Compare the2026 Hyundai PalisadeVS 2026 Lexus LX

For enhanced safety, the front and middle seat shoulder belts of the Hyundai Palisade are height-adjustable to accommodate a wide variety of driver and passenger heights. A better fit can prevent injuries and the increased comfort also encourages passengers to buckle up. The Lexus LX doesn’t offer height-adjustable middle seat belts.

Both the Palisade and LX have child safety locks to prevent children from opening the rear doors. The Palisade 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 LX’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.

The Palisade has a standard front seat center airbag, which deploys between the driver and front passenger, protecting them from injuries caused by striking each other in serious side impacts. The LX doesn’t offer front seat center airbags.

In a Vehicle-to-Vehicle Frontal Crash Prevention 2.0 test conducted by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), the Hyundai Palisade achieved a “Good” rating - the highest possible - for its performance in forward collision warning and automatic braking systems, demonstrating its excellent capabilities in preventing collisions. The Lexus LX has not been tested.

For better protection of the passenger compartment, the Palisade uses safety cell construction with a three-dimensional high-strength frame that surrounds the passenger compartment. It provides extra impact protection and a sturdy mounting location for door hardware and side impact beams. The LX uses a body-on-frame design, which has no frame members above the floor of the vehicle.

Both the Palisade and the LX have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front and rear side-impact airbags, driver knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, front and rear seatbelt pretensioners, height adjustable front shoulder belts, plastic fuel tanks, 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, available all wheel drive and around view monitors.

The Hyundai Palisade achieved a “Top Safety Pick” rating from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) for the 2025 model year. This recognition was based on its impressive performance in the small overlap frontal crash test, updated moderate overlap front crash test, updated side impact crash test, headlight evaluations, and pedestrian crash prevention testing. The LX has not yet been evaluated by the IIHS for 2025.

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

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

The Palisade’s corrosion warranty is 1 year longer than the LX’s (7 vs. 6 years).

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 Palisade’s warranty.

To reliably start during all conditions and help handle large electrical loads, the Palisade has a standard 800-amp battery. The LX’s 776-amp battery isn’t as powerful.

On the EPA test cycle the Palisade gets better mileage than the LX:

To lower fuel costs and make buying fuel easier, the Hyundai Palisade uses regular unleaded gasoline. The LX requires premium, which can cost on average about 84.9 cents more per gallon.

In its Green Vehicle Guide, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rates the Hyundai Palisade higher (6 out of 10) than the Lexus LX (4). This means the Palisade produces up to 12.1 pounds less smog-producing pollutants than the LX every 15,000 miles.

The Palisade stops much shorter than the LX:

The Palisade’s standard tires provide better handling because they have a lower 65 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the LX 700h Overtrail’s standard 70 series tires. The Palisade Calligraphy’s tires have a lower 45 series profile than the LX’s optional 50 series tires.

For superior ride and handling, the Hyundai Palisade has fully independent front and rear suspensions. An independent suspension allows the wheels to follow the road at the best angle for gripping the pavement, without compromising ride comfort. The Lexus LX has a solid rear axle, with a non-independent rear suspension.

The Palisade has standard front and rear stabilizer bars, which help keep the Palisade flat and controlled during cornering. The LX base model’s suspension doesn’t offer a rear stabilizer bar.

The Palisade’s drift compensation steering can automatically compensate for road conditions which would cause the vehicle to drift from side to side, helping the driver to keep the vehicle straight more easily. The LX doesn’t offer drift compensation steering.

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the Palisade’s wheelbase is 4.7 inches longer than on the LX (116.9 inches vs. 112.2 inches).

For better handling and stability, the average track (width between the wheels) on the Palisade is 1.5 inches wider in the front and 1.8 inches wider in the rear than the track on the LX.

The Palisade Calligraphy HTRAC handles at .83 G’s, while the LX 600 F Sport Handling pulls only .75 G’s of cornering force in a Car and Driver skidpad test.

The Palisade Calligraphy HTRAC executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver 2.2 seconds quicker than the LX 700h Overtrail (27.2 seconds @ .67 average G’s vs. 29.4 seconds @ .56 average G’s).

For greater off-road capability the Palisade XRT PRO has a greater minimum ground clearance than the LX Luxury/Ultra Luxury/F Sport (8.4 vs. 8.1 inches), allowing the Palisade to travel over rougher terrain without being stopped or damaged.

The Hyundai Palisade may be more efficient, handle and accelerate better because it weighs about 1050 to 1250 pounds less than the Lexus LX.

Unibody construction lowers the Palisade’s center of gravity significantly without reducing ground clearance. This contributes to better on the road handling and better off-road performance and stability. In addition, unibody construction makes the chassis stiffer, improving handling and reducing squeaks and rattles. The LX doesn’t use unibody construction, but a body-on-frame design.

The front grille of the Palisade uses electronically controlled shutters to close off airflow and reduce drag when less engine cooling is needed. This helps improve highway fuel economy. The LX doesn’t offer active grille shutters.

As tested by Car and Driver, the interior of the Palisade Calligraphy HTRAC is quieter than the LX 600 F Sport Handling:

The Palisade’s cargo area provides more volume than the LX.

The Palisade’s cargo area provides more volume than the LX 700h Overtrail.

The Palisade’s cargo area is larger than the LX’s in almost every dimension:

The Palisade’s standard rear seats fold to accommodate long and bulky cargo. The LX Ultra Luxury doesn’t offer folding rear seats, only a ski pass-through.

The Palisade SEL/XRT/Limited/Calligraphy/Hybrid has standard heated front seats and second and third row heated seats also available, which keep the driver and passengers extremely comfortable in the winter. Lexus doesn’t offer heated seats in the third row of the LX.

The Palisade is available in both front-wheel drive and four-wheel drive configurations. The LX doesn’t offer a two-wheel drive configuration.

A group of representative automotive journalists from North America selected the Palisade as the 2026 North American Utility Vehicle of the Year. The LX has never been chosen.

The Hyundai Palisade outsold the Lexus LX by almost 16 to one during 2024.