We Tested 8 Compact SUVs’ Cargo Spaces to See Which Is Biggest
What SUV Shoppers Need to Know
- With a measured volume of 21.8 cubic feet, the Hyundai Tucson Hybrid’s cargo area was the largest of the eight SUVs in our comparison test.
- The Tucson Hybrid’s sibling vehicle, the Kia Sportage Hybrid, was a close second with 21.4 cubic feet of cargo space.
- The Jeep Cherokee had the most underfloor storage space by a wide margin with 2.8 cubic feet of space.
Many compact SUVs have a similar exterior shape, so you might think they all have roughly the same amount of cargo space. In reality, the amount of cargo room can vary significantly from the models with the most space behind the backseat to those with the least. You can see this in the eight compact SUVs that were part of our recent 2026 Compact SUV Challenge, with the biggest cargo area having 54% more room than the one with the least by Cars.com’s cargo measurements,. That’s a lot of extra space for groceries, luggage or kids’ sports gear.
2026 Compact SUV Challenge
Results | Winner | Real-World MPG | Cargo Space
If maximum cargo space is most important to you, there are a couple of clear leaders, which you can see in the chart below. However, some compact SUVs with less overall cargo space do have certain cargo-area advantages. We cover these below, too.
Most Cargo Space Behind Backseat
- Takeaway: The Hyundai Tucson Hybrid and Kia Sportage Hybrid SUVs are related to each other, and their cargo areas were both the largest ones in our test and similarly sized.
| Rank | Vehicle | Cargo Space, Including Underfloor Storage (Cubic Feet) | Shop Near You |
| 1 | 2026 Hyundai Tucson Hybrid Limited | 21.8 | Shop |
| 2 | 2026 Kia Sportage Hybrid SX-Prestige | 21.4 | Shop |
| 3 | 2026 Honda CR-V Sport Touring Hybrid | 20.2 | Shop |
| 4 | 2026 Toyota RAV4 LE | 19.8 | Shop |
| 5 | 2026 Jeep Cherokee Limited | 19.1 | Shop |
| 6 | 2026.5 Nissan Rogue Rock Creek | 17.6 | Shop |
| 7 | 2026 Volkswagen Tiguan SEL R-Line Turbo | 15.1 | Shop |
| 8 | 2025 Ford Bronco Sport Big Bend | 14.2 | Shop |
Widest Cargo Area
- Takeaway: The Cherokee and Rogue had the widest cargo areas, measuring 43 inches across.
A wide cargo area can be useful for carrying certain types of cargo, like a flatscreen TV, and the Cherokee and Rogue bested the other six SUVs in this metric. Their cargo areas both measure 43 inches wide, or 2 inches wider than the next-widest cargo areas in our test.
Tallest Cargo Area
- Takeaway: The Tucson Hybrid and Sportage Hybrid have the tallest cargo areas with a height measurement of 23 inches.
A height measurement of 23 inches may not seem that tall for the open cargo area of a compact SUV, but that’s because we measure to the top of the rear-seat backrest rather than the ceiling when taking our cargo measurements. We do so because unrestrained cargo above the seatback can become dangerous projectiles in the event of an accident. The Honda CR-V hybrid had the next-tallest cargo area at 22 inches.
Most Underfloor Storage
- Takeaway: With 2.8 cubic feet of underfloor cargo storage, the Cherokee had more than double the space of the next-closest Toyota RAV4.
If you like being able to keep some cargo out of sight, the Cherokee had the most available space for doing so with 2.8 cubic feet of underfloor storage. That’s more than double the 1.3 cubic feet of underfloor storage offered by the next-best RAV4, but underfloor storage of any shape or size was a rarity in our test; five of the eight SUVs had no underfloor storage whatsoever.
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