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the-10-cheapest-new-cars-you-can-buy-reviewed-and-rated

Buying a new car can be one of life's biggest&nbsp;investments, and these days a lot of models come with so much technology&nbsp;that the price can be&nbsp;eye-watering.

However, there is still a selection of models that offer a lot of car for the money, with some being particularly capable in the areas that count, including practicality, comfort and style.&nbsp;So, here&nbsp;we name the 10 cheapest new cars you can buy in the UK.

Our list of cars includes a variety&nbsp;of body styles, including hatchbacks and&nbsp;<a href="https://www.whatcar.com/best/small-suvs/n17050">small SUVs</a>, as well as multiple&nbsp;power options, including mild hybrid and fully&nbsp;<a href="https://www.whatcar.com/best/electric-cars/n17000">electric cars</a>.

What's more, many of the cars quoted here have some big discounts&nbsp;available, so it's worth checking&nbsp;our free&nbsp;<a href="https://www.whatcar.com/new-car-deals">New Car Deals</a>&nbsp;service to see our latest deals. If any of the cars do take your liking, you can&nbsp;follow the review links to find out more about each car.

Slideshow story: please click the right-hand arrow above to continue, or simply scroll down if you’re reading on your mobile

The 10 cheapest new cars you can buy - reviewed and rated

Hatchback

Suzuki is well known as a motorcycle manufacturer, but the car brand has been enjoying decent success in recent years, thanks to a line-up of neat, well-equipped and keenly priced models.

Its expertise focuses on smaller cars, although its high-riding SUV range is also hugely credible, especially the Ignis and Vitara, which are both rated highly by What Car?’s testers and which have enjoyed success at the What Car? Awards as a result.

Well priced, decent to drive and full of useful tech, Suzuki’s cars also generally stand out for delivering good fuel economy. The Ignis, Celerio and Baleno have all stood head and shoulders above the competition during our True MPG testing.

SUZUKI

IGNIS

Version&nbsp;1.2 Dualjet 12V Hybrid SZ-T&nbsp;|&nbsp;List price&nbsp;£17,949&nbsp;|&nbsp;Target Price&nbsp;£17,432

If you're looking for a cheap&nbsp;<a href="https://www.whatcar.com/best/small-suvs/n17050">small SUV</a>, then the Suzuki Ignis is a great option. It's surprisingly spacious inside for its size, plus it feels&nbsp;solidly built – even if&nbsp;the interior materials are hard&nbsp;and scratchy.

The version quoted here is the entry-level car, which means it has&nbsp;an 82bhp&nbsp;1.2-litre&nbsp;petrol engine. Despite its modest power, it doesn't feel as slow as you might&nbsp;think&nbsp;thanks to the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.whatcar.com/advice/buying/what-is-a-mild-hybrid-and-should-you-buy-one/n22776">mild hybrid</a>&nbsp;system, which uses a small electric motor to help boost&nbsp;the&nbsp;engine at low revs. Other benefits include impressive real-world fuel economy; our&nbsp;<a href="https://www.whatcar.com/truempg/mpg-calculator">True MPG</a>&nbsp;fuel economy tests for&nbsp;the front-wheel-drive version&nbsp;led to a real-world average of 59.6mpg, which makes it one of&nbsp;the most efficient&nbsp;cars we’ve ever tested.

SZ-T is our recommended trim,&nbsp;which includes a 7.0in&nbsp;touchscreen infotainment system, 16in alloy wheels, sliding rear seats and air-con. It's a good option if you want to maximise the car's value.

10: Suzuki Ignis

<h3>Strengths</h3>

<ul>
	<li>Good fuel economy</li>
	<li>Spacious for a small car</li>
	<li>Generous equipment</li>
</ul>

<h3>Weaknesses</h3>

<ul>
	<li>Ride can be fidgety</li>
	<li>Vague steering</li>
	<li>Poor infotainment system</li>
</ul>

Citroën is probably most famous for its quirky design, and the latest cars from the brand live up to this tradition. In fact, it&nbsp;tends to keep away from sportiness altogether and instead tries to put comfort first.

Value (but not cheapness) is also key to the appeal of most Citroëns. And the company’s range includes everything from a tiny EV (the Ami) through to the C3 small hatchback and&nbsp;the large van-based&nbsp;Spacetourer MPV.

Its range of SUVs are all badged Aircross, and like the rest of its range place emphasis on comfort, not speed.

CITROEN

C3 AIRCROSS

Version&nbsp;1.2 PureTech 110 You |&nbsp;List price&nbsp;£17,470&nbsp;|&nbsp;Target Price&nbsp;£16,609

The cheapest&nbsp;<a href="https://www.whatcar.com/best/small-suvs/n17050">small SUV</a>&nbsp;you can buy is the Citroën e-C3 Aircross, which is&nbsp;a taller, boxier version of the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.whatcar.com/citroen/c3/hatchback/review/n17364">C3 Origin</a>. This means you get more interior space, with enough room in the back for three adults to sit reasonably comfortably. Despite this, there's not as&nbsp;much knee room as you get in a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.whatcar.com/hyundai/bayon/hatchback/review/n23367">Hyundai Bayon</a>&nbsp;or&nbsp;<a href="https://www.whatcar.com/skoda/kamiq/hatchback/review/n19999">Skoda Kamiq</a>. You also have to step up to the range-topping Max trim if you want the useful sliding rear bench seat.

The engine quoted here is our favourite; it's a 110bhp 1.2-litre petrol unit that delivers enough punch to make the 131bhp engine feel unnecessary. You trim, on the other hand, is quite&nbsp;basic in terms of kit; it&nbsp;offers&nbsp;tinted rear windows, cruise control and rear parking sensors as standard. While the 7.0in touchscreen is a nice addition, it's fiddly and&nbsp;laggy to use.

9: Citroën C3 Aircross

<h3>Strengths</h3>

<ul>
	<li>Relatively high driving position</li>
	<li>Versatile seating</li>
	<li>Cheaper than many rivals</li>
</ul>

<h3>Weaknesses</h3>

<ul>
	<li>Disappointing driving experience</li>
	<li>Heavy depreciation</li>
	<li>Fiddly touchscreen</li>
</ul>

Toyota is a company undergoing a quiet revolution, as it works hard to replace its sensible but somewhat bland reputation with one for being a bit more daring, in areas such as the styling of its cars and its enthusiastic leadership of cutting-edge technology, such as hybrid systems.

That process seems to be working for buyers, with the hugely popular and striking-looking C-HR SUV in particular attracting a great deal of interest. The latest version of the hybrid Prius is also rated highly by What Car?; it’s the first Prius to go on sale that our testers have felt can truly compete all round with existing petrol or diesel rivals.

However, it’s worth noting that this period of transition is also a work in progress, and that many of the firm’s cars are still rated as being no more than average among class rivals by our testers.

TOYOTA

AYGO X

Version&nbsp;1.0 VVT-i Pure |&nbsp;List price&nbsp;£16,140&nbsp;|&nbsp;Target Price&nbsp;£15,003

From the pictures, it can be easy to mistake the Toyota Aygo X for a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.whatcar.com/best/small-suvs/n17050">small SUV</a>. However, in reality it's actually a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.whatcar.com/best/small-cars/n16997">small car</a>&nbsp;in terms of its size.

Having been launched in 2022, the Aygo X is one of the more&nbsp;recent additions to the&nbsp;small car class. As such, it comes with&nbsp;loads of safety kit as standard, including&nbsp;automatic emergency braking (<a href="https://www.whatcar.com/news/what-is-aeb-and-how-does-it-work/n3283">AEB</a>), lane-keep&nbsp;assist and six airbags. The entry-level Pure trim is also&nbsp;well equipped, and comes with&nbsp;automatic headlights, air conditioning and a 7.0in touchscreen infotainment system.&nbsp;

On the whole, the Aygo X is good to drive, with a tight turning circle and tidy handling. However, the 71bhp 1.0-litre engine is&nbsp;slow and unrefined.&nbsp;

8: Toyota Aygo X

<h3>Strengths</h3>

<ul>
	<li>Cheap to run</li>
	<li>Good level of safety kit</li>
	<li>Warranty of up to 10 years</li>
</ul>

<h3>Weaknesses</h3>

<ul>
	<li>Cramped in the back</li>
	<li>Smaller boot than rivals</li>
	<li>Lacklustre performance</li>
</ul>

Buyers seeking value for money should have Kia towards the top of their shopping list.

Although once a niche brand in the UK, today Kia outsells many more established brands, helped by its market-leading seven-year warranty and a strong reputation for reliability; in fact, Kia regularly finishes towards the top of our reliability surveys.

There are plenty of models to choose from, too, ranging from the small Picanto city car to the Ceed family hatchback and the Sorento large SUV. The Picanto was the first Kia to win its class at the What Car? Car of the Year awards.

PICANTO

Version&nbsp;1.0 2&nbsp;|&nbsp;List price&nbsp;£15,595&nbsp;|&nbsp;Target Price&nbsp;£14,902

Kia has just&nbsp;launched a new&nbsp;Picanto, which means it has&nbsp;a new look inside and out. Unfortunately, the price has also changed, because this new version is more expensive than the previous car – but only just.

As a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.whatcar.com/best/small-cars/n16997">small car</a>&nbsp;package, the Picanto is impressive; it's&nbsp;good to drive, with tidy handling and a comfortable driving position, plus the interior is&nbsp;smart to look at. You also get a surprising amount of kit as standard, even with the entry-level 2 trim. It comes with an 8.0in&nbsp;<a href="https://www.whatcar.com/news/best-car-infotainment-systems-tested-and-rated/n21269">infotainment touchscreen</a>, rear parking sensors and a rear-view camera as standard.

Despite being quite&nbsp;underpowered, the entry-level 62bhp 1.0-litre engine is&nbsp;compelling&nbsp;thanks to its economical nature. But if your budget can stretch to it, we'd recommend going for the 1.2-litre&nbsp;unit; it's noticeably quicker and&nbsp;more flexible at low revs.

7: Kia Picanto

<h3>Strengths</h3>

<ul>
	<li>Really tidy handling</li>
	<li>Decent real-world fuel economy</li>
	<li>Great infotainment and well-equipment as standard</li>
</ul>

<h3>Weaknesses</h3>

<ul>
	<li>Engine line-up is among the slowest of any new car</li>
	<li>Quite firm low-speed ride</li>
	<li>A Dacia Sandero is much roomier</li>
</ul>

Hyundai has transformed itself from a maker of oddball hatchbacks that sold in small numbers in the UK, to a major rival to the likes of Ford, Vauxhall and Volkswagen.

The Korean firm’s Ioniq Hybrid is particularly impressive, having beaten the trend-setting Toyota Prius when we tested the cars back to back.

Meanwhile, at the extremes of the Hyundai range you find the tiny i10 city car – a four-time What Car? award winner – and the stylish yet family-friendly Santa Fe SUV.

As a bonus, all of these cars come with the reassurance of a five-year, unlimited-mileage warranty, whereas most of Hyundai’s rivals offer only three years and 60,000 miles of cover.

HYUNDAI

Temporary taxonomy to unlink review until CAP taxonomy is updated

Version&nbsp;1.0&nbsp;Advance |&nbsp;List price&nbsp;£15,530&nbsp;|&nbsp;Target Price&nbsp;£14,695

The Hyundai i10 is one of the best&nbsp;<a href="https://www.whatcar.com/best/small-cars/n16997">small cars</a>&nbsp;you can buy on a budget. No matter which version you go for, you get a relatively spacious and&nbsp;smart-looking interior&nbsp;and a comfortable ride. In fact, overall, it feels more polished to drive than the closely-related&nbsp;<a href="https://www.whatcar.com/kia/picanto/hatchback/review/n58">Kia Picanto</a>.

It's also very practical for its size, with a good amount of leg room for rear passengers. The boot is a good shape, too, although&nbsp;the Picanto's is ever so slightly bigger.&nbsp;

The entry-level 1.0-litre&nbsp;three-cylinder petrol engine is strong enough in town and is efficient.&nbsp;Advance&nbsp;trim comes with automatic lights, air conditioning,&nbsp;electric door-mirror adjustment&nbsp;and a leather-wrapped steering wheel and gearlever as standard.

6: Hyundai i10

<h3>Strengths</h3>

<ul>
	<li>Comfy and quiet for a small car</li>
	<li>Remarkably roomy in the rear</li>
	<li>Well equipped as standard</li>
</ul>

<h3>Weaknesses</h3>

<ul>
	<li>Disappointing safety rating</li>
	<li>Entry-level engine is a bit lacklustre</li>
	<li>Slow-witted automatic gearbox</li>
</ul>

If you want a new car but would rather not spend much, Dacia is a great place to start your search.

This budget brand builds some of Britain’s cheapest new cars, including the Sandero hatchback. And don’t think cheap automatically means corners have been cut, because the Sandero has been commended at the annual What Car? Car of the Year awards on numerous occasions.

Other Dacia models include the&nbsp;higher-riding Sandero Stepway, seven-seat Jogger, and rugged Duster SUV. And while these cost slightly more than the Sandero, they’re still priced aggressively enough that they’re really only competing directly with used cars.

Dacia manages this by borrowing mechanicals and technology from its owner, Renault, to minimise development costs.

DACIA

SANDERO STEPWAY

Version&nbsp;1.0 TCe Bi-Fuel Essential |&nbsp;List price&nbsp;£15,295&nbsp;|&nbsp;Target Price&nbsp;£15,006

The Sandero Stepway is essentially a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.whatcar.com/dacia/sandero/hatchback/review/n55">Dacia Sandero</a>&nbsp;but with some extra ruggedness, including a more&nbsp;heavily sculpted bonnet, roof rails, chunky plastic wheel arch extensions and&nbsp;an increased ride height.

Like the Sandero, it's a brilliant&nbsp;<a href="https://www.whatcar.com/best/small-cars/n16997">small car</a>&nbsp;with a&nbsp;spacious interior for its size, a big boot and a comfortable ride. It also comes with a similar line-up of engines and trim levels. The version quoted here features the same&nbsp;Bi-Fuel&nbsp;1.0-litre petrol engine as the regular Sandero, which means you&nbsp;can flip between LPG and&nbsp;petrol by&nbsp;using a switch next to your knee. In terms of performance, it&nbsp;produces 99bhp as opposed to 89bhp for&nbsp;the non-LPG version, so it gives you some useful extra performance when accelerating.

Essential trim offers the same amount of kit as the regular Sandero, which means you get&nbsp;cruise control, front electric windows and air conditioning as standard.

5: Dacia Sandero Stepway

<h3>Strengths</h3>

<ul>
	<li>Comfortable ride</li>
	<li>Spacious interior</li>
	<li>Astonishing price</li>
</ul>

<h3>Weaknesses</h3>

<ul>
	<li>Poor safety rating</li>
	<li>Mainly cosmetic changes for the money over a regular Sandero</li>
	<li>Noisy TCe 90 engine</li>
</ul>

SPRING

Version&nbsp;Electric 45 Expression&nbsp;|&nbsp;List price&nbsp;£14,995&nbsp;|&nbsp;Target Price&nbsp;£14,708

If you compare it&nbsp;to the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.whatcar.com/citroen/ami/city-car/review/n23515">Citroën Ami</a>, the Dacia Spring is&nbsp;a very capable&nbsp;<a href="https://www.whatcar.com/best/electric-cars/n17000">electric car</a>. It's powered by a small 26.8kWh (total) battery that delivers an official range of 140 miles (as opposed to 46 miles), plus you get a choice of two electric motor options, with either&nbsp;44bhp&nbsp;or 64bhp. It's a great option if you live in a city, plus you can easily keep up with low-speed traffic.

If you compare the Spring to other&nbsp;<a href="https://www.whatcar.com/best/small-electric-cars/n26959">small electric cars</a>,&nbsp;such as the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.whatcar.com/citroen/e-c3/hatchback/review/n26854">Citroën e-C3</a>, it suddenly doesn't sound&nbsp;so appealing. The e-C3 in entry-level form produces 111bhp, which means it can go from 0-62mph&nbsp;in&nbsp;10.4sec, plus its&nbsp;43.7kWh (usable) battery delivers an official range of 199 miles. It's also a more practical and comfortable car, but&nbsp;it is more expensive.

4: Dacia Spring

<h3>Strengths</h3>

<ul>
	<li>Decent low-speed ride</li>
	<li>It’s the cheapest EV currently on sale</li>
	<li>Nippier than you’d expect</li>
</ul>

<h3>Weaknesses</h3>

<ul>
	<li>Terrible safety rating</li>
	<li>Limited real-world range</li>
	<li>Slow charging rate</li>
</ul>

Version&nbsp;1.2 PureTech&nbsp;You |&nbsp;List price&nbsp;£14,150&nbsp;|&nbsp;Target Price&nbsp;£14,150

Citroën has launched a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.whatcar.com/citroen/c3/hatchback/review/n26860">new generation of the C3</a>, but if you want a more value-focused alternative, you can still buy the previous version, which is called the C3 Origin.

As you might expect from a car&nbsp;at this price point, the entry-level&nbsp;You trim&nbsp;comes with very little&nbsp;equipment as standard. The only 'luxuries' you get are&nbsp;cruise control, manual air-conditioning and heated side mirrors. The Dacia Sandero is far better value overall.

In other areas, the C3 Origin is poor to drive, plus&nbsp;the 82bhp entry-level engine is pretty lethargic; it feels underpowered and you need to work it&nbsp;hard just to keep up with traffic (for reference, 0-62mph takes&nbsp;12.5sec). You also have to pay extra for some important safety kit, including&nbsp;automatic emergency braking (<a href="https://www.whatcar.com/news/what-is-aeb-and-how-does-it-work/n3283">AEB</a>).

3: Citroën C3 Origin

<h3>Strengths</h3>

<ul>
	<li>Decently equipped</li>
	<li>Stylish interior</li>
	<li>Efficient engines</li>
</ul>

<h3>Weaknesses</h3>

<ul>
	<li>Poor to drive</li>
	<li>AEB is not standard on lower trims</li>
	<li>Cramped rear seats</li>
</ul>

SANDERO

Version&nbsp;1.0 TCe Bi-Fuel Essential&nbsp;|&nbsp;List price&nbsp;£13,795&nbsp;|&nbsp;Target Price&nbsp;£13,536

The top 10 list&nbsp;of Britain's cheapest new cars is constantly changing, and the Dacia Sandero is a car that's often found near the top spot.

So, what's the Sandero like? Well, it's actually a&nbsp;better car than some of its pricier&nbsp;rivals, including the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.whatcar.com/mg-motor-uk/mg3/hatchback/review/n17867">MG3</a>. It's more practical and&nbsp;more comfortable than that car, plus it's surprisingly well equipped in mid-level Expression trim. This entry-level Essential trim is less so; it comes with&nbsp;cruise control, front electric windows and air conditioning as standard.

Usefully, this&nbsp;Bi-Fuel version can run&nbsp;on cheaper liquefied petroleum gas (LPG)&nbsp;as well as regular unleaded, which means it should also be very cheap to run if you live near a petrol station that stocks it. It's worth noting&nbsp;that&nbsp;<a href="https://www.whatcar.com/news/the-safest-cars-on-sale-today/n19724">Euro NCAP</a>&nbsp;gave the Sandero just two stars for safety.

2: Dacia Sandero

<h3>Strengths</h3>

<ul>
	<li>Amazingly good value</li>
	<li>Lots of space for passengers and luggage</li>
	<li>Comfortable ride</li>
</ul>

<h3>Weaknesses</h3>

<ul>
	<li>Poor safety rating compared with rivals</li>
	<li>There are more entertaining small cars to drive</li>
	<li>Some other small cars are quieter</li>
</ul>

City-Car

Version&nbsp;Ami |&nbsp;List price&nbsp;£7695&nbsp;|&nbsp;Target Price&nbsp;£7695

There are several reasons why the Citroën Ami is so cheap, but&nbsp;arguably, the biggest factor is the fact it's technically a quadricycle rather than a full-size&nbsp;car. This means that in the UK, even a&nbsp;16-year-old with an AM moped licence can drive one.&nbsp;

Despite offering bucket-loads of charm and funky looks, the Ami is heavily compromised.&nbsp;Its electric motor produces just 8bhp and its top speed is limited to 28mph. This means you can&nbsp;feel like a nuisance while driving it – even on 20mph roads. Also, with an official range of&nbsp;46 miles,&nbsp;the Ami can't venture very far between charges, which limits its use&nbsp;to&nbsp;urban environments.

The biggest compromise, though, is safety. The exposed&nbsp;metal frame and plastic structure are a constant reminder of this, so we'd recommend choosing a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.whatcar.com/best/small-electric-cars/n26959">small electric car</a>&nbsp;with&nbsp;better crash protection and more safety aids if this is a concern. Moreover, you'll&nbsp;also&nbsp;be able to keep up with traffic if you choose one of those, because most small electric cars are considerably more powerful.

1: Citroën Ami

<h3>Strengths</h3>

<ul>
	<li>Surprisingly spacious for two</li>
	<li>Low purchase and running costs</li>
	<li>Zippy city acceleration</li>
</ul>

<h3>Weaknesses</h3>

<ul>
	<li>Limited range</li>
	<li>28mph top speed</li>
	<li>Safety concerns</li>
</ul>

Looking to replace your car but think you can't afford to buy new? Well, these models might make you think again – especially after you've factored in our Target Price discounts

NEW REVIEWS:

The 10 cheapest new cars you can buy - reviewed and rated

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