The 2026 Ford Ranger is a well-rounded midsize truck that offers a surprisingly comfortable ride, a powerful V6 engine option, and a fun time behind the wheel, whether you are bombing around town or exploring off-road. Even the mid-grade XLT trim level features a high quality interior and a strong feature set. If there is a truck in the midsize segment to consider first, this is it.
Photo: James Riswick
The 2026 Ford Ranger is available only in a crew cab with a single 5-foot bed length. Trim levels include XL, XLT, and Lariat, plus the high-performance Raptor. Base prices range from around $35,000 to about $60,000 for the Raptor, including the destination charge.
For this 2026 Ranger review, Ford provided a test vehicle equipped with XLT trim and the following significant options:
The test vehicle’s manufacturer suggested retail price (MSRP) was $50,955, including the $1,895 destination charge to ship the truck from the Wayne, Michigan, assembly plant to a local dealership. The price does not reflect any current rebates, incentives, or price adjustments since Ford manufactured the test vehicle.
Photo: James Riswick
The Ranger’s interior design is not particularly attractive, but my test truck did not look or feel cheap despite being a mid-level XLT. Sure, there is plenty of hard plastic, but it is nicely disguised by texture and design. Overall, the cabin looks and feels richer than those of the Toyota Tacoma and the Chevrolet Colorado. Plus, the parts you actually touch feel good, like the wrapped steering wheel, the nice and squishy armrests, and high quality buttons and knobs.
Even the cloth upholstery is quite nice, with a pleasing mix of textiles. It covers seats that I found especially comfortable, more so than those in the F-150, with plenty of adjustment range in the driver’s seat for this 6-foot-3 driver. Helping the driving position further is the standard telescoping steering wheel; it is not standard in the Colorado.
I did experience an unusual potential problem, however. My test truck had all-weather floor mats, which raised the floor high enough that my size 11.5 shoe kept snagging the plastic trim above the panels when I moved my foot between the accelerator and the brake. Removing the floor mat solved the problem (so I would not checking their option box), but it is something to keep in mind for those with large feet or who routinely wear heavy boots.
A more expected problem was the dearth of rear-seat legroom left behind my far-rearward driving position, but that is common for midsize trucks. Fitting a forward-facing child seat was also easier than in any truck I have tested, thanks to rear LATCH anchors mounted to the rear bulkhead and accessed by flipping the seatback forward. Other trucks I have tested have clasps or straps on top of the seatback that are difficult to use.
Unfortunately, both the seatback and the bottom flip down and up, respectively, as full-width solid pieces, rather than a split 60/40. As such, there is no way to use one side for a passenger and flip the other up to use the floor for luggage.
As for the truck bed, its 5-foot length (OK, it is literally 4.97 feet) is typical for the segment, but the Nissan Frontier and Toyota Tacoma offer the option of pairing their crew cabs with 6-foot beds. Those two trucks also offer extended cab styles. Regardless, the Ranger’s maximum payload with four-wheel drive (4WD) is 1,763 pounds, but that is with the base four-cylinder engine. My test truck’s V6 lowers that to 1,513 pounds.
In terms of functionality, I was impressed that the Ranger had a damped tailgate at this price point, and it was easy to open and close. My test truck had the stand-alone corner bumper steps option, but they are awkwardly placed, whether stepping onto the tailgate to get inside or reaching over the bed sides to reach something.
Back inside, storage space for odds and ends and beverages is acceptable. The cupholders were big and grippy enough to secure my 40-ounce jumbo test mug and a large metal water bottle. My test truck’s Convenience package added a wireless smartphone charging pad that kept my phone in place without overheating it, though it is a little hard to reach. The bin adjacent to it is not that useful either, and the door bins are too narrow.
Photo: James Riswick
The Ranger’s infotainment system, called Sync 4A, includes a standard portrait-oriented 10-inch touchscreen. A 12-inch version is also available and was present in my test truck. An 8-inch digital instrument panel is standard, and it upgrades to 12 inches in the Lariat and Raptor. Standard infotainment features are:
The XLT trim then adds:
Regardless of size, the Ranger’s touchscreen is portrait-oriented, unlike the F-150 and Bronco, which have landscape laptop-style screens. I am usually not a fan of portrait screens, but this is well executed. I like that Apple CarPlay does not take over the entire screen, and that shortcut buttons above and below the currently selected menu or function (such as CarPlay) are easy to find and press.
Furthermore, while some climate controls are integrated and permanently docked at the bottom of the touchscreen, there are still physical buttons and knobs for common functions such as temperature adjustment.
The voice controls can call up a SiriusXM channel (unlike the Chevy Colorado’s Google-based voice controls), but the navigation system’s controls struggled. Requests to show the nearest Starbucks displayed a list rather than points on a map (as Google Maps would), which meant I could end up choosing a location that is behind my current progress. It also brought up a list of the nearest Sheraton hotels instead of finding the specific one I asked for that is 550 miles away.
Photo: James Riswick
The Ranger’s standard turbocharged 2.3-liter four-cylinder engine delivers a stout 270 horsepower and 310 pound-feet of torque. A 10-speed automatic transmission is standard on every 2026 Ranger. It returns 21 or 23 mpg combined, depending on the drivetrain. My prior experience with this engine shows it to be smoother and more refined than the Tacoma’s. It even sounds pretty good.
Yet I certainly was not going to complain about my test truck’s optional turbocharged 2.7-liter V6, which pumps out 315 hp and 400 pound-feet. The 10-speed automatic is also standard here, along with 4WD. EPA-estimated fuel economy is 20 mpg combined, which I nearly matched on my 75-mile evaluation route, where I got 19.5 mpg.
As impressive as that output is, the Chevy Colorado’s base TurboMax four-cylinder engine nearly matches its horsepower and exceeds its torque. However, the Ford V6 excels in refinement. Its quiet, buttery-smooth power delivery stands in sharp contrast to the Chevy’s rather raspy TurboMax. The Ranger V6’s acceleration is also effortless, with strong off-the-line response and authoritative highway passes.
From there, the Ranger is simply excellent to drive. As I now expect from Ford, the steering is top-notch, with just-right effort and surprising precision. That precision helps make the Ranger feel small, agile, and genuinely fun, especially when compared to the Tacoma.
Most impressive, though, was the Ranger’s ride comfort, especially since my test truck had all-terrain tires, which often add a rock-hard firmness to sharp pavement impacts. The suspension is impeccably well damped, and although bigger bumps can cause some obvious, truck-like reactions, there is none of the constant, uncomfortable wiggling and jiggling through the frame that I often experience with trucks of any size.
And at the risk of sounding like a game show announcer, it gets better! Despite its on-road prowess, my test truck’s FX4 Off-Road package proved the Ranger can be an all-star off-road vehicle, too.
It may not telegraph its ruggedness with the extra mean styling of the Raptor and other off-road-dedicated trucks. Still, the FX4’s off-road shocks, electronic locking rear differential, underbody protection, off-road drive modes, 4WD system, and all-terrain tires available at an extra cost allowed it to easily tackle the same challenging off-road course I managed in a Toyota 4Runner TRD Off-Road a week earlier. In other words, it is far more capable than it looks.
Photo: James Riswick
The base Ranger provides the bare minimum of driver assistance tech, but the XLT adds more and at least offers all the usual safety features.
Standard equipment includes:
Optional on the XL and included on all others is
Optional on the XLT and included on the Lariat and Raptor are:
Also, while Ford does not list it among the Ranger’s available safety upgrades, my truck definitely had a lane centering assistance system that could be used with adaptive cruise control. More than that, it was an excellent system. Though I kept a token (and required) hand on the wheel, it effectively did all the steering for me, even on sharper highway turns.
Indeed, all of the above systems, which my test truck included, were well executed. They did not bug me with false alarms or hyperactive nannying, including the lane keeping system.
Regarding safety ratings, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) gave the 2026 Ranger the best possible Good score in the small overlap front crash test, a second best Average in the side crash test, and a third-best/second worst Marginal in the moderate overlap front test. Its frontal crash prevention system did not have a score at the time of this writing. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) gave the Ranger four out of five stars for overall crash safety.
According to the JD Power 2026 Initial Quality Study (IQS), the Hyundai Santa Cruz ranks highest in the Midsize Pickup segment, with the Honda Ridgeline and Ford Maverick ranked second and third, respectively.
According to the JD Power 2025 Automotive Performance, Execution and Layout (APEAL) Study, the Hyundai Santa Cruz ranks highest in the Midsize Pickup segment, with the Chevrolet Colorado and Nissan Frontier ranked second and third, respectively.
Other 2026 Ranger competitors include the GMC Canyon and the Toyota Tacoma.
The Ford Ranger is the midsize truck I would buy. So much about it seems more sophisticated than its competition, from the way it drives, especially the ride, to the quality of its interior. Its capabilities give nothing up to the competition, either.
James Riswick has been testing and reviewing cars since 2007, serving as an editor at Edmunds and Autoblog. In addition to jdpower.com, he has also contributed to Autotrader, Autoguide Magazine, Auto Express, Capital One Auto Navigator, Car and Driver, and Hagerty. He resides in Southern California and owns a 1998 BMW Z3, a 2013 Mercedes-Benz E350 Wagon, and a 2025 Cadillac Optiq.
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