Best small cars to buy 2024
Small cars come in all kinds of shapes, if not sizes. Here we highlight the best new small cars on sale
The best small cars on sale today aren’t just easy to drive, they’re brimming with more safety kit and in-car tech than ever before. Not only do a lot of small cars provide a feeling of refinement previously reserved for ‘big cars’, they’re generally affordable to buy and run day-to-day and cheap to insure.
While city car favourites such as the Fiat 500e and Kia Picanto might spring to mind when someone mentions the term ‘small cars’, the level of choice is actually much broader. Step up into the supermini or small SUV class and you’ll find the sort of in-cabin practicality and versatility you would have once found in older generations of family cars such as the Volkswagen Golf and Ford Focus, but all wrapped up in a compact package.
We’ve thoroughly tested every small car on sale in the UK, and have rounded up the top 10 models to buy right now according to our expert road testers. There are a range of body shapes to be found in our list, so whatever your needs, there should be a small car to suit you.
Top 10 best small cars
- Citroen e-C3
- Renault Clio
- Dacia Sandero
- Skoda Fabia
- Toyota Yaris
- Fiat 500e
- Hyundai i10
- Renault Captur
- Vauxhall Corsa
- Kia Picanto
1. Citroen e-C3
- Prices from £22,000
- WLTP combined battery range: up to 199 miles
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The Citroen e-C3 is a good example of a small car which is able to offer all the essentials you need at a very affordable price.
Citroen’s electric car isn’t about to set any new standards in terms of luxury or how exciting and dynamic it is to drive, but that’s not what the French firm set out to achieve. The e-C3 has most of the kit you’ll actually need day-to-day, is comfortable on the move and more than capable at taking on family car duties thanks to some clever packaging and an impressive amount of cabin space. We were so impressed by the e-C3 we named it our 2024 Car of the Year at the New Car Awards.
The e-C3 has a range of up to 199 miles on a single charge, which should be plenty for most people. If an electric car doesn’t suit your lifestyle, then you can also opt for a petrol-powered Citroen C3, with a peppy 1.2-litre engine and a starting price from £18,000.
2. Renault Clio
- Prices from £18,095
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The Renault Clio had an unbroken run between 2020 and 2022 as our Supermini of the Year and there’s a very good reason for this. With a fantastic blend of style, practicality and refinement, the Clio is a hard car to beat, and a mid-life facelift in 2023 has kept the striking five-door hatchback close to the top of the class.
You’ll find the Clio’s roomy interior offers plenty of family-friendly flexibility with its comparatively huge 391-litre boot, even eclipsing those of many models from the class above. Factor in the choice of an economical petrol engine or Renault’s advanced E-Tech full-hybrid unit, along with generous levels of standard equipment, and you’ll be hard pushed to find a supermini rival that does it better.
3. Dacia Sandero
- Prices from £14,000
- Best value for money
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Dacia continues to provide affordable cars for those seeking real value for money, and the latest Sandero is a great example of how far the no-frills brand has come.
Under the skin, the Sandero shares its platform with the Renault Clio, which is a great starting point. You’ll find the handling safe and secure, while the Sandero provides a decent ride around town and is a competent motorway cruiser. The turbocharged petrol motor has plenty of grunt, so you don’t have to work it too hard, and its 10.5-metre turning circle makes slotting the car into tighter spaces a doddle. Benefiting from a facelift in 2023, the sharp-looking Sandero is no longer an also-ran, but a car that has more relevance today than ever.
4. Skoda Fabia
- Prices from £20,000
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Buyers on the lookout for a practical supermini that has plenty of on-board tech and is comfortable on the move should put the Skoda Fabia on their shortlist.
Keen pricing from Skoda means the Fabia is able to undercut its Volkswagen Group siblings the Volkswagen Polo and SEAT Ibiza, but its smart styling makes it just as desirable as its sportier stablemates.
The real ace up the Fabia’s sleeve is its interior space and impressive boot capacity, which are competitive with the likes of the Volkswagen Golf from the class above. It might only be a supermini, but the Skoda Fabia comes with big-car levels of safety kit, too, with lane keep assist, automated emergency call technology and a driver drowsiness monitor. The overall feeling of quality is obvious as soon as you climb inside, making the Fabia a compelling supermini package.
5. Toyota Yaris
- Prices from £23,000
- Best for fuel economy
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You’ll have to pay more up front to put a Toyota Yaris on your drive, compared with the other petrol models on this list. But the upside is that, with an astounding average fuel economy of more than 60mpg, you will definitely save money at the pumps. Throw in reasonable car insurance costs and solid residual values, and the Yaris proves itself as a credible performer in the long term.
The base Icon model is well equipped, so there’s no need to bump up the asking price any further, while reassuring levels of standard safety kit and Toyota’s class-leading warranty cover of up to 10 years are hard to beat. Interested buyers may have reservations over the tighter rear space and noisy CVT gearbox, but the Yaris is a competent and efficient small car all-rounder.
6. Fiat 500e
- Prices from £25,000
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All-electric city cars don’t get much more compact or stylish than the Fiat 500e, and it fulfils its brief superbly. With entry prices hovering around the £25k mark, the key decision to make is whether you opt for the 24kWh or 42kWh-battery version, which provide up to 118 miles or 199 miles of range respectively. If you use it purely as an in-town runabout, then the 24kWh model makes a lot of sense, but A-road and motorway commuters will want to plump for the more generous range that comes with the bigger battery.
Overall efficiency is a plus point, too – during our own group test the 500e managed 4.0 miles/kWh, which was better than its MINI Electric and Honda e rivals.
7. Hyundai i10
- Prices from: £16,100
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The Hyundai i10 is a very strong contender in what is a shrinking city car market, but thanks to some clever packaging and high levels of refinement, it is a tough act to beat. So tough in fact, that we named the i10 our City Car of the Year at the 2023 Auto Express New Car Awards.
On the road, the third generation Hyundai i10 made a good first impression when we drove it. Not only is it larger than the previous model, it’s more comfortable while being fun and agile to drive. Even the entry-level Advance model boasts plenty of gadgets including air- conditioning, cruise control and an eight-inch touchscreen display with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.
A choice of two petrol engines is offered across most of the i10 range – a 66bhp 1.0-litre unit which can feel sluggish on motorways, and an 83bhp 1.2-litre which is almost £1,000 more expensive. Both are frugal engines, but we’d stick to the manual gearbox as the automatic isn’t the smoothest during shifts. Top-spec N Line versions include a more powerful 99bhp 1.0-litre variant, although this means an increase in price to well over £18,000.
8. Renault Captur
- Prices from £21,000
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If you’re searching for a small SUV which is more than capable of taking on family car duties, then look no further than the Renault Captur.
Renault has a knack of being able to create internal cabin space on its small car platforms, and this small SUV has space by the bucketloads. The Captur is based on the same platform as the Clio, but thanks to a clever sliding rear bench, it has 487 litres of boot space, increasing to 536 with the bench all the way forward. That’s almost 100 litres more than its supermini sibling.
The Captur isn’t the most exciting car to drive in its class, but with a generous amount of kit, decent refinement, frugal engines and supple suspension, it has all the right ingredients to be a great choice for families.
9. Vauxhall Corsa
- Prices from £20,000
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The Vauxhall Corsa is one of the best-selling cars in the UK, and it’s not too difficult to see why it’s so popular. Vauxhall’s compact supermini is affordable, easy to drive, has enough room for five passengers, and is even available with the choice of petrol or all-electric power.
It was already a smart-looking car, but the latest facelift has sharpened up the Corsa’s styling even further with a new front end that features Vauxhall’s distinctive ‘Vizor’ grille. The level of on-board tech is rather generous, too, with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto connectivity, autonomous emergency braking, lane departure warning, lane keep assist, traffic sign recognition and automatic LED lighting all fitted as standard.
10. Kia Picanto
- Prices from £16,000
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The Kia Picanto offers lots of kit and a driving experience more akin to that of a car from the class above. A recent facelift has seen more efficient engines and improved on-board tech added to the range, while Kia’s excellent seven-year warranty also features – a great incentive if you plan on keeping your car for more than the usual length of a PCP finance deal. If you’re scouring the used car market, finding a used Kia Picanto with plenty of warranty left to run shouldn’t be too difficult, either.
Practicality is good for a car of this size too; all come with five doors and there’s enough space in the back for two adults to sit in relative comfort. The boot measures in at 255 litres, which is considerably more than the 200 litres offered by the MINI Cooper from the class above. Opt for the ‘3’ trim and you'll even get an 8.0-inch infotainment screen with Android Auto and Apple CarPlay connectivity, cruise control, auto-folding mirrors and a reversing camera.
Best small cars: buying advice
It’s worth starting your small car hunt by having a clear idea of your needs. Consider your likely mileage, number of passengers, boot space requirements, number of required doors and any must-have features or options.
Work out your budget, and remember to think about fuel and insurance costs, too. Modern petrol engines have come a long way in the last few years, especially in smaller models – as such, diesel-powered small cars are becoming increasingly difficult to recommend and many manufacturers don’t even offer diesels. We recommend only choosing one if you plan to do mostly long-distance motorway work. Small turbocharged petrol engines are designed to provide decent performance without sacrificing economy – they are great all-round options for mixed driving. Electric small car models cost more up front but the gap is narrowing and you should enjoy significantly lower running costs.
One of the most important aspects of buying a new car is a test drive; a car that fits your needs on paper may not feel that way in person. Be sure to test your small car on roads similar to those you plan to do most of your day-to-day driving on – it makes sense to get an accurate idea of what to expect once you buy. If you have any bulky items, like a pushchair or a bike, that you often carry in your car, take them along and see if they fit in the new one.
Keep an eye out too for great deals – small cars are often subject to some of the best discounts. Deposit contributions and 0% finance deals are common, as are free insurance deals.
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