2025 Hyundai Ioniq 5 vs. 2025 Volkswagen ID.4 Comparison

Electric vehicle (EV) shoppers have more midsize SUVs to choose from than any other type of car.

Automakers are aware that Americans purchase more midsize SUVs than any other type of vehicle. As they move toward EVs, they begin with the models that are most likely to interest people. That means a lot of midsize SUVs with similar ranges and prices.

They’re not all alike, though. Each has its own personality, and each will fit some drivers better than others.

We’re fans of both the Hyundai Ioniq 5 and the Volkswagen ID.4, but they’re quite different.

2025 Hyundai Ioniq 5

The Hyundai Ioniq 5 won our Best New Model Award when it was new in 2023. It then took home our Best Buy Award among EVs in both 2024 and 2025. You might say we’ve been impressed with it. It combines great style with an efficient use of space. Many trim levels mean buyers can equip it as anything from a comfortable commuter to a sleeper performance car.

Hyundai Ioniq 5 Highlights

Standout looks: Hyundai designers did some of their best work on this one. The Ioniq 5 has a presence many cars lack, with a fun, pixelated design theme that feels retro and futuristic at the same time. Ioniq 5s are becoming familiar sights as the model moves up the sales charts, but they’re still distinctive enough to command attention.

Long and longer warranty coverage: If you’re the type to buy a car and keep it running forever (and you should be), Hyundai’s warranty becomes a form of financial insurance. A 10-year, 100,00-mile powertrain plan is a very good thing to have in year 10 of car ownership.

Available Ioniq 5 N: It will cost you a pretty penny. But there is simply nothing else on the market quite like the Ioniq 5 N. It’s a high-performance model with 640 horsepower and a zero-to-60 time of 3.4 seconds. It can sound like a V8 supercar or a starship, changing with a few taps of a touchscreen. It has a drive mode. Yet, it keeps all the practicality of the Ioniq 5. If you’ve ever needed a family car but wanted a rocketship instead, your local Hyundai dealer can give you both in the same parking space. Volkswagen has nothing close.  

Check this week’s Fair Purchase Price or see the Hyundai Ioniq 5 models for sale near you.

2025 Volkswagen ID.4

The ID.4 was Volkswagen’s first EV, but it benefits from the company’s experience with many more EVs overseas. It boasts excellent safety scores, a quirky personality, and a range of up to 291 miles between charges.

Volkswagen ID.4 Highlights

Excellent visibility: The ID.4 is a stunningly easy car to maneuver in tight urban spaces. With its wheels pushed far to the corners of a relatively small wheelbase, it’s agile. And its greenhouse and low beltline (where the windows meet the body) means you can see much of the world around you easily. That’s less important now, as many cars boast an impressive suite of sensors. But we still find it comforting.

Clever ID. Light system: The Ioniq 5 has lots of personality from the outside. The ID.4 feels like a robot companion inside. That comes thanks to one of the cutest technologies found in any current car. The ID. Light is a thin strip of LEDs mounted where the dashboard meets the windshield. It pulses from side to side to give turn-by-turn directions, glows to show the battery’s state, and shines in front of the driver or passenger when they give a voice command (to show who it’s listening to). It sounds weird, but it makes the car feel friendly.

More cargo space: Most EVs are space-efficient because there’s no need for a transmission tunnel down the center of the space. However, the ID.4 offers more cargo space than the Ioniq 5, whether the seats are in place or folded.

Check this week’s Fair Purchase Price or see the Volkswagen ID.4 models for sale near you.

Similarities

These two have similar power in base models. Each is available with all-wheel drive (AWD), and each, in its own way, is quirky fun.

Pricing

The Kelley Blue Book Fair Purchase Price for any individual used vehicle can vary greatly according to mileage, condition, location, and other factors. The prices here reflect what buyers are currently paying for New 2025 Hyundai IONIQ 5 vehicles and New 2025 Volkswagen ID.4 vehicles in typical condition when purchasing from a dealership. These prices are updated weekly. The manufacturer’s suggested retail price (MSRP) quoted includes the destination fee, but does not include tax, license, document fees, and options.

Specifications

Conclusion

These are two of our favorite electric cars because each, in its own way, feels unique. There may not be a wrong choice here. But we wear our love of the Ioniq 5 on our sleeves, award after award, warranty-covered year after warranty-covered year.

The award-winning Ioniq 5 is simply great-looking, has a flexible cabin layout, and comes with that sensible Hyundai warranty. It also has a performance option that the ID.4 doesn’t.

The ID.4 is a pleasant car to drive, and it offers more space. The ID. Light is silly, but some of us love silly.

We’d recommend a test drive of each to see which car suits you best. But we wouldn’t be surprised if more buyers choose the Hyundai.