Most of us have owned a small car at some point. Whether you’ve just passed your test, need something for the urban grind or are just looking to cut costs, a dinky run-around is often the answer.
Small cars also a lot more versatile than the wheezy little shoeboxes of days passed. These days, most have punchy turbocharged engines that’ll make mincemeat of motorways and feel like much larger, more stable cars. They’ re now also fitted with enough equipment to make luxury cars from just a few years ago look spartan levels, including such niceties as climate control, adaptive cruise and even massaging seats
As good as they are, the ongoing success of the best small SUVs means the small car is a dying breed. The most noticeable casualty is the Ford Fiesta which died in 2023, but there are other victims, too. The Nissan Micra is no more, and the small ranks become even more decimated if you size down again. Compared to just a few short years ago, there are also far fewer city cars to pick from, too.
Despite these changing buying attitudes, there are still plenty of great small cars on the market. We’ve gathered the best available to give you a starting point for your shopping list, ranking them in order of our preference and outlining what each competitor’s biggest strength is. Crucially, we’ve also been checking list prices and scrutinising finance deals to make sure those monthly payments don’t pinch too hard.
Scroll down to browse the entire list of cars and, if you spot one that tickles your fancy, head over to the leasing section of Parkers to find out how cheaply you could put one on your driveway.
The Top 10 best small cars on sale in 2024
There isn’t as much room in the back as there is in the Dacia and its engines aren’t quite as refined as you may find elsewhere. The e-tech hybrid is a coarse unit while the gearbox often won’t adjust to changing speeds with any great hurry, but look past these minor niggles and you’ll find that the Clio is a great all-rounder.
It has the highest build quality of its class, matched by a very likeable and user-friendly infotainment system. It’s comfortable and easy to drive, with precise steering and supple suspension.
What’s more, the best leasing deal we found had the Clio priced at £170 a month – that’s £30 a month cheaper than the Suzuki Swift and the Hyundai i20, despite boasting a far more comfortable interior and more impressive build. The Swift may be a more engaging and rewarding car to drive while the i20 has a bigger boot, but as an all-round daily driver for the best price, the Clio comes out on top.
Seth Walton
To find out more, read our full Renault Clio review
Pros
- Sharp infotainment screen
- Impressive build quality
- Good to drive
Cons
- Rear seats are a bit cramped
- Rough hybrid system
| Starting price | £17,995 |
| Best leasing deal (per month) | £173.83 |
| MPG | 53.3 (TCe 90) |
| Insurance group | 14 |
| Boot space | 318 litres |
| Performance | 90hp, 0-62mph 11.6sec |
- Great fit and finish
- Very well equipped inside
- Power unit is a bit rough
It’s a small car, but it feels like a big car
There may be better alternatives in certain regards, but with leasing deals that start from under £170, the Ibiza also represents some of the best value you can find in the supermini class today.
It’s let down by an underlying tackiness in the fit and finish of the cabin, and the entry-level Ibizas are very basic in spec with few options in the engine department – there are no hybrid units at all – but they’re still good value compared to rivals. For example, the Ibiza is £30 cheaper per month than the Suzuki Swift, despite having the more inviting and comfortable interior of the two. It’s the same story with the Hyundai i20, which also has a more expensive price tag and a less comfortable cabin.
As for the way it drives, with 95hp and a 0-62mph time of 10.6 seconds, the Ibiza is by no means the fastest supermini we’ve tested, but owing to its competent automatic gearbox and sharp steering, it can still be a fun car to hang through corners. It’s another top allrounder, and so we think it deserves a spot near the sharp end of this list.
Seth Walton
To find out more, read our full SEAT Ibiza review
Pros
- Good to drive
- Spacious
- Affordable prices and deals
Cons
- Entry level cars = basic
- No hybrid option
| Starting price | £19,725 |
| Best leasing deal (per month) | £169.79 |
| MPG | 55.0mpg (1.0 TSI 95) |
| Insurance group | 14 |
| Boot space | 318 litres |
| Performance | 95hp, 10.6 sec |
| Insurance group | 14 |
- Great fun to drive
- Decent passenger space inside
- Interior feels a bit tacky
Now the Fiesta is dead, this is the new driver’s choice
It's not a one-trick pony, either. Despite being the smallest car here by some margin, it’s remarkably spacious inside, certainly enough for four six-foot adults to travel in reasonable comfort. Headroom is particularly generous.
It’s a nice place to be, as well. There’s lots of light, material quality is excellent for a sub-£20,000 car and it’s very robustly put together. You get tons of standard features including satnav, adaptive cruise control, keyless entry and a reversing camera. Only the titchy boot and laggy – albeit user-friendly – infotainment really count against it.
Running costs should be very low, too. WLTP average fuel economy of 64.2mpg is the second highest in this group and we expect it to cost around £200 per month to lease. You can order one from Suzuki now and deliveries start later in the year.
Graham King
To find out more, read our full Suzuki Swift review
Pros
- Lots of equipment for the money
- Great to drive
- Well-built interior
Cons
- Cheap plastics
- Smallish boot
| Starting price | £18,669 |
| Best leasing deal | TBC |
| MPG | 64.2mpg (1.2 MHEV) |
| Insurance group | 27 |
| Boot space | 265 litres |
| Performance | 82hp, 12.1 sec |
- Tons of passenger space
- User-friendly infotainment
- 60-plus mpg possible
Ruthlessly practical, albeit rather expensive (for now)
Finance deals have skyrocketed. The Fabia is now £70 per month more expensive to lease than the Ibiza – and we don’t think it’s worth spending that much more money on the Skoda considering how mechanically similar it is to the SEAT. That’s because they’re both based on the same underpinnings and they’re both available with the same range of engines, so you might as well swap badges and pocket the extra cash.
Despite its silly leasing deals, the Fabia still deserves a mention here because of how mature it is. It feels incredibly grown up for a supermini thanks to its spacious interior, solid build quality, comfortable ride and excellent refinement.
It’s also great value for money if you’re buying it with cash. Prices for the entry-level SE Comfort model start from just under £20,000 – and you get plenty of equipment for that, including an 8.25-inch infotainment system, a digital gauge cluster, LED headlights and alloy wheels.
Luke Wilkinson
To find out more, read our full Skoda Fabia review
Pros
- Roomy interior and boot
- Competitive cash prices
- Wide range of engines
Cons
- No plug-in or mild hybrid tech
- Lacks fizz compared with a Clio
| Starting price | £19,510 |
| Best leasing deal (per month) | £248.37 |
| MPG | 56.2mpg (1.0 TSI 95) |
| Boot space | 380 litres |
| Performance | 95hp, 10.6 sec |
| Insurance group | 14 |
- Packed with practicality features…
- …such as a dashcam charging port
- Feels like a far bigger can than it is
If you’re buying with cash, this is the best-value car here
Dacia has also made the Sandero more affordable to own by introducing a new, rolling seven-year warranty that renews for 12 months each time you have it serviced at an official Dacia dealer. The Sandero is also one of the last truly affordable new cars left on sale today (providing you buy it with cash). Prices start from a very reasonable £13,795, meaning it’s more than £5,000 less expensive than the next cheapest car here, the Suzuki Swift.
Because it’s so cheap, though, you need to be comfortable making a few sacrifices. Its materials are best described as ‘functional’ and refinement isn’t quite as impressive as its sister car, the Renault Clio. So, you’ll feel the strain more on a long journey.
Where the Sandero really stumbles, however, is with its finance deals. The cheapest deal we could find was around £10 per month more expensive than an equivalent Renault Clio – and the Clio is an objectively better car, hence why we’ve bumped the Sandero down to the number four spot.
Luke Wilkinson
To find out more, read our full Dacia Sandero review
Pros
- Cracking value
- New safety kit
- Spacious interior
Cons
- Unrefined driving experience
- Low Euro NCAP score
| Starting price | £13,795 |
| Best leasing deal (per month) | £183.29 |
| MPG | 53.3mpg (TCe 90) |
| Insurance group | 12 |
| Boot space | 328 litres |
| Performance | 90hp, 11.3 sec |
- Massive 328-litre boot
- Disappointing Euro NCAP score
- Built-in smartphone holder
Strangely, this upmarket hatch has the best finance deals
It’s a far nicer place to be than some of the drab options on this list, including the related Corsa, and feels well built, too. We’d recommend trying before buying, though. Peugeot’s trademark i-Cockpit dashboard places the instruments high and the small steering wheel low.
This works well for some, but taller folk are likely to find the steering wheel on their knees or in the way of the dials. It’s also not the most spacious of small cars or the most fun to drive, but it is pretty comfy.
Rear space isn’t as tight as the Mazda 2 Hybrid, yet the Suzuki Swift and Honda Jazz are better for carrying people. That said, the 208 has a bigger boot than both. If you’re after the most fuel efficient 208 you’ll no longer find diesel is an option. Instead, there’s a hybrid model that’s able to travel for short distances on electric power alone. It’s reasonably smooth and efficient, if not Yaris good, but a lot pricier per month. The all-electric e-208 is even pricier.
To find out more, read our full Peugeot 208 review
Pros
- High quality interior
- Striking looks
- Great finance deals
Cons
- Marmite driving position
- Lack of space in the back
| Starting price | £20,410 |
| Best leasing deal (per month) | £167.99 |
| MPG | 48.2mpg (1.2 PT 75) |
| Insurance group | 12 |
| Boot space | 311 litres |
| Performance | 75hp, 12.8 sec |
- Appealing interior
- Decent engines
- Comfortable ride
Vauxhall Corsa
It’s familiar and easy to use. There’s a reason it’s a best-seller
The driver’s seat is comfy for just about anyone, the steering wheel feels nice in your hands and lines up well with the pedals. The manual gear lever is positioned a bit too high for our liking, but that’s the only thing that needs any real adjustment. You can just get into the Corsa and drive after only a few seconds of familiarisation – unlike the closely related Peugeot 208.
While user-friendliness is important, it’s not enough. And, in most other respects, the Corsa is merely adequate against some excellent opposition. The interior accommodates four adults though hardly generously; boot space is mid-table; the engines provide decent performance; the driving experience is pleasant if entirely unengaging; it’s not especially efficient.
However, the Corsa does have a trump card – value for money. A lease costs a bit more than for a 208 but, like-for-like, the Corsa is better equipped.
Graham King
To find out more, read our full Vauxhall Corsa review
Hyundai i20
If you need a small car with a massive boot, look no further
It gets worse when you start shopping for finance deals, too. Leasing deals start from £203 per month, which seems ludicrous when you can get a SEAT Ibiza (which is a similar sort of no-frills hatchback) for £30 per month less. The Ibiza has a slightly better interior, too – the most basic i20s are quite plasticky.
The i20 does do some things very well, however. For starters, it’s very well-equipped – even the entry-level Advance model comes as standard with LED headlights, 16-inch alloy wheels, rear parking sensors and a 10.25-inch infotainment system with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.
It also has the second-biggest boot here at 352 litres, and you get a surprising amount of passenger space in the rear. It’s the most powerful non-electrically assisted supermini here, too. Its turbocharged 1.0-litre petrol engine punches out 100hp, which is enough for a 0–62mph time of 10.4 seconds.
Luke Wilkinson
To find out more, read our full Hyundai i20 review
Honda Jazz
For such a small car, the Jazz has a surprising amount of boot space
The hybrid system provides deceptively strong performance and very good efficiency. Its smoother than the Clio’s system if still a bit rowdy at times. It’s not a particularly fun car to throw around despite having quite firm suspension, leading to one of the bumpier rides on this list.
Honda reliability is amongst the best although you’ll pay for the privilege. It’s the most expensive car to buy outright, partially because all models are well equipped and have a hybrid powertrain with an automatic transmission. Unsurprisingly leasing costs are rather steep, too.
Honda compensates for the Jazz’s unimpressive boot space with some clever touches inside. You get cinema-style ‘magic’ seats as standard that allow you to fold up the bases to fit tall items – perfect for that plant you’ve got your eye on at the garden centre. If you’re more interested in flatpack, a fold flat front passenger seat gives you a very long loading area.
Alan Taylor-Jones
To find out more, read our full Honda Jazz review
Mazda 2 Hybrid
It’s basically a Toyota Yaris, so it’s incredibly efficient
It has a steep starting price of £24,135, making it one of the most expensive options among the superminis in its category. Plus, its leasing deals are similarly pricey at almost £200. What’s more, it’s almost identical to its Toyota Yaris counterpart, but the Yaris is cheaper and has a much longer warranty.
Though the Mazda is pricier, does the interior justify it? Unfortunately, space is lacking – the boot is smaller than rivals like the Hyundai i20, and rear space is adequate but not generous. However, it offers an easy-to-use infotainment system that responds quickly to touch. The dashboard’s harder, scratchy plastic lacks premium feel, though.
Despite this, the Mazda 2 Hybrid promises to be a dependable small hatchback, simply because it’s built using Toyota running gear. The hybrid system is quite seamless, although it lacks the slight increase in power as per the updated Yaris. For a more budget-friendly option, the reliable Toyota Yaris offers better value for money and a more powerful engine.
Paula Cullington
To find out more, read our full Mazda 2 Hybrid review
What’s the best small car for space?
There’s no doubt that the Dacia Sandero is king when it comes to small car space. It may be the cheapest at £13,795 with arguably the least inviting interior of the pick, but what it lacks in comfort it certainly makes up for in room. With a 328-litre boot, it falls just short of the Hyundai i20 which holds the top spot with 352 litres, but the Sandero’s cabin feels the more commodious. There’s plenty of headroom both fore and aft – easily enough for four six-footers – with enough shoulder room in the back to fit a couple of adults in relative comfort, which is pretty rare in this class.
Seth Walton
What’s the best small car for efficiency?
The Mazda 2 Hybrid takes the win for efficiency, achieving an impressive fuel economy range of 67-74mpg, perfect for economical driving. Not to mention it’s a remarkably frugal car, propelled by a 1.5 litre, three-cylinder petrol engine coupled with a 0.7kWh battery. Unlike plug-in hybrids, it doesn’t need charging at home; instead, intelligent electronics continuously adjust power delivery between petrol and electric sources. This not only makes for a highly efficient runabout but also helps saves on today’s expensive fuel prices.
Paula Cullington
What’s the best small car for running costs?
You might expect the Mazda 2 Hybrid to cost the least to run out of the group here because it’s so efficient. But we’re counting more than just fuel economy towards overall running costs and the Mazda’s high lease costs and list price count it out. The 60mpg-plus Suzuki Swift could be in with a shout but, because it’s so new, leasing costs are unclear. So we’re going to give the accolade to the Peugeot 208, specifically the Puretech 100 petrol version. A lease costs comparatively little, servicing costs are quite low, and it’ll do nearly 50mpg.
Graham King
Verdict: What’s the best small car overall?
We think the best small car on sale today is the Renault Clio. That might come as a surprise because it doesn’t really lead the class in any area. The Suzuki Swift is far more fun to drive, while the Skoda Fabia is a lot more practical. However, the Clio is consistently good across the board – and that all-round ability, coupled with its attractive finance deals are what allowed it to clinch the win.
Luke Wilkinson
* These deals are indicative examples of some packages available as of 26 April 2024, but are subject to change without prior notice. Everyone’s financial circumstances are different and the availability of credit is subject to status. Terms, conditions and exclusions apply. Parkers cannot recommend a deal for you specifically.
