Honda vs. Hyundai Comparison
When looking for a truly excellent value in a vehicle, Honda is probably the first brand that comes to mind. But Honda isn’t the only automaker in this segment and you might be wondering what some of those competitors might have to offer. Hyundai has made some real progress in recent years and it might not be clear just how it measures up against a more established brand like Honda. That’s why our team at Germain Honda of Surprise made the following guide to better break down the differences between the two brands.
Safety
The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) Top Safety Pick awards are given out annually to the safest vehicles on the road. Always a good indicator of a manufacturer’s attitude toward safety, five different Honda models took home Top Safety Pick and Top Safety Pick+ awards for 2025. Groundbreaking features like the Honda Sensing collection of advanced driver assistance technologies included as standard across the Honda model lineup help demonstrate the brand’s commitment to protecting drivers. These are the Honda vehicles named by the IIHS5:
- 2025 Honda Civic Sedan – Top Safety Pick
- 2025 Honda Civic Hatchback -Top Safety Pick+
- 2025 Honda Accord – Top Safety Pick+
- 2025 Honda HR-V – Top Safety Pick+
- 2025 Honda Pilot – Top Safety Pick
Honda Civic and Accord Awards
The Civic and Accord are the oldest nameplates in the current Honda model lineup and with good reason. Not only are these models incredibly popular, but they continue to wow the automotive press generation after generation. In fact, the Civic has won the North American Car of the Year award more than any other model in history. Here are some of the awards these models have received for just the 2025 model year.
Car & Driver 10Best
For 2025, most of the Car & Driver 10Best1 awards went to performance models. The two notable mainstream exceptions were the Civic and the Accord. Both of these models have won quite a few times but the Accord specifically has won more than any other vehicle ever and by a huge margin. Just a single Hyundai model made the list and all of the Hyundai wins of all time combined still only come to a fraction of the wins the Civic has received by itself.
U.S. News & World Report Best Cars of 2025
For the U.S. News & World Report Best Cars of 20252, we again see the Civic and the Accord win their respective segments. In fact, the Civic Type R took the #1 spot for both compact cars and hatchbacks. Hyundai only earned a single nomination in the 2025 iteration of these awards conducted by U.S. News & World Report.
Edmunds Top Rated Car
For 2025, Edmunds named the Honda Civic Hybrid as the Best Car3 for the year. The announcement included a summary of why the Civic Hybrid was given this honor: “The Civic Hybrid is a perfectly balanced compact sedan and, frankly, might be all the car you ever really need. Frugal, fun and affordable, this is one of those rare instances where buyers get to have their cake and eat it too.”
Kelley Blue Book Image Awards
Every year, Kelley Blue Book gives out awards to the brands that create the most enthusiasm among shoppers. In commanding fashion, Honda took home the honors of Best Overall Brand, Most Trusted Brand, Best Value Brand, Best In-Vehicle Experience Brand, and Best Performance Brand in the 2024 iteration of these awards4. Hyundai failed to earn even a single mention in the 2024 Consumer Choice Awards from Kelley Blue Book.
Winner – Honda
We didn’t want you to have to take our word for it that Honda was a better choice. After taking a look at the many, many awards given to Honda by third-party independent reviewers, it’s clear that you don’t have to. Honda is the clear winner here and you can shop for a new vehicle from Honda with confidence at Germain Honda of Surprise.
1Source: https://www.caranddriver.com/features/a62988657/10best-cars-2025/
2Source: https://cars.usnews.com/cars-trucks/rankings
3Source: https://www.edmunds.com/top-rated/
4Source: https://www.kbb.com/awards/consumer-choice-awards/
5Source: https://www.iihs.org/ratings/top-safety-picks/2025/all/honda#award-winners