If you need seven seats and want hybrid fuel bills, three cars dominate the shortlist: the Toyota Kluger, the Hyundai Santa Fe Hybrid and the Kia Sorento Hybrid. All three are large SUVs under five metres long, all three use a petrol engine paired with an electric motor that you never plug in, and all three claim between 5.2 and 5.7 litres per 100km. The differences are in price, towing, fuel grade, warranty and where the space goes.
Every figure below comes from the manufacturer's own website, spec sheet or brochure, checked on 27 October 2026. Prices are drive-away for a private buyer unless we say otherwise. Toyota prices its cars by postcode, so the Kluger figures are Toyota's recommended drive-away prices for Melbourne 3000. Hyundai and Kia quote national drive-away offers.
The short answer
Want the cheapest way into a seven-seat hybrid? The Kia Sorento Hybrid S at $59,490 drive-away. Want the most car for the money and the biggest boot behind row two? The Hyundai Santa Fe Hybrid from $60,990 drive-away. Need to tow 2,000kg or want all-wheel drive on every grade? The Toyota Kluger from $68,179 drive-away, but you pay for it, and it only comes with a five-year warranty against seven years for the other two.
Price: the Kluger starts about $8,700 higher
Toyota's build and price tool lists the Kluger at $68,179 drive-away for the GX, $78,094 for the GXL and $93,285 for the Grande (Melbourne 3000, checked 27 October). Every Kluger is a 2.5 litre hybrid with all-wheel drive, so there is no cheaper front-drive version.
Hyundai's offers page lists the Santa Fe Hybrid at $60,990 drive-away in front-drive form, $63,990 with all-wheel drive, $70,990 for the Elite AWD and $80,990 for the Calligraphy AWD seven-seater. Those prices apply to new stock with no added options, purchased and delivered between 1 October and 31 December 2026, at participating dealers.
Kia's offers page lists the Sorento Hybrid S front-drive from $59,490 drive-away. Kia labels it an estimate and the deal applies to 2025 build stock. The Sorento Hybrid also comes in Sport, Sport+ and GT-Line grades and in all-wheel drive; Kia prices those through its build and price tool rather than the offers page.
Compare like with like and the gap is clear. An all-wheel drive Santa Fe Hybrid is $63,990 against $68,179 for the cheapest Kluger, a $4,189 difference before you count any extra equipment.
Power and fuel: close on paper, different at the bowser
The Kluger has the most power. Toyota's February 2026 spec table lists 184kW combined from the 2.5 litre petrol engine and its electric motors, and 5.6L/100km on the combined lab test. Hyundai's October 2026 spec sheet gives the Santa Fe Hybrid's 1.6 litre turbo hybrid 172kW and 367Nm combined, with 5.2L/100km in front-drive form and 5.6L/100km with all-wheel drive. Kia's brochure gives the Sorento Hybrid's 1.6 litre turbo 169kW and 350Nm combined, with 5.4L/100km front-drive and 5.7L/100km all-wheel drive.
The detail most buyers miss is the fuel grade. Toyota specifies 95 RON premium unleaded as the minimum for the Kluger. Hyundai lists 91 RON regular unleaded for the Santa Fe Hybrid, and Kia lists regular unleaded for the Sorento Hybrid. On near-identical label figures, the Kluger costs more to fill every time because premium costs more per litre.
Lab numbers are a guide only. When the AAA's Real-World Testing Program put a 2025 Sorento HEV on the road, it used 2 per cent more fuel than its label, which is about as close as hybrids get. Our real-world fuel use guide has the full results.
Towing: the Kluger's clear win
Toyota rates every Kluger grade to tow 2,000kg braked. Hyundai rates the Santa Fe Hybrid at 1,650kg braked (the 2.5 turbo petrol Santa Fe does 2,000kg), and Kia rates the Sorento Hybrid at 1,650kg braked (the diesel and V6 Sorentos do 2,000kg). All three tow 750kg unbraked.
If you tow a mid-size caravan or a boat near two tonnes, the Kluger is the only hybrid of the three that will do it legally. If your trailer is a camper or a box trailer, 1,650kg is plenty.
Space: where the litres go
With all seven seats up, the Kluger has the most usable boot of the two that publish a figure: Toyota quotes 241 litres, 552 litres with the third row folded and 1,150 litres with both rear rows down. Kia quotes 179 litres with seven seats up, 608 litres in five-seat mode and 1,996 litres with both rows folded (VDA) for the Sorento Hybrid.
Hyundai quotes 628 litres minimum and 1,949 litres maximum (VDA) for the Santa Fe Hybrid, and its square-backed body and wide tailgate are the reason people buy it. Hyundai does not split out a third-row-up figure on its spec sheet, so we have not compared it with the other two on that measure.
The Kluger is also the longest at 4,966mm, against 4,830mm for the Santa Fe and 4,815mm for the Sorento. Measure your garage before you fall for any of them.
Warranty and the recall to know about
Toyota's standard warranty is five years with unlimited kilometres. Hyundai offers seven years and Kia offers seven years with unlimited kilometres. Over a long family ownership, two extra years of factory cover is worth real money.
If you are shopping for a used or demo Kluger, check its VIN first. Toyota has expanded a second-row seat recall to 46,467 Klugers built up to 10 June 2025, because the seatback may not lock in place. The fix is free and takes about an hour at a dealer, and you can check any VIN at vehiclerecalls.gov.au.
Which one should you buy?
Buy the Kia Sorento Hybrid if price matters most. It is the cheapest of the three at $59,490 drive-away, it has a seven-year unlimited-kilometre warranty and it drinks regular unleaded. Our older Sorento Hybrid review covers how it drives.
Buy the Hyundai Santa Fe Hybrid if you want the most space behind the second row and a strong price. At $60,990 front-drive or $63,990 all-wheel drive, with the offer running to 31 December, it undercuts the Kluger by thousands. Read our Santa Fe Hybrid review for the previous generation's driving notes.
Buy the Toyota Kluger if you tow close to two tonnes, want all-wheel drive on every grade or put Toyota's dealer network first. Accept that you will pay more up front, more at the pump on premium fuel, and get a shorter warranty.
Still deciding between three rows and something else? Our best seven-seater SUVs shortlist covers the wider field, our cheapest 7-seaters guide ranks the budget end by drive-away price, and if your third row is full every day, our BYD M9 vs Kia Carnival people mover comparison is worth a read.
