For a U.S. buyer, a useful starting point for a 2025 or 2026 safe-SUV shortlist is the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety’s (IIHS) Top Safety Pick+ list. The ten picks below span small, midsize, and larger SUV categories; they are not ranked from safest to least safe. An IIHS award compares vehicles against criteria for a given year, not across every size class, and IIHS notes that larger, heavier vehicles generally afford more protection than smaller, lighter ones.
How this 10-SUV shortlist was selected
Each vehicle below appears on an IIHS 2025 award list as a Top Safety Pick+. The selection spreads the choices across SUV sizes and includes both gasoline and electric options where the evidence supports them. The list is a buyer’s shortlist, not a claim that these are the only safe SUVs or that one is objectively safest in every crash.
IIHS’s award release on March 3, 2025, said: “With solid protection for second-row occupants now required for both TOP SAFETY PICK and TOP SAFETY PICK+, far fewer models earn accolades this year.” Read the IIHS 2025 award announcement.
10 SUVs with IIHS Top Safety Pick+ awards
| SUV | Size category | Awarded model years | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|
| Honda HR-V | Small SUV | 2025–2026 | IIHS Top Safety Pick+ |
| Hyundai Tucson | Small SUV | 2025 | IIHS Top Safety Pick+ |
| Mazda CX-50 | Small SUV | 2025–2026 | IIHS Top Safety Pick+ |
| Honda Passport | Midsize SUV | 2026 | IIHS Top Safety Pick+ |
| Hyundai Santa Fe | Midsize SUV | 2025–2026 | 2025 award applies to vehicles built after November 2024 |
| Kia EV9 | Midsize SUV | 2025–2026 | IIHS Top Safety Pick+ |
| Mazda CX-90 | Midsize SUV | 2025–2026 | IIHS Top Safety Pick+ |
| Volvo XC90 | Midsize luxury SUV | 2025–2026 | IIHS Top Safety Pick+ |
| Genesis GV80 | Midsize luxury SUV | 2025–2026 | IIHS Top Safety Pick+ |
| Honda Pilot | Midsize SUV | 2025–2026 | IIHS Top Safety Pick+ |
IIHS’s award pages identify the HR-V, Tucson, and CX-50 in the small-SUV class, and the Passport, Santa Fe, EV9, and CX-90 in the midsize class. The broader award list includes other size categories and candidates. Check the current IIHS award list for the exact model-year entry before buying. Award-year coverage may not match the model year currently on a dealer’s lot.
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The specific award years and qualifications for the HR-V, Tucson, CX-50, Passport, Santa Fe, EV9, and CX-90 are listed on the IIHS small-SUV and midsize-SUV award pages. The IIHS award pages do not establish individual test ratings for the additional shortlist models, so verify their model-specific entries on IIHS’s site before relying on the award label.
What Top Safety Pick+ tells you
IIHS evaluates two broad areas: crashworthiness, or how well a vehicle protects occupants in a crash, and crash avoidance and mitigation, or technology intended to prevent a crash or reduce its severity. For 2025, Top Safety Pick+ requires good ratings in the small-overlap front, updated moderate-overlap front, and updated side tests; acceptable or good standard headlights; and acceptable or good pedestrian front crash prevention. The Top Safety Pick award has a lower threshold in the updated moderate-overlap test, allowing an acceptable rating while retaining the other listed thresholds. See IIHS’s explanation of its tests and its 2025 award criteria.
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An award is a useful screen, but it does not substitute for checking the vehicle’s exact model year, build date, trim, and equipment. IIHS sometimes limits an award to vehicles built after a specified date. For example, its 2026 Kia Sportage entry applies only to vehicles built after May 2025; the 2025 Hyundai Santa Fe award applies only to vehicles built after November 2024. Confirm that a particular vehicle falls within the award’s stated scope.
IIHS awards and NHTSA stars are different ratings
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) runs the New Car Assessment Program (NCAP), which includes crash tests, rollover-resistance tests, and driver-assistance testing. Its star scale runs from one star, the lowest rating, to five stars, the highest. An IIHS Top Safety Pick+ is not an NHTSA star rating, and one result should not be used as a substitute for the other.
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After narrowing your choice to a specific SUV, use NHTSA’s vehicle-rating lookup: select the model year, make, and model, then choose the tested vehicle variant that matches the one you are considering. A result for a different configuration may not describe the vehicle you intend to buy.
How to choose among the finalists
Start with the right size and seating needs
Compare SUVs within the same size class before comparing across classes. IIHS cautions that larger, heavier vehicles generally afford more protection than smaller, lighter ones, but a larger vehicle is not automatically the better fit for every driver or household. Match the class to your space and seating needs, then weigh safety evidence alongside practicality.
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- KEEP BEVERAGES HANDY: Features 2 cup holders built into the seat, keeping drinks and snacks close and allowing the driver to stay focused on the road
Separate crash protection from crash-prevention features
Look at both occupant protection in the IIHS crash tests and the included crash-avoidance equipment. The award criteria cover both, but a driver should still check the equipment on the specific trim being considered, particularly where the award listing specifies standard headlights or pedestrian crash prevention.
Verify the exact vehicle before purchase
- Match the model year to the IIHS award entry.
- Check any production-date limitation against the vehicle’s build date.
- Confirm the trim and relevant equipment against the award’s scope and the vehicle’s specifications.
- Look up the same model year, make, model, and tested variant in NHTSA’s NCAP database.
- Evaluate seating, cargo space, visibility, driving position, powertrain, and cost separately; an award does not establish those ownership details.
What this shortlist does not establish
The IIHS awards provide a defensible screening point, but they do not establish a universal safest-to-least-safe order across vehicle sizes. Nor does an award alone tell you the NHTSA star result for a particular configuration. Use the IIHS entry and NHTSA lookup for the exact vehicle you are shopping for, and compare the models against your household’s size, seating, and powertrain needs.
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