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6 speed, Automatic w/OD
Intercooled Turbo Gas/Electric I-4
All Wheel Drive, Front Wheel Drive
Wondering whether you really need to spend all that money on a huge, three-row SUV that is probably too big for your needs and too thirsty for your wallet (or your eco-consciousness)? Well, we have good news! Meet the 2026 Kia Sorento Hybrid, which is cheaper, smaller, and more efficient than most other three-row crossovers. It also offers tons of features for the money, great technology, a well-built cabin, and solid driving dynamics.
Photo: James Riswick
The Sorento Hybrid is one of three 2026 Sorento variants, along with a gas-only version and the Sorento Plug-in Hybrid. The gas-only version offers more trim levels, including the basic LX and the off-road-oriented X-Pro, while the Sorento Hybrid is available only in the EX and X-Line SX Prestige.
Because it starts with a higher trim than the gas-only Sorento (base price $33,885), the Hybrid’s price premium seems higher than it is: it starts at $40,385, or just $400 more than the gas-only EX. The X-Line SX Prestige starts at $48,685.
For this 2026 Sorento review, Kia provided a test vehicle equipped with the X-Line SX Prestige trim and optional carpeted floor mats.
The test vehicle’s manufacturer suggested retail price (MSRP) was $48,920, including the $1,495 destination charge. The price does not reflect any current rebates, incentives, or price adjustments since Kia manufactured the test vehicle. The Sorento Hybrid is built in Hwasung, South Korea.
Photo: James Riswick
The Sorento has an attractive, well-built cabin for the money. The X-Line SX Prestige trim adds handsome quilted leather upholstery for a high-end touch, though the overall vibe and quality do not reach luxury-brand levels. That is OK, though. For the price, the SX Prestige offers luxury-level feature content: ventilated front seats, heated rear captain’s chairs, a panoramic sunroof, Bose premium audio, and all available driver aids.
My passengers reported that the second-row captain’s chairs were comfortable, and the center pass-through made it easier to reach the third row with my son’s car seat in place (the access gap between the slid-forward second-row and the door pillar is tiny). That said, captain’s chairs reduce capacity to six passengers. The EX has a bench and a standard seven-person capacity. Adding a fifth passenger requires using the third row. That is not ideal if you also have lots of luggage.
Speaking of which, you will not be able to bring much stuff along if all seats are occupied. Based on my real world testing, the Sorento has one of the smallest, least useful cargo areas behind the third row. Its volume on paper is 12.6 cubic feet, which is also on the rinky-dink side. Lower the third row, and the space is comparable to that of various two-row crossovers like the Subaru Outback and Honda Passport. In that way, you could think of the Sorento as a two-row model with a bonus third-row seat.
Indeed, the third row is also on the small side, but for teens or small adults like my 5-foot-tall wife, it provides sufficient room and comfort without feeling like a dungeon. I found the Hyundai Santa Fe, another smaller-than-normal three-row SUV, better in this regard, and the Toyota Highlander is worse.
For small item storage, the Sorento’s main front cupholders were good enough to hold my wine-bottle-sized metal water bottle and a 40-ounce jumbo cup. The front door pockets were almost useless for even smaller water bottles, but the back seat’s door cupholders are excellent. The standard wireless smartphone charger is in a good location, but other storage is merely sufficient. The Honda Passport and Pilot are far better in this respect and can hold lots of loose items and multiple beverages.
Photo: James Riswick
Both Sorento Hybrid trims come standard with a 10.25-inch touchscreen infotainment system. However, the accompanying digital instrument panel differs in design and customization. The X-Line SX Prestige has a fancier, full-screen, configurable panel.
Standard infotainment features on both trims are as follows:
The as-tested X-Line SX Prestige adds a Bose audio system and a digital key, which lets you use your phone as the key.
This is generally a solid infotainment system. It is easy to figure out and to find what you are looking for, and the graphics are modern. I personally miss the old “Radio” shortcut button and have a few nits to pick with the satellite radio screen (why is the song information so small?!?), but there is nothing that would be annoying on a daily basis.
Photo: James Riswick
That said, if you are the type of person who prefers to manually operate the climate system, rather than setting a temperature in automatic mode and forgetting about it, Kia’s dual function control panel is bound to annoy. Pressing an icon swaps the physical knobs and touch-sensitive panel between the climate and infotainment systems (for example, the volume vs. the temperature adjustment dial). I have never been particularly bothered by this setup, but I know others who despise it.
As for other elements, I am a big fan of Kia’s navigation system. Its voice controls work well, the map graphics are far superior to those on CarPlay-streamed Google Maps, and supplemental directions appear on the instrument panel. I have also found that the directions adjust based on traffic conditions, much as Google Maps would. I once ran both in heavy traffic, and they both came up with the same detours.
Photo: James Riswick
The Sorento Hybrid is estimated by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to return 34 mpg combined with all-wheel drive (AWD). It is 37 mpg combined with front-wheel drive. By contrast, the turbocharged, gas-only Sorento returns 23 mpg combined with AWD. According to the EPA, that could save you $600 in fuel costs per year.
Unfortunately, after 130 miles in the Sorento Hybrid, including 90 miles on the highway, I averaged only 31.8 mpg. That disappointing result is consistent with other publications that have found the Sorento Hybrid to fall well short of its EPA ratings. That said, 31.8 mpg is still much better than 23 mpg.
While the Hybrid offers a clear performance boost over the Sorento’s underpowered base engine, it falls short of the gas-only turbocharged engine found in the EX trim level and higher. The Sorento Hybrid delivers 227 horsepower and 258 pound-feet of torque, while the turbo produces 281 hp and 312 pound-feet. As such, the Hybrid is not the quickest Sorento.
However, it is certainly not slow. The Sorento Hybrid powertrain’s combination of a smaller turbocharged engine and an electric motor delivers an immediate punch off the line and when passing on the highway. Its six-speed automatic transmission also offers a more familiar driving experience, with gear changes you can hear and feel, compared to the gearless drone of a Toyota Highlander Hybrid.
The rest of the driving experience is on par for the Kia course. You will not enjoy it, and you probably will not remember it, but it also will not annoy you. You will be perfectly comfortable, and noise levels are reasonable. The Sorento Hybrid handled body motions well on a winding mountain road with my entire family and two dogs aboard, and its steering provided a sufficiently consistent response.
Ride quality is also quite good, perhaps in part because Kia opted to stick with 19-inch wheels for the X-Line SX Prestige rather than larger rims that might add impact harshness. Worse, it could have the all-terrain tires that harshened the ride of the Sorento X-Pro.
Photo: James Riswick
Kia’s Drive Wise collection of advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) is extensive. Standard features include:
The X-Line SX Prestige adds a surround view camera system, blind spot cameras (displayed in the instrument panel when a turn signal is activated), enhanced forward collision prevention systems and reverse automatic braking. It also includes an enhanced adaptive cruise control system, Highway Driving Assist 2 (HDA2) with turn signal-activated automatic lane changes and machine learning to better match your driving style.
As with every Kia I have tested with these systems, including the Kia Niro EV I owned for more than two years, Drive Wise consistently impressed. I was never inclined to turn anything off because of false alarms or hyper-vigilant alerts, and I always trusted the HDA2 system to do most of the driving for me on the highway, with only a token hand on the steering wheel. In terms of feature content and execution, it is tough to beat Drive Wise.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) also gave the 2026 Sorento Hybrid five out of five stars for overall safety. The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) also named the 2026 Sorento Hybrid a Top Safety Pick+ for its sufficiently high scores in all pertinent categories.
According to the JD Power 2025 Initial Quality Study (IQS), the Kia Telluride ranks highest in the Upper Midsize SUV segment. The Subaru Ascent ranks second, and the Hyundai Palisade and the Nissan Pathfinder rank third (in a tie).
According to the JD Power 2025 Automotive Performance, Execution and Layout (APEAL) Study, the Dodge Durango and Hyundai Santa Fe rank highest (in a tie) in the Upper Midsize SUV segment. The Chevrolet Traverse is the next highest-ranked model.
Other 2026 Sorento competitors include the Ford Explorer, Honda Pilot, and Mazda CX-90.
