (235/45R18 vs. 225/40R18).

The Soul has standard front and rear gas-charged shocks for better control over choppy roads. The Corolla Hatchback’s suspension doesn’t offer gas-charged shocks.

For better handling and stability, the average track (width between the wheels) on the Soul is 1.3 inches wider in the front and 1.2 inches wider in the rear than the track on the Corolla Hatchback.

The Soul handles at .91 G’s, while the Corolla Hatchback XSE pulls only .82 G’s of cornering force in a Car and Driver skidpad test.

For better maneuverability, the Soul’s turning circle is 2.6 feet tighter than the Corolla Hatchback’s (34.8 feet vs. 37.4 feet).

The Soul is 6.8 inches shorter than the Corolla Hatchback, making the Soul easier to handle, maneuver and park in tight spaces.

The Soul has 17.6 cubic feet more passenger volume than the Corolla Hatchback (102.2 vs. 84.6).

The Soul has 1.5 inches more front headroom, 1.6 inches more front shoulder room, 1.9 inches more rear headroom, 8.9 inches more rear legroom, 7.3 inches more rear hip room and .2 inches more rear shoulder room than the Corolla Hatchback.

The Soul uses gas struts to support the hood for easier service access. The Corolla Hatchback 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 Soul Turbo has a standard heads-up display that projects speed in front of the driver’s line of sight, allowing drivers to view information without diverting their eyes from the road. The Corolla Hatchback doesn’t offer a heads-up display.

The Soul’s optional rear view mirror has an automatic dimming feature. This mirror can be set to automatically darken quickly when headlights shine on it, keeping following vehicles from blinding or distracting the driver. The Corolla Hatchback doesn’t offer the luxury of an automatic dimming rear view mirror.

Compared to the Toyota Corolla Hatchback, the Kia Soul eliminates the need for separate garage door openers and associated risks of losing, breaking, or having dead batteries with its optional integrated Homelink® universal remote controlled from the rear view mirror.

Insurance will cost less for the Soul owner. The Complete Car Cost Guide estimates that insurance for the Soul will cost $930 to $2135 less than the Corolla Hatchback over a five-year period.

According to The Car Book by Jack Gillis, the Soul is less expensive to operate than the Corolla Hatchback because typical repairs cost less on the Soul than the Corolla Hatchback, including $94 less for a starter, $45 less for fuel injection, $140 less for a fuel pump, $163 less for front struts and $53 less for a timing belt/chain.

IntelliChoice estimates that five-year ownership costs (depreciation, financing, insurance, fuel, fees, repairs and maintenance) for the Kia Soul will be $1330 to $2353 less than for the Toyota Corolla Hatchback.

Consumer Reports® recommends both the Kia Soul and the Toyota Corolla Hatchback, based on reliability, safety and performance.