Should you buy a Toyota Yaris?

Though the Toyota Yaris might not be the best small car you can buy, it does have a number of attributes that truly set it apart from its rivals. An excellent reliability reputation is top of the reasons to consider it, as is the fact the standard warranty can be extended to 10 years if the car is serviced at a Toyota main dealer, which generally also have a very good reputation.

But it’s not very spacious compared to most of its rivals, and the interior is quite drab, especially in lower trim levels. But if these factors aren’t important, we certainly recommend the Yaris. Its hybrid system is one of the best in any small car and returns exceptional fuel economy, making this a very cheap car to run. If you seek hassle-free, if unexciting, car ownership, the Yaris is should certainly be on your shopping list.

What’s new?

The Toyota Yaris is a supermini which benefits from decades of this manufacturer’s hybrid know-how and an industry-leading 10-year warranty, all of which translates to a safe, rational and frugal car.  

It might only be available with a 1.5-litre hybrid powertrain partnered to an automatic gearbox, but don’t let that fool anyone, this is a strong seller. In fact, the Yaris is Toyota’s best-selling model here in the UK. It was also updated in 2024, adding extra power for higher trim models and adding a couple of new trim levels to spruce up the range and keep everything fresh.

A further small update in 2025 added enhanced standard equipment, as well as new paint finishes and a revised look for the sportier-looking GR Sport trim level.

The ace up Toyota’s sleeve when this generation of Yaris launched was the frugal hybrid system, but the Yaris was something of a trendsetter. Nowadays, small hybrids are ten-a-penny, and the Yaris will be fending off the hybrid likes of the Renault Clio E-Tech, MG3 Hybrid+ and Honda Jazz.

There’s even the Mazda 2 Hybrid, a car that’s identical to the Yaris in every single way other than the badges – the reason why it’s called badge engineering in the industry.  

There are four trim levels to choose from, starting with the entry Icon trim. With Apple CarPlay and a reversing camera as standard, it’s a decent spec for the price, especially when factoring in the hybrid system.

Design trim adds LED headlights, electric rear windows and privacy glass. The Excel trim is particularly well-equipped, adding a larger 10.5-inch touchscreen, wireless smartphone charging, keyless entry and blind spot monitoring, to name just a few features. Finally, there’s GR Sport trim, which adds a racier look but is otherwise similarly equipped to Excel trim.

There’s also the Toyota GR Yaris – a 261hp all-wheel drive hot hatch that will embarrass cars that cost twice as much. It doesn’t share much in common with the regular Yaris but does inject some coolness into an otherwise plain supermini.

The good news is we’ve driven loads of them so we can deliver an expert review. In addition, in Gareth Evans’ long-term test, we put the Yaris through its paces over several months. So, over the next few pages we’ll let you know exactly what it’s like to drive, how spacious it is and what it’ll cost to run.

But is the Yaris a supermini we’d actually recommend? You can find out more about how we test on Parkers via our dedicated explainer page. But in the meantime, read on to find out all you need to know.