2025 Hyundai Santa Fe vs. 2025 Kia Sorento

There are countless SUVs to choose from in 2025, with the Kia Sorento vs. Hyundai Santa Fe being fierce competitors. With the 2025 Hyundai Santa Fe, you have a recently redesigned SUV that offers technology, safety, and comfort beyond comparison. At the same time, the Kia Sorento has also had recent model upgrades and design changes. In this post, we will cover the similarities and differences between these two cars, so stick around.

2025 Hyundai Santa Fe vs. 2025 Kia Sorento: At a Glance

Looking at the Kia Sorento vs. Hyundai Santa Fe in 2025, there are things that both vehicles do well. Starting with the Santa Fe, Hyundai just redid the entire lineup in 2024, focusing on a boxy appearance, a larger wheelbase, a wider tailgate, an enhanced suite of infotainment, improved safety through SmartSense, and off-road capability with the XRT trim.

For your newest Kia Sorento, this SUV has a refreshed front grille design, better taillights, new colors like Midnight Lake Blue and Dawning Red, an improved digital instrument cluster, and more cargo space. The Sorento also has an off-road trim, the X-Pro, which competes with the XRT from Hyundai. Both cars start around $30,000, with the Sorento being cheaper.

Interior Comparison

Looking at the inside of the Kia Sorento vs. Hyundai Santa Fe, both SUVs have seen significant updates to their design in recent years. The Sorento has a wide-open feeling, featuring specs like heated seats, a panoramic sunroof, and a dual-screen infotainment system. In contrast, your Santa Fe features a large infotainment screen, comfortable seats, and various safety and driver assistance features. Both cabins are modern.

2025 Hyundai Santa Fe

For this year's Santa Fe, you can expect the following standard interior features:

• YES Essentials® stain-resistant cloth seats
• 6-way adjustable driver seat
• Driver seat 2-way power lumbar
• 2nd-row bench seat
• 3rd-row seating (50/50 sinking/folding)
• LED interior lighting
• Leather-wrapped steering wheel
• 12.3-inch touchscreen
• Steering-wheel-mounted audio, cruise, and Bluetooth® controls
• 4.2-inch color Multi-Information Display

2025 Kia Sorento

For the 2025 Sorento, drivers see these standard interior features:

• 6-way manual driver's seat
• 4-way manual passenger seat
• 60/40 split-folding 2nd-row seats
• 2nd-row bench seating
• Dual-level cargo floor
• Cloth seating material
• 12.3-inch touchscreen display
• 4.0-inch instrument display

Exterior Comparison

Now, outside of the 2025 Kia Sorento vs. 2025 Hyundai Santa Fe, you see pretty different aesthetics between them. The Santa Fe feels more luxurious, often compared to a Land Rover/Range Rover, while the Sorento makes less of a lasting impression.

2025 Hyundai Santa Fe

Outside this SUV, you can find things like LED headlights, daytime running lights, 18- or 20-inch alloy wheels, body-colored side mirrors, roof antenna and rails, a hands-free smart liftgate, an "H" logo, and "SANTA FE" badging, plus the all-new Atlantis Blue exterior finish.

• Dimensions: 190″ L x 75″ W x 68-70″ H

2025 Kia Sorento

The 2025 Kia Sorento feels more rugged than ever, boasting LED headlights, alloy wheels, squared-off rear lighting, and roof rails in higher trims. Compared to the Santa Fe, it doesn't have the same luxury edge.

• Dimensions: 189″ L x 75″ W x 67-70″ H

2025 Kia Sorento vs. Hyundai Santa Fe Performance

The performance of the Hyundai Santa Fe vs. Kia Sorento is neck and neck, with either SUV offering decent specs throughout their lineup.

2025 Hyundai Santa Fe

The performance and engine specifications for the 2025 Hyundai Santa Fe are as follows:

• Engine: 2.5 L 4-cylinder
• Horsepower: 277 horses
• Torque: 311 pound-feet
• Drivetrain: Front-wheel drive (AWD available)
• Transmission: 8-speed automatic

2025 Kia Sorento

Here are the engine/performance specifications for this year's Kia Sorento:

• Engine: 2.5 L 4-cylinder
• Horsepower: 191-281 horses
• Torque: 181-311 pound-feet
• Drivetrain: Front-wheel drive (AWD available)
• Transmission: 8-speed automatic

Fuel Efficiency Comparison

Getting into the fuel figures for the Kia Sorento vs. Hyundai Santa Fe, you have similar specifications due to their engines being very similar.

2025 Hyundai Santa Fe

Here is a breakdown of MPG figures per Santa Fe trim:

• SE: 20/29/24 city/highway/combined (FWD) and 20/28/23 city/highway/combined (AWD)
• SEL: 20/29/24 city/highway/combined (FWD) and 20/28/23 city/highway/combined (AWD)
• XRT: 19/26/22 city/highway/combined (AWD)
• Limited: 20/29/24 city/highway/combined (FWD) and 20/28/23 city/highway/combined (AWD)
• Calligraphy: 20/29/24 city/highway/combined (FWD) and 20/28/23 city/highway/combined (AWD)

2025 Kia Sorento

Here is a trim-by-trim MPG breakdown for the 2025 Sorento:

• LX: 23/31/26 city/highway/combined (FWD)
• S: 23/31/26 city/highway/combined (FWD) and 23/28/25 city/highway/combined (AWD)
• EX: 20/29/23 city/highway/combined (FWD) and 20/27/23 city/highway/combined (AWD)
• SX: 20/29/23 city/highway/combined (FWD)
• X-Line EX: 20/27/23 city/highway/combined (AWD)
• X-Line SX: 20/27/23 city/highway/combined (AWD)
• X-Line SX Prestige: 20/27/23 city/highway/combined (AWD)
• X-Pro SX Prestige: 20/27/23 city/highway/combined (AWD)

2025 Kia Sorento vs. Hyundai Santa Fe Safety and Technology

Safety and technology continue to be priorities for Hyundai and Kia. The Santa Fe offers a wide array of standard and available tech and safety features, outpacing Kia across its trims overall.

2025 Hyundai Santa Fe

Safety features:

• Blind-Spot Collision Warning
• Blind-Spot Collision-Avoidance Assist
• Rear Cross-Traffic Collision-Avoidance Assist
• Parking Distance Warning - Forward/Reverse
• Remote Smart Parking Assist
• Rear Occupant Alert
• Forward Collision-Avoidance Assist with Pedestrian
• Smart Cruise Control with Stop & Go
• Lane Keeping Assist
• Highway Driving Assist
• Lane Following Assist
• Blind-Spot View Monitor

Technology:

• 12.3-inch touchscreen display
• HD Radio™
• SiriusXM
• Bose® premium audio with 12 speakers (available)
• Wireless Android Auto™ & Apple CarPlay®
• Over-the-air (OTA) updating capability
• Wireless device charging (for supported devices)
• Dynamic Voice Recognition
• Rear Seat Quiet Mode

2025 Kia Sorento

Safety features:

• Blind-Spot Collision Warning-Parallel Exit
• Blind-Spot View Monitor
• Forward Collision-Avoidance Assist w/ Pedestrian, Cyclist, & Junction Turning Detection
• Rear Cross-Traffic Collision-Avoidance Assist
• Parking Collision-Avoidance Assist-Reverse
• Surround View Monitor
• Lane Departure Warning
• Lane Keeping Assist
• Smart Cruise Control w/ Stop & Go
• Highway Driving Assist
• Intelligent Speed Limit Assist

Technology:

• 12.3-inch touchscreen display
• Over-the-Air System Updates (OTA)
• 6-speaker audio system (standard)
• Bose® Premium Audio System, 12 speakers
• Wireless Android Auto™ & Apple CarPlay®
• SiriusXM® Satellite Radio
• Wireless phone charging

Pricing and Value

The pricing and value of the 2025 Kia Sorento vs. Hyundai Santa Fe are noteworthy. The Sorento is cheaper to start, although it is priced higher overall.

2025 Hyundai Santa Fe

The Hyundai Santa Fe keeps it simple with five trim levels, topping off at around $47,000.

• SE - $34,200
• SEL - $36,700
• XRT - $40,850
• Limited - $43,600
• Calligraphy - $46,750

2025 Kia Sorento

The all-new Kia Sorento has eight unique trims, topping off at over $45,000.

• LX - $31,990
• S - $34,890
• EX - $38,090
• SX - $41,690
• X-Line EX - $41,790
• X-Line SX - $43,490
• X-Line SX Prestige - $46,390
• X-Pro SX Prestige - $47,390

Choosing the Right Model For You

Choosing the right SUV between the Hyundai Santa Fe vs. Kia Sorento comes down to what you want from your vehicle. The Santa Fe feels more luxurious and offers more standard features, but it retails slightly higher than the Kia Sorento. The Sorento is less expensive but generally less exciting inside and out, with many trims that can be confusing as you enter the performance category. We'd go with the Santa Fe for 2025.

Get Your Hyundai Santa Fe at Granite Hyundai

The team at Granite Hyundai in Somersworth, NH, can't wait to introduce you to the all-new Hyundai Santa Fe SUV. We are here every day of the week to discuss trim levels, pricing, performance, and safety and hand you a set of keys for a test drive. We'll see you soon!