It doesn’t seem like that long ago virtually every manufacturer offered a coupe of some description. We’re not talking about rakishly-roofed SUVs such as the BMW X6 or five-door ‘coupes’ like the Audi A7 but proper two doors that sacrifice practicality at the altar of style.
Sure, you’ll probably have tiny (or non-existent) rear seats and will almost certainly struggle with that Billy bookcase, but they’re still a great way to stand out and feel special. Coupe cars come in all manner of shapes and sizes, from the small and sporty to the large and luxurious, so there should be something for everyone.
Below you’ll find our pick of the best coupes still on sale today, although naturally they’ll also make a cracking used buy, too.
Top 10 best coupes
1. Porsche 718 Cayman
Porsche’s been building coupes for decades – this is one of its best
Pros
✅ Sublime handling
✅ Remarkably practical
Cons
❌ Pricy options list
❌ Four-cylinder engine lacks character
Of course, Porsche’s flagship is the 911 – but for less money, you can have almost as much excitement in the form of the Cayman. This is a mid-engined car, rather than rear-engined – the powerplant sits behind the passenger compartment but in front of the rear axle, giving it near-perfect weight distribution and almost telepathically responsive handling.
The interior is a highly comfortable place to spend time and with plenty of room for tall drivers, two boots and even palatable fuel consumption this is a remarkably practical car that you really could use every day. And you’d be lucky to do so. Lower-level four-cylinder Caymans are good, but you need the six-cylinder GTS 4.0 or GT4 for the full aural experience.
Price new: From £47,700
Find a used Porsche 718 Cayman for sale here
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2. BMW 2 Series Coupe
A spectacularly good small coupe
Pros
✅ Fantastic engine range
✅ Well-priced
Cons
❌ Not as compact as it was
BMW has a strong history of making small coupes, going back almost as long as its been making cars. The 2 Series is its smallest two-door on sale, but we still think it’s one of its best – and it’s a market segment that neither Mercedes or Audi, BMW’s top competition, make a rival for.
Most 2 Series models feature petrol engines and rear-wheel drive, to the delight of keen drivers, but diesels and four-wheel drive are also available if you want economy or all-weather security. The 374hp M240i plays second fiddle to the even hotter M2.
Price new: From £36,010
Find a used BMW 2 Series for sale here
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3. Mercedes-Benz E-Class Coupe
The golf club car park won’t know what hit it
Pros
✅ Classy, tech-filled interior
✅ Svelte and elegant styling
Cons
❌ Rather large
❌ Expensive to buy
The E-Class Coupe is just another string on Mercedes bow in a model lineup that also includes Convertible, Saloon, Estate and plug-in hybrid alternatives. Though the Coupe offers the fewest tangible benefits – reduced practicality without a convertible roof and no greater choice or performance – its gorgeous, slinky styling makes it desirable regardless.
And many benefits of the E-Class platform remain. Sumptuous comfort, a high-tech and classy interior and fantastic lineup of smooth, powerful and efficient engines are all marks in the E-Class’s favour.
Price new: From £49,240
Find a used Mercedes-Benz E-Class Coupe for sale here
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4. Jaguar F-Type Coupe
British bruiser is handsome and fantastic to drive
Pros
✅ Sensational styling
✅ Exciting handling
Cons
❌ Bigger engines are very thirsty
❌ Patchy interior quality
The most famous Jaguar Coupe of all time has to be the E-Type – and the F-Type is its spiritual successor. A 2020 refresh has kept it looking its best, and with its dramatic proportions and sturdy stance it does really make an impression on the road.
There’s a choice of cost-effective four-cylinder engines or screaming supercharged V8, and the entry-level models effectively compete on cost with cars like the Porsche Cayman or Alpine A110. Most versions are happiest cruising and the interior feels a bit old, though.
Price new: From £58,275
Find a used Jaguar F-Type for sale here
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5. Ford Mustang Fastback
V8 muscle for a bargain price
Pros
✅ Fabulous engine
✅ Looks the business
Cons
❌ Thirsty
❌ Low-rent interior
Few vehicle names are as evocative as ‘Mustang’. The definitive muscle car, the Mustang is still surprisingly usable even if you don’t live in the land of the free and the home of the brave.
These days you can only have a V8 in two states of tune: not a problem as it’s the best engine for the car anyway. A 2.3-litre four-cylinder was available, but it’s not a great deal more fuel efficient and sounds a bit, well, pony. You’ll find the V8 especially thirsty around town, but it’s worth every penny for its noise and character.
The rest of the car has polished up particularly well for this latest generation – it looks fantastic, handles surprisingly well especially in Mach 1 guise and has a big enough boot to make weekend getaways a pleasure. Only a few areas of the interior let the side down somewhat, with cheap components borrowed from elsewhere in Ford’s range.
Price new: From £50,075
Find a used Ford Mustang for sale here
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6. Bentley Continental GT
Simply a fabulous luxury cruiser – capable of crossing continents in a heartbeat
Pros
✅ Superb interior tech, fit, and finish
✅ Easy to drive for such a large car
Cons
❌ All that luxury doesn’t come cheap
For its high price tag, you’d hope that the Bentley Continental GT would be sufficiently powerful, luxurious and prestigious to warrant it. Thankfully, it really is – personal luxury doesn’t come much better than this.
From the moment you step in, sink down into the sumptuously upholstered front seats and fire up the V8 or W12 engine, the Conti feels special. Of course, you can make yours completely bespoke – with a limitless array of paint and fabric choices as well as myriad other options for customisation. It drives well, has unbeatable road presence and makes you feel like a millionaire – which, if you can afford it, you probably are.
Price new: From £176,400
Find a used Bentley Continental for sale here
7. BMW 4 Series
Get past the nose, and there’s a damn good coupe in there
Pros
✅ Fantastic handling and balance
✅ Wide engine range
Cons
❌ Looks only a mother could love
The 4 Series’ toothy front grille may be initially offputting, but remember – you don’t need to look at it while you’re driving. And once you get past it, you’ll find BMW’s mid-sized coupe a joy to drive thanks to adaptive sports suspension, perfectly balanced weight distribution and a wide variety of engines that are smooth, powerful and efficient.
There’s even a firebreathing M4 variant that delivers more than 500hp and will crack 0-62mph in less than four seconds. All while offering a big boot, human-sized rear seats and all of BMW’s latest safety and entertainment tech.
Price new: From £41,800
Find a used BMW 4 Series for sale here
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8. Lexus LC
Striking flagship comes as a hybrid or V8
Pros
✅ Looks like nothing else on the road
✅ Legendary Lexus quality and service
Cons
❌ Boot is tiny
❌ Hybrid not particularly fun to drive
The LC is a grand tourer, but that doesn’t mean it’s anything like its European rivals. Lexus offers it with a pair of engines – a hybrid, or a naturally-aspirated V8, both with their own strengths. For our money, it’s the fantastic V8 we’d opt for as it sounds amazing and offers great performance.
The interior’s a very comfortable place to spend time, too, with big, comfortable front seats and exceptional build quality throughout. You may need to use the back seats to carry some of your luggage, though, as the boot’s pretty tiny.
Price new: From £88,920
Find a used Lexus LC for sale here
Lexus LC lease deals | VIEW OFFER
9. Audi TT
Stylish coupe bristles with Teutonic sensibility
Pros
✅ High-quality inside and out
✅ Drives just like a sporty hatchback
Cons
❌ Drives just like a sporty hatchback
It’s more than 20 years since the first Audi TT launched, but the sharply-styled Mk3 model remains instantly recognisable and very goodlooking into the bargain.
It’s available with a wide range of petrol and diesel engines as well as quattro four-wheel drive, and the range-topping TT RS produces 400hp and offers supercar-rivalling performance. With its virtual cockpit and turbine-style air vents, even the cabin has that special feeling – it’s just a shame lesser versions drive rather a lot like an A3.
Price new: From £32,665
Find a used Audi TT for sale here
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10. Alpine A110
French sports coupe is a left-field choice
Pros
✅ Drives beautifully
✅ You won’t see many others on the road
Cons
❌ Infotainment software poor
❌ A manual gearbox would be amazing
Taking to Renault’s performance arm for your sporty coupe might seem like a mad idea when Porsche exists, but the Alpine A110 carves a niche all of its own. Focusing on handling, light weight and evocative memories of sports cars past, it’s captivating to drive – so much so that we awarded it the Thrill-Seekers Car of the Year back in 2020.
The Alpine only has two seats and a small boot but it’s comfortable for the tallest of drivers, and without a vast amount of power you don’t need to be an F1 champ to make the most of its glorious chassis. The main criticisms come in the form of its Renault-sourced infotainment system and dual-clutch gearbox, both of which could be slightly better.
At least a 2022 facelift brought Apple CarPlay and Android Auto connectivity to avoid that infotainment, although the screen resolution is still a joke.
Price new: From £48,450
Find a used Alpine A110 for sale here
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What is a coupe?
The word ‘coupe’ is derived from the French verb ‘to cut’ and was first applied to horse-drawn carriages with smaller passenger compartments than the norm. When self-propelled cars took over from equine-based methods of transportation, many of the terms previously applied to carriages were adopted by the automotive industry, coupe being used ever since.
Nowadays, the word coupe enjoys quite a wide-ranging definition within the car world, and one that’s just as much a descriptor as it is a marketing buzzword. In definitive terms, it refers to a two-door car with a low (or cut-down) roofline. Coupes may or may not have back seats, but their sporty bodywork will typically prioritise style over practicality.
That bodywork is often – though not always – backed up with firmer suspension, sharper handling and tighter body control, making the best sports coupes an absolute joy to drive.
Coupes always have fixed roofs, but often enjoy very closely related convertible models. If getting the wind in your hair is a priority, check out our list of the best convertibles on sale.
What is a four-door coupe?
Technically, there’s no such thing, but four-door coupes have penetrated the market thanks to clever advertising. The majority of these solve a problem that they themselves created – buyers are drawn to the style of a coupe, but despite needing rear seats and back doors are unwilling to opt for anything as boring as a saloon or estate car.
They’re often very good cars in their own right, but they stretch the definition of ‘coupe’ too far for us.
You’ll also find ‘coupe’ descriptors applied to growing numbers of so-called coupe-SUVs, which typically have a slinkier back end and sharply sloping roofline compared to the regular SUVs they’re based on.
