Both the EX90 and EQB have child safety locks to prevent children from opening the rear doors. The EX90 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 EQB’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 Volvo EX90 (except 6-Passenger) offers an optional built in child booster seat. It’s more crash worthy than an added child seat because of its direct attachment to the seat. Mercedes doesn’t offer the convenience and security of a built-in child booster seat in the EQB. Their owners must carry a heavy booster seat in and out of the vehicle; EX90 owners can just fold their built-in child seat up or down.
The Volvo EX90 has standard driver and front passenger side knee airbags mounted low on the dashboard. These airbags help 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 EQB doesn’t offer a front passenger side knee airbag.
The EX90 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 EQB doesn’t offer front seat center airbags.
The EX90 has a standard Whiplash Protection System (WHIPS), which use a specially designed seat to protect the driver and front passenger from whiplash. During a rear-end collision, the WHIPS allows the backrest to travel backwards to cushion the occupants and the headrests move forward to prevent neck and spine injuries. The EQB doesn’t offer a whiplash protection system.
In a Vehicle-to-Vehicle Frontal Crash Prevention 2.0 test conducted by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), the Volvo EX90 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 Mercedes EQB has not been tested.
The EX90’s standard lane departure warning system alerts a temporarily inattentive driver when the vehicle begins to leave its lane and gently nudges the vehicle back towards its lane. A lane departure warning system costs extra on the EQB.
Both the EX90 and the EQB 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, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras, rear cross-path warning and driver alert monitors.
The Volvo EX90 weighs 717 to 1278 pounds more than the Mercedes EQB. The NHTSA advises that heavier vehicles are much safer in collisions than their significantly lighter counterparts.
The Volvo EX90 has achieved the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety’s (IIHS) highest rating of “Top Safety Pick Plus” for the 2026 model year. This distinction is based on its exceptional performance in IIHS’ rigorous battery of safety tests. Specifically, it earned a “Good” rating in the latest, more stringent moderate overlap front crash test, a “Good” result in the updated side impact test, a “Good” score in the revised pedestrian crash prevention test, and a “Good” score in the revised vehicle-to-vehicle crash prevention test. The EQB has not yet been evaluated by the IIHS for 2026.