What to consider when buying a family car?
Whether your family’s big or small, it’s important to choose a car that suits your lifestyle. With that in mind, it’s worth considering:
Cabin size
Storage and boot capacity
Comfort
Drivability and parking
Fuel economy
Running costs
NCAP safety rating
Entertainment set-up.
The best family cars
AutoTrader has ranked its best family cars and we’ve pulled out the key facts, to help you choose.
We’ve also included boot size, miles per gallon/range, CO2 emissions and price, so you can compare easily.
Best small family cars 2024
Volkswagen Golf
About: A high build quality (which the price reflects), spacious cabin and comfortable ride make the VW Golf a consistently popular choice for smaller families.
Style: Hatchback
Why it’s great: Spacious interior, fuel efficient, easy to park and fun to drive.
Family features: Decent-sized boot, ISOFIX child seat attachments, clever driving assistance systems.
Miles per gallon: 38.2-54.3mpg
CO2 emissions: 39-130g/km
Boot capacity min: 381 litres
Price: From £26,955 new
Seats: 5
Citroën C3 Aircross
About: Compact crossover offering an incredibly comfortable ride. The impressive range of safety and driving tech features makes it an ideal family car for new drivers.
Style: Compact crossover SUV
Why it’s great: Supremely comfortable seats and the vast range of driving assist technologies make for a far more relaxing and safer driving experience.
Family features: Advanced Comfort seats, spacious and modular interior, up to 12 drive assist systems.
Miles per gallon: 40-53 mpg
CO2 emissions: 130-156 g/km
Boot capacity min: 410 litres
Price: From £17,830 new
Seats: 5
Honda Civic
About: The self-charging Honda Civic offers a full hybrid experience with no need to ever plug in. The huge boot opening makes loading bulky items, like buggies or sports gear, a doddle.
Style: Hatchback
Why it’s great: Offers a super-efficient full hybrid experience. A smoother and quieter drive compared to other hybrids
Family features: Huge boot opening, lots of legroom, intuitive Honda Sensing driver assist.
Miles per gallon: 56-60 mpg
CO2 emissions: 108-114 g/km
Boot capacity min: 404 litres
Price: From £35,005 new
Seats: 5
Hyundai Ioniq 5
About: All-electric comfort and quirky styling combined with an impressive range and a strong performance.
Style: Hatchback crossover
Why it’s great: Offers a powerful drive with an excellent range for cleaner, greener longer journeys.
Family features: Huge interior, clever storage features, plenty of airbags, charge port option for electric bikes, long doors for easier access.
Range: up to 315 miles
CO2 emissions: 0 g/km
Boot capacity min: 527 litres
Price: From £43,445 new
Seats: 5
Best medium family cars 2024
Kia Sportage
About: A stylish, spacious and flexible family car with low running costs across all the engine ranges.
Style: Crossover SUV
Why it’s great: A modern, comfortable interior offers plenty of room for even the tallest of passengers.
Family features: Tons of room in the back, USB charging for rear passengers, impressive luggage space with smart power tailgate for easy access.
Miles per gallon: 34-52 mpg
CO2 emissions: 25-147 g/km
Boot capacity min: 591 litres
Price: From £23,625 new
Seats: 5
Tesla Model Y
About: With a long-distance range and plenty of space, Tesla’s Model Y is well-equipped for the rough and tumble of family life.
Style: SUV
Why it’s great: Excellent rapid charging, no-fuss interior and cool features galore.
Family features: Tons of space for all your gear, impressive range of Autopilot safety features, and fun digital entertainment – from karaoke tunes to online games.
Range: Up to 331 miles
CO2 emissions: 0 g/km
Boot capacity min: 854 litres
Price: From £44,990 new
Seats: 5
BMW Series 3 Touring
About: Dynamic driving, efficient engines and superb quality make the Touring one of the best mid-sized family estates around.
Style: Estate
Why it’s great: A fantastic all-rounder with an array of intelligent technologies, great-sized boot space, all in a sporty, luxurious ride.
Family features: Intelligent voice command assistance, great entertainment system, with large, flexible and functional boot space.
Miles per gallon: 33-58 mpg
CO2 emissions: 30-127 g/km
Boot capacity min: 410 litres
Price: From £42,395 new
Seats: 5
Best large family cars 2024
Dacia Jogger
About: Massive, family-friendly seven-seater at a bargain price.
Style: MPV
Why it’s great: Seats up to seven with tons of safety equipment, this practical all-rounder offers great value for large families on a tighter budget.
Family features: Easy-fold seats create a massive boot, comfortably seats up to seven, modular roof bars, up to 15 different safety features.
Miles per gallon: 48-57 mpg
CO2 emissions: 109-130 g/km
Boot capacity min: 160-2,085 litres
Price: From £18,295 new
Seats: 7
Ford Galaxy
About: Practical and comfy seven-seater that’s fun to drive. It’s no longer in production, so one to look out for as a well-treated, low-mileage used car.
Style: MPV
Why it’s great: Surprisingly light to manoeuvre and a massive boot, even with all seven seats in place.
Family features: Easy, push-button seat-folding, huge boot, hands-free liftgate, wide door openings and windows, practical storage features.
Miles per gallon: 36-44 mpg
CO2 emissions: 148 g/km
Boot capacity min: 300 litres (in seven-seat mode)
Price: Was £40,725 new. Used price depends on age, model, mileage and condition.
Seats: 7
Volkswagen Multivan
About: Practical seven-seater with plenty of room and added features for family outings and adventures.
Style: Van-based MPV
Why it’s great: Functional and comfortable with a decent boot, even with all seven seats in use.
Family features: Sliding rear doors, interior can be configured to fit passengers, surfboards and bikes alike, removable seats, multifunction table, multicolour ambient lighting options, panoramic glass roof.
Miles per gallon: 30-43 mpg
CO2 emissions: 42-170 g/km
Boot capacity min: 469 litres
Price: From £45,469 new
Seats: 7
Compare car insurance
Once you’ve decided on the car for your family, why not see if you can get a great deal on your car insurance by comparing with us?
Julie is passionate about delivering a great customer experience and rewarding people for saving on their insurance through our loyalty and rewards programme. She’s spoken to the media, including outlets like Sky News, about car and home insurance, as well as our Meerkat rewards scheme.
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