Safest New Cars of 2025, According to the IIHS
More models earn Top Safety Pick and Top Safety Pick+ designations after crash tests
The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety released the final update for 2025, listing the safest cars new cars for the year. It includes many popular sedans, SUVs, hatchbacks, and EVs, but not all of them. The tests became even tougher this year, with a focus on rear-seat passenger safety.
Photo: IIHS Photo: IIHS
2025 IIHS Top Safety Pick and Top Safety Pick+ Winners
Small Cars
Acura Integra (TSP)
Honda Civic sedan (TSP)
Honda Civic hatchback (TSP+)
Hyundai Elantra (TSP+)
Kia K4 (TSP+)
Mazda3 (TSP+, hatchback and sedan)
Toyota Prius (TSP+)
Midsized Cars
Honda Accord (TSP+)
Hyundai Ioniq 6 (TSP+)
Hyundai Sonata (TSP+)
Tesla Model 3 (TSP)
Toyota Camry (TSP+)
Midsized Luxury Car
Audi A5 (TSP+)
Audi A6 Sportback E-Tron (TSP+)
Genesis G80 (TSP+, 2026)
Mercedes-Benz C-Class (TSP+)
Large Luxury Car
Genesis G90 (TSP)
Small SUVs
Acura ADX (TSP)
BMW X3 (TSP+, if built after April 2025)
Genesis GV60 (TSP+)
Honda HR-V (TSP+)
Hyundai Ioniq 5 (TSP+)
Hyundai Kona (TSP+)
Hyundai Tucson (TSP+)
Kia Sportage (TSP+, 2026)
Lexus NX (TSP+, 2026)
Mazda CX-30 (TSP+)
Mazda CX-50 (TSP+)
Nissan Rogue (TSP, 2026)
Subaru Forester (TSP, 2025, excluding Wilderness trim; TSP+, 2026)
Subaru Solterra (TSP+)
Toyota bZ4X (TSP+)
Toyota Corolla Cross (TSP)
Photo: IIHS Photo: IIHS
Midsized SUVs
Chevrolet Traverse (TSP)
Ford Explorer (TSP+)
Ford Mustang Mach-E (TSP+)
GMC Acadia (TSP)
Honda Passport (TSP+)
Honda Pilot (TSP)
Hyundai Ioniq 9 (TSP+, 2026)
Hyundai Palisade (TSP, 2026)
Hyundai Santa Fe (TSP+, if built after Nov. 1, 2024)
Kia EV9 (TSP+)
Kia Sorento (TSP+, 2026)
Kia Telluride (TSP+)
Mazda CX-70 and CX-70 PHEV (TSP+)
Mazda CX-90 and CX-90 PHEV (TSP+)
Nissan Murano (TSP+)
Nissan Pathfinder (TSP+)
Subaru Ascent (TSP)
Tesla Model Y (TSP+)
Volkswagen Atlas (TSP+, 2026)
Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport (TSP+, 2025 and 2026)
Volvo EX90 (TSP+, 2025 and 2026)
Midsized Luxury SUVs
Acura MDX (TSP)
Audi Q5 Sportback (TSP+)
Audi Q6 E-Tron (TSP+)
Audi Q6 Sportback E-Tron (TSP+)
BMW X5 (TSP+)
Buick Enclave (TSP+)
Genesis GV70 (TSP+, if built after April 1, 2024)
Genesis Electrified GV70 (TSP+)
Genesis GV80 (TSP+)
Infiniti QX60 (TSP, 2025 and 2026)
Lexus NX (TSP)
Lincoln Nautilus (TSP+)
Mercedes-Benz GLC (TSP+)
Mercedes-Benz GLE (TSP+, with optional front-crash prevention)
Volvo XC90 (TSP+, if built before December 2024)
Volvo XC90 plug-in hybrid (TSP+)
Large SUVs
Audi Q7 (TSP+)
Infiniti QX80 (TSP+)
Nissan Armada (TSP+)
Rivian R1S (TSP+, if built after August 2024)
Pickups
Hyundai Santa Cruz (TSP, 2026)
Rivian R1T (TSP)
Tesla Cybertruck (TSP+)
Toyota Tundra (TSP+, crew cab)
How the IIHS Tests Cars
The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety first started releasing crash-test ratings in 1995 and introduced the TSP rating in 2006. To get a TSP rating in 2025, vehicles must earn:
- A rating of Acceptable in the updated moderate-overlap front crash test, which mimics what happens if a vehicle crosses a center line and 40 percent of its front end hits a similarly sized oncoming car at 40 mph. This is a stricter requirement than in years past.
- A rating of Good in the side-crash test.
- Ratings of Good in combined passenger- and driver-side small-overlap front crash tests, which mimic a crash with a tree, a telephone pole, or the front corner of an oncoming car.
- A rating of Acceptable or Good in pedestrian front crash prevention tests and headlight performance evaluations.
To earn a TSP+ rating, vehicles must meet all of those same qualifications and earn the highest score, Good, in the updated moderate-overlap front crash test.
Over time, the IIHS has strengthened the requirements for earning a TSP rating. Last year, for example, vehicles only had to earn an Acceptable rating in the moderate-overlap test to earn a TSP+ award. As a result, only 48 models have qualified for TSP and TSP+ awards so far in 2025, compared with 71 in 2024. The vehicles that dropped off the list between last year and this year didn’t get less safe; the criteria got tougher.
Photo: IIHS Photo: IIHS
Incremental changes to crash tests usually reflect data from real-world crashes. The IIHS now does the moderate-overlap crash test with a dummy in the seat behind the driver to evaluate rear-seat crash protection. The group added new performance criteria for rear-seat passenger and pedestrian protection in 2024 and included an updated side-crash test in 2021.
Those changes are leading to safer cars because most automakers improve the crash safety of their vehicles over time to meet the more stringent testing requirements, says Jennifer Stockburger, director of operations at CR’s Auto Test Center.
“The IIHS tests challenge vehicles in new ways that better replicate real-world crashes and evaluate crash avoidance technologies,” she says. “Automakers usually respond by redesigning their vehicles to meet those challenges.”
Click through the model names to learn more about the cars, including how they performed in Consumer Reports’ dynamic tests, such as those for braking and emergency handling.
