Hyundai Ioniq 9 vs. Kia EV9: What’s the best 3-row Electric SUV?
SPEAKER: We’ve given this
thing not one, not two, but three Edmunds
Top Rated awards. But today it might lose. This is the Kia EV9, one of
our favorite electric three-row SUVs. And it’s racked
up win after win, including at Edmunds Top
Rated Best of the Best award that we give to the best
vehicle of each year. We also owned one for a year for
our year-long road test fleet, and we loved every
single second of it. Now, Hyundai and
Kia, they’re actually owned by the same
parent company in Korea. So this brand spankin’ new
Hyundai IONIQ 9 has a lot in common with the EV9. However, Hyundai has
had a few extra years to work out the kinks,
and you got to check out what they came up with. You know the drill by now. We’re going to go
over these interiors, talk tech, tell you how they
drive, and measure cargo space. And of course, we’ll
tell you how each of them did on the world-famous
Edmunds EV range test. This should be a good
one because we’ve got two great family
vehicles on hand today. Are you ready? We’re Edmunds, and we test
hundreds of cars each year on the road and at our
private track so you get the most trusted reviews. If you want to know which car,
truck, or SUV is the best, then stick with us. Just in case you forgot,
these front seats are particularly
comfortable for a couple of reasons, the main one being
these fantastic headrests. Still not over these things. I know we’ve talked about these
things in three straight videos now, but how could you not? These mesh-covered
head hammocks have impeccable airflow
and great support, and they’re our
gateway to talking about the EV9 interior, which
has fantastic design and quality materials to match. The EV9 was an
innovator, a design icon, and a fantastic addition
to our One-Year Road Test fleet of 20 or so vehicles
when it came out in late 2023. And fast forward
a few years later, and it’s held up
incredibly well. Now, up here between
the front passengers, you get two pretty
large cup holders. And if you don’t
need to use them, they’ll even fold
away so that you get a nicely sized storage bin. Now, down here in
front, another storage bin that’s kind of hard to
access when you’re driving, but it’s actually a great place
to put a small bag or a purse. The center console
is pretty small, but that is for a
good reason, and we’ll show you why in a second. It looks good in here too. This is Kia’s most
expensive product, and they’ve pulled
out all the tricks. This is the best that they’ve
done when it comes to design. All the touchpoints feel great. This is a high-quality interior,
something that you might not expect from Kia. Matching the number of awards
this thing has received, you’re also getting one,
two, three screens up front, and we really like two of them. The instrument cluster is
great, just customizable enough. And this other screen, high
resolution, easy to reach, and you’re getting wireless
Android Auto and Apple CarPlay, of course. It’s this third screen
that is the issue. This houses many of
the climate controls, and there’s nothing inherently
wrong with it itself. The problem is that it’s blocked
out by the steering wheel, so if you’re driving, you
can actually see most of it. And to use it, you kind
of got to lean over here to get a good look at it. Kia struck a great balance
between physical and touch controls on this interior. Right below the screen
here, you actually get some very helpful controls,
like a Home button or a Media button, because getting out of
Android Auto or Apple CarPlay can often be annoying. Instead, you just
hit this button here, and even though it’s
touch sensitive, you can actually hear and
feel when you touch it. So we don’t hate it that much. Now, a lot of the
things that you’re not going to use very often, like
the driver assistance settings, for example, they’re
about a menu deep. But all the stuff that
you’re going to use a lot, you get a physical
control for, including one of my favorite features,
a surround-view camera button. So can turn that on
whenever you need it. Now, instead of a
volume knob, you are getting a volume roller
thingy, which we don’t love. And the only reason
we’re bringing that up is because on an
interior this good, we’re going to have to
nitpick to find things that we don’t love. This is good but not great, like
the rest of these controls are. And the buttons on the steering
wheel, they’re great as well. They’re not too small,
so they’re actually pretty easy to hit. The only thing that we wish for
is this customizable button, if you had a few
more options for it. And other ones in
there, we really liked. Beyond the headrest,
the seats themselves are also mega comfortable,
plenty of adjustments so you can find a great seating
position with strong heating and ventilation too. And they even have
a relaxation mode, so you can kick back
and put your feet up, whether you’re waiting for
a charge or soccer practice to end. And by the way, you can do
that in the second row as well. Oh, and while I’m
relaxing, I love to find out what car prices
are at local dealers near me, or check out what my current
set of wheels is worth. And you can do all
of that at our site. That’s right. You’re also getting those
fancy relaxation seats here in the second row, and they also
come with power adjustments. And if you go above
anything but the base trim, you’re also getting seat
heating and ventilation in these captain’s chairs. These chairs are better
equipped than the front seats in many, many other vehicles. And that is awesome. And as you can also tell,
plenty of legroom and headroom and forward and back
adjustments, so you can get some legroom to your
friends in the third row as well. Now, these headrests,
super comfortable. I still think the
meshy ones are better, but these are almost
as good because you can reach up and tug
them forward like this, like you would on an airplane. And that makes this
even better to nap in. And remember that very
small center console? Well, that’s because
the underneath space is taken up by this. It’s a pretty large storage
bin for second-row passengers, and it even comes with this
nice rubberized surface that you can use as a table. And you’ve got plenty of
space down here for all of your favorite snacks. And if you plan on
putting little ones here in the second or
third rows, good news. There are easily
accessible lower and upper latch anchors on every
seat and plenty of room here to fit even a rear-facing car
seat, though in the third row, you might have a bit more
trouble negotiating a seat back there. Speaking of getting in the third
row, that’s also super easy. You’ve got a button that you
can press right on top here or even one you
can press down low, and the seat will move
forward out of the way. And we really like this because
even little kids can operate it without any trouble. Now, would I rather be
sitting in the second row? Probably. But things are still
pretty great back here. I’ve got an air vent. I’ve got cup holders. I’ve got USB charging
ports on both sides. And when we own one
of these, we packed it full of six adults pretty
frequently with few complaints. As far as third rows go,
this is pretty great. Behind the third row, you
get just over 20 cubic feet of cargo space. But as you can see,
that was just enough for us to fit two of our bags. The third one is going to
have to get strapped down on the roof, and that’s the
problem with these midsize three=row SUVs. If you’re going to
fill in with people, there’s not a ton
of space for cargo. Now, where the EV9 does
have a slight advantage over the IONIQ 9 is
an underfloor storage. You can actually fit the
cargo cover down here, so you can bring
it with you instead of having to leave it
behind in the garage. And you’re also getting a
household outlet back here, so there are some features. But this third row is
manual folding, not powered, although the second row,
you just hit buttons, and those seats will
fall down for you. Now, both of these
vehicles also have frunks, but they’re not really
big enough to be useful. They’re good for storing
charging cables or something like that, but not much else. Now, there is one thing
about this cargo area that I don’t really like. And they have this sort
of carpeted covering that they Velcro onto
the back of the third row and onto the floor here,
but it gets all bunched up when these seats are up. And it looks very unsightly. It’s the kind of thing
that I would just rip out. Range and charging are
both good here in the EV9, but what we want to
talk to you about right now is how it drives. And in a word, it’s excellent. Here in the GT-Line,
you’ve got plenty of power for accelerating uphill,
passing and merging, even if the thing is full of
people and all of their stuff. The only thing to
watch out for is if you go for one of these
single-motor versions of the EV9, it’s
definitely going to feel taxed because this
is a lot of vehicle to move for a single motor. But personally, my favorite
part is its suspension tuning. It toes the line between
comfort and agility pretty much perfectly. There’s enough compliance
so that bumps in the road won’t upset the
cabin, and the ride stays comfortable in
day-to-day driving, but it’s taut enough
to feel athletic. And for a big vehicle, the EV9
hides its weight really well. And as a bonus,
at our test track, we noticed that the EV9 is
very stable under hard braking. And it’s also got a
one-pedal driving mode that’s very easy to
modulate and still drive the vehicle smoothly. I also personally
like that you can go between the different region
settings with the paddles here on the wheel,
and you don’t have to dig into any of the menus. One thing about the EV9 that
doesn’t get enough attention is that it has
excellent visibility. You’ve got these giant
windows all around you, so it’s easy to see out
of in every direction. And then backing
that up, you’re also getting a great surround-view
camera system and a blind spot monitor system here
in the cluster. So if I activate
the turn signal, it shows a live view
of the blind spot right here where I can see it. Now, the EV9 isn’t going to
offer a hands-free highway driving mode like you’re
going to get in some vehicles from Ford and GM, but
what’s here is pretty great. The system can do automatic
lane changes for you, and on the highway, it tracks
super straight in the lane keep. No complaints about that either. So to wrap things
up, the interior is comfortable and
really well appointed. It’s great to drive. We like the tech. There’s plenty of cargo area. Blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. This thing is awesome. Now let’s see what the
Hyundai has up its sleeve. Now, remember,
these two vehicles are very similar when
it comes to features. The things you’re going to
find here in the IONIQ 9, you can, for the most
part, also find in the EV9. What we’re going
to focus on, then, is the differences
between these two cabins. That might actually help you
make a choice between the two vehicles. Now, the first big difference
you’re going to notice is design. Hyundai has a different
kind of aesthetic. They’re a little bit
allergic to straight lines. So if you look
here on the doors, there’s just a lot of ovals
and a lot of gentle curves. I like it. It actually gives the
cabin some character. But again, styling is
more of a personal thing. What is a little
bit weird is they have this kind of plastic
trim piece right here that’s, I think, meant
to look like granite. But instead, it
just ends up kind of looking a little bit weird. I like that felt trim piece
in the EV9 just a touch more. These seats are very similar
to the ones you’re getting also in the Kia, same relaxation
features where you can lean it back and the footrest comes up. Well, they are missing
those mesh headrests, but these things, they’re
still pretty and cushy and comfortable, so not too
many complaints there. What is a bit weird, and
this is also true of the Kia, is that there is no
separate bottom adjustment. So if you want the
seat to angle up, it actually moves
the whole seat, so you have to do
this and then this to get it sort of situated
in the way that you want. Materials here in the IONIQ
9 are, for the most part, fantastic. Now, both the Kia
and the Hyundai, they do engage
some cost cutting, but they both do a
great job of hiding it. Everything that you’re going
to touch regularly feels good. These knobs are
rubberized, for example, so they’re really easy to grip. And where there is plastic,
it’s kind of tucked away in ways that you wouldn’t notice. But here in the IONIQ 9, there’s
one thing I really don’t like, and it’s this spot right
here below the screen. Now, when everyone
uses a touch screen, you’ll naturally put your
hand here before just to stabilize yourself before
you swipe through things. And this spot, because it’s a
lighter kind of silvery plastic, it picks up not fingerprints,
per se, but oils from your skin. And this part is actually
becoming stained. I tried to clean this,
and it wouldn’t come off. This vehicle only has
about 3,000 miles on it, so if you have one
for the long haul, that’s something you’re going
to want to watch out for. Now, these two take very
different approaches when it comes to small item storage. And I think I like what they do
in the Hyundai just a bit more. Here in front of the
passenger, you’re getting a convenient shelf. And down here,
instead of a large bin in front of the
console, you’re getting two smaller bins that are
still great for small items. But having this thing be
movable gives it a lot more flexibility, not just for
passengers up front, but also in the second row. And that’s because
this thing can be opened and accessed from the
front and from the back as well. Now, these cup holders, you
don’t get that nice storage bin in the Kia that you
could stow away, but they’re still plenty big. And as you can see, they fit
our big cup and our water bottle just fine. Now, if we’re being
honest, the bin in the EV9, prohibitively small. But in here it’s really
big, and you can even take out this divider and
reach all the way down in there and fit pretty much anything. Now, if you look
at these screens, it’s going to look very familiar
to what we saw in the Kia. And that’s a good thing
because we like this system, simple, easy to use. Only two screens up
here instead of three, though, because the climate
controls live down here where they are a bit
easier to see and use. Where these two
are a bit different is when it comes to charging. Here in the IONIQ 9, you’re
getting an extra USB-C port, but what’s even cooler is
that these things put out a ton of power, 100 watts. And for some reference, that’s
enough to charge a MacBook Pro. Now that 100 watts is
shared throughout the cabin, but if you’re charging
a laptop, you’re probably not charging
too many other things, so no worries there. And of course, a wireless
charging pad right here. I do like the position of
the pad a bit more in the EV9 because it’s a bit covered. When you have your phone
sitting flat like this, if the sun catches
it, it’s going to bounce up into
your eyes, or it’s going to make your
phone really hot. So having this a bit
exposed is not ideal. Because of the IONIQ
9’s design, some of the buttons that
were here on the EV9 have moved to here, including
the surround-view camera button, which we really like. But I actually like this because
they’re even easier to reach. With this console slid
into its far back position, storage for second-row
passengers is fantastic. We’ve returned the bin
to its normal position to talk about the second row. And just like in the EV9, these
seats are absolutely fantastic. They got the foot rest too. They got great headrests,
all that stuff. The IONIQ 9, even though it’s
on the same platform as the EV9, its wheelbase is a
couple inches longer, and that does help its cabin
to feel a bit more spacious. And I would say that the door
openings here in the second row, they feel even a
bit larger as well, so it’s a touch easier
to fit in a car seat. And again, easy access to
both the lower and upper latch anchors. And not to sound like a broken
record, just like the EV9, heated and ventilated second-row
seats, air vents in the ceiling, USB ports easy to access, there. Really, there’s nothing more you
can ask for out of a second row. There’s one other
feature that we have to mention because it shows
just how much attention Hyundai and Kia pay to these interiors. Now, this armrest, and
the EV9 does this as well, you’ll hear as I bring
it up, it clicks. And each of these clicks
is a different position. So whether you’re comfortable
here or comfortable here, you can find the perfect way
to sit here in the second row. There’s actually 15
different armrest positions. That is wild. Here in the third
row of the Hyundai, you’re also getting two USB-C
charging ports and cup holders. But there are a few
key differences. The first one, that added
wheelbase length does give you a touch more legroom, I think. And even though this thing
has a sloping roofline, headroom is still great. But the biggest
difference is that this is a power reclining third
row, so if I want to go back, I just hit this button. And if I go forward, I
just hit the other one until I’m comfortable. And the other difference
is, if you look up, instead of having
a split sunroof, this one has a single
panoramic sunroof. And I think I like
the approach here in the IONIQ 9 just a bit more. Now, on paper, the IONIQ
9 has two extra cubic feet of cargo space
behind its third row. However, because the
cargo area is deeper, we were able to fit all
three of our bags easily, and that gives the IONIQ
9 functionally more space. Now, back here, you’re also
going to get a household outlet. But as an added bonus, since
all three rows are powered, you can lower the
second and third rows at just the touch of a button. And if you’re sitting
in the driver’s seat, you can even do that same
thing through the screen. This just makes this cargo
area bit more flexible and gives an advantage
to the IONIQ 9. I know we’ve already given
you a lot of information on these two vehicles. But if you want even more or on
any other new car, truck, or SUV on the road today, head over to
Edmunds where you can check out our full ratings and reviews. One member of our test
team took the IONIQ 9 home for a few nights,
and he summarized it perfectly in his notes,
saying that the IONIQ 9 prioritizes comfort while
remembering that the road isn’t always straight. It’s true. This thing rides beautifully. It soaks up bumps, big and
small, without any problem, and the cabin always
stays very tranquil because this thing also does an
excellent job with wind and road noise as well. Now, this is going
to sound nitpicky, and that’s because it is. And that’s what
we’re going to have to do to find a difference
between these two vehicles because they’re so close. But for me, the IONIQ 9
suspension, it’s just a touch too floaty. There’s a bit too
much body roll, and it kind of bounces down
the road ever so slightly. I prefer the setup in the EV9
because it feels more athletic and just more settled in. Just like in the EV9 though,
this thing is super easy to see out of, and it’s got
all the same great camera systems, including a
rear-view camera mirror. The motors are
powerful and smooth. This thing actually makes about
40 horsepower more than the EV9, but because it weighs
200 pounds more, it’s 0 to 60 time
is a tenth slower. But that being said, plenty
quick in all circumstances. You’re not going to be left
wanting for power in either of these vehicles. The braking is
also quite smooth, whether you’re using the
regen or the physical brakes. These things aren’t
like those Tesla Ubers that you’ve taken
that make you carsick. They are much, much smoother
than that thankfully. There is one thing about
the IONIQ 9’s braking, however, that I
don’t like, and it happens when you’re using
the one-pedal drive mode. If you come up to a stop
sign or a stop light on any bit of an incline,
as the car comes to a stop, it actually rocks back like it’s
going to start rolling backwards until the brakes grab you. Now, I drove this thing
for about a week or so, and unfortunately I never
really got used to it because feeling like the vehicle
is going to go backwards on you unexpectedly, it
never feels good. Now, the IONIQ 9 has the exact
same driver aids and technology you’re going to find in the EV9. But in our testing,
we noted that they don’t work quite as well. The lane centering
is a bit busier in the adaptive cruise control. It brakes a bit later,
which can add some anxiety. But the biggest problem that
I have with the IONIQ 9 safety systems is where they put
the driver attention monitor. They made the same
mistake that Toyota does in some of its vehicles. They put it right here on
top of the steering column. So if you’re like
me and you sometimes like to drive with your
hand atop the wheel, it’s going to block
that sensor completely. And then the system
is going to complain that it can’t see your face. It is thankfully easier to
shut off here in the Hyundai than it is in the Toyotas, but
still, this should probably live somewhere else. So does the IONIQ 9 improve
on the EV9’s formula? In some ways, it certainly does. You get a bit more cargo room,
and the cabin is a bit bigger, so this will be better
for families, especially those that are going to
use the third row often. But it’s a very, very tight
gap between these two. And it might just come down
to what we see in the value and range sections. And now, it’s time to share
with you the results that both of these vehicles achieved
on the Edmunds EV Range and Charging Tests. We’ve tested over 100
EVs now on our loop, and we do them all the same way,
so you can trust our results. Now, even though these two
have the exact same platform, they actually have
different batteries. The Hyundai’s
battery is about 10% larger when it
comes to capacity, and as you might expect, it also
has just over 10% more range. Now, if you want
absolute maximum range, both of these
vehicles are offered in single-motor versions. That will get you an
extra 30 miles or so, but you’re going
to give up a lot when it comes to performance. Both of these all-wheel drive
models, in the 300-mile club, good results there for both. Now, when it comes
to charging, these are two of the fastest
charging EVs on sale today. The Hyundai, it charges
just a little bit quicker. But with both of
them, you won’t be stuck at a fast charger
for a long time. They really put juice back
into that battery quickly. And as of 2026,
on the EV9, you’re going to get an NACS charge
port on both of these vehicles, and that will give you access
to many of Tesla’s supercharger stations. And in case you’re
wondering what it’s like to charge a
non-Tesla EV at one of those, we’ve got a video for that too. The feature that I like
that both of these vehicles offer, though, whether
you’re charging at a supercharger or another
third-party fast charger, you can actually pay for it
right through the touchscreen. And that gives you
greater convenience, no matter which SUV you choose. Before we get into value
and share our winner, we just ask you to please
toss us a like and subscribe if you’ve been
enjoying our videos. And if you have any questions
about these two vehicles or an opinion about which
two we should compare next, let us know in the
comments below, because for better or
worse, we read them all. Now, when it comes
to value, there is not a lot separating
these two vehicles. They both come with the
same gigantic warranties. And if you look at the price
tags, there’s only a $400 difference between the
EV9 and the IONIQ 9 that we have here today. And as we showed, they have
roughly the same feature sets. Now, the IONIQ 9 does have a
few added convenience features, like that power-folding third
row and the bigger sunroof. And it’s got a bit more
range, so its value score is just a smidge higher. But I think that
the bigger thing that we need to address
with these two vehicles is simply how much
they cost compared to the rest of the market. It might have seemed crazy
back in 2010 to spend in the mid-to-high 70,000s
on any Kia or Hyundai, but times have changed. And both of these
vehicles have interiors that I think we would
call near luxury grade. They both feel worth their
price tags from the inside. They both look it
from the outside. And compared to the rest
of the electric three-row vehicles out there, they seem
pretty fairly priced to me. We rate everything about these
vehicles on a 10-point scale. A 10 is perfect, a
5 is about average, and a 1, well, that’s
problematically bad. So after a couple weeks of
driving, notetaking, testing, and critiquing these two
vehicles, as you can see, they are both pretty much
powerhouses across the board. They put up some of the
best ratings numbers that we’ve seen in our system. There are a few gaps, though. The Kia takes the edge
when it comes to driving, while the IONIQ 9 wins on
range, value, and comfort. As you might expect
between these two, it is a very, very close race. And in the end, the Hyundai
just barely ekes out a win by only a
tenth of a point. While it’s a close
win for the Hyundai. It’s hard to call either
of these vehicles a loser. That’s how good they both are. If you’re going to use
the third row often, then yes, you probably
want to go with the IONIQ 9 and it’s a slight bit
of extra cargo room. But otherwise, just pick the
one that fits your style better, and don’t look back. You’ll be happy either
way, we promise. Lots more videos coming
soon, so please stick around. Thanks for watching.
They may share some underpinnings, but the Hyundai Ioniq 9 and Kia EV9 are more different than you might expect. In this comparison test video, Edmunds’ Brian Wong goes through the strengths and weaknesses of each electric SUV, including range, performance, interiors, and more, before determining a winner.
00:00 Intro
01:19 EV9 Interior & Tech
07:51 EV9 Driving Impressions
09:55 Ioniq 9 Interior & Tech
16:46 Ioniq 9 Driving Impressions
19:51 Edmunds’ EV Range & Charging Tests
21:21 Value
22:39 Edmunds’ Take
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