2025 Hyundai Tucson vs. 2025 Nissan Rogue Review

2025 Hyundai Tucson Limited ・ Photo by Brady Holt

America’s best-selling SUVs are the Toyota RAV4 and Honda CR-V. These are fine, well-rounded vehicles. But they’re not the bargain leaders of their class. 

Two solid crossovers that cost less than the RAV4 and CR-V are the Hyundai Tucson and Nissan Rogue. They’re packed with features at prices starting below $29,000, yet they’re also among the roomiest and highest-tech compact crossovers. 

For this review, we’ve tested both the Tucson – newly updated for 2025 – and the Rogue, so that we can compare them in each of eight categories and then name an overall winner. Keep reading to see which one we picked and which sounds like the best value-priced crossover for you. 

Exterior Design

The current Tucson came out for the 2022 model year, which is when Hyundai made it bigger and dressier than before. The new 2025 Tucson keeps the curvy shape; the headlights that are partially disguised in the grillework; and the sharply creased sides. The front end has become more SUV-like, with a more vertical front end and more angular bumper. But it’s still more graceful and flashy than tough and truck-like, even in the off-road-themed XRT trim level. 

The Rogue – last redesigned in 2021 and updated for 2024 – is similar. It’s a dressy on-road crossover. It looks a little chunkier than the Tucson, especially around the back. And its own off-road-themed model, the Rock Creek Edition, looks more distinct from other Rogues thanks to its blacked-out front end. 

Overall, these are two moderately stylish crossovers that take a similar design approach. We’ll let your own aesthetic preferences determine this winner. 

Winner: Tie 

2025 Nissan Rogue Platinum ・ Photo by Brady Holt

Interior Design

The Tucson’s 2025 changes brought a welcome interior upgrade. Unlike most cars, it got simultaneously higher-tech and easier to use. Now, the digital instrument cluster and central touchscreen form a single panel spanning most of the interior. It’s a slick, contemporary look. But importantly, under the touchscreen, Hyundai now provides more simple buttons and knobs than last year’s Tucson. It had previously relied heavily on a fussy touch-sensitive panel, which now serves just a handful of climate controls. 

The Rogue’s controls are even easier to use, though. And while the Tucson is solidly finished, the Rogue’s interior trim is even more luxurious – especially on upper trim levels. 

The Hyundai wins if you’re attached to a digital experience. Every Tucson includes the twin 12.3-inch screens for the gauge cluster and central infotainment controls, and you can use your mobile apps on the screen via wireless Android Auto and Apple CarPlay. But Nissan provides equivalent screens only on upper trim levels, while base models get analog gauges and an 8-inch touchscreen. And you have to plug in your phone to use Apple CarPlay or Android Auto if you don’t upgrade to the Nissan’s 12.3-inch touchscreen. However, we pick the Nissan’s higher-end feel and even simpler controls. 

Winner: Nissan Rogue 

2025 Nissan Rogue Platinum ・ Photo by Brady Holt

Passenger and Cargo Space

Both the Rogue and Tucson have generously sized interiors with lots of comfort amenities, well-shaped seats, and tons of cargo space for a compact crossover. But the Hyundai wins out on both fronts. 

It has 41 cubic feet of cargo room behind the rear seat and 80 cubic feet with the rear seat folded down, beating the Rogue’s already-excellent 36 and 74 cubic feet, respectively. Secondly, unlike the Nissan, the Hyundai is available with ventilated front seats. 

We found the Rogue’s rear seats easier to fold down than the Tucson’s. We appreciated the Nissan’s optionally configurable Divide N Hide cargo floor. And the Rogue has a heated steering wheel more widely available than the Tucson, which saves it for the top Limited model. But overall, the bigger and better-equipped Tucson wins this category. 

Winner: Hyundai Tucson 

2025 Hyundai Tucson Limited ・ Photo by Brady Holt

Ride and Handling

The Tucson and Rogue are two comfortable, easy-to-drive crossovers. The Rogue has firmer steering and a more tautly tuned suspension, making it feel more expensive and sporty to us. The Tucson’s lighter steering and softer suspension give it a smoother ride and little resistance when you turn the wheel. 

These are subtle differences. The Rogue isn’t stiff and uncomfortable, and it isn’t a sports car. But the narrow winner comes down to what sort of crossover you prefer driving – sportier or smoother. 

Winner: Tie 

2025 Hyundai Tucson Limited ・ Photo by Brady Holt

Acceleration

The Rogue does take a clear win when you put your foot down. On paper, the Nissan’s 1.5-liter three-cylinder engine seems less promising than the Hyundai’s 2.5-liter four-cylinder. Even the Rogue’s extra horsepower – 201 hp versus the 187-hp Tucson – doesn’t sound like enough to offset the cylinder deficit. But the turbocharged Rogue is quicker and sounds better than the Tucson. 

The Hyundai’s engine is smooth and quiet under moderate acceleration, but it upshifts quickly and keeps revs high. This makes it feel more labored than the Rogue. And if you’re really in a hurry, the effect worsens. The Hyundai's transmission downshifts further, working the Tucson up to a scream – without giving you that much more speed in response. The Rogue growls pleasantly up and down its powerband, and it gets going in more of a hurry. 

We don’t mean the Tucson is dangerously slow or absurdly loud. But the Rogue is quicker and makes less fuss. 

Winner: Nissan Rogue 

2024 Nissan Rogue Platinum ・ Photo by Brady Holt

Fuel Economy

Despite its middling performance, the Tucson’s engine isn’t a fuel-sipper, either. In EPA testing, front-wheel-drive models get 25 mpg in the city, 33 mpg on the highway, and 28 mpg combined. And with AWD, it gets 24 mpg city, 30 mpg highway, and 26 mpg combined. We matched that estimate during a weeklong test. The Tucson is no gas-guzzler, but it’s not great for a modestly powerful compact crossover. 

The Rogue does much better: 30 mpg city, 37 mpg highway, and 33 mpg combined on base models with front-wheel drive. All-wheel drive and upper trims’ bigger wheels burn a bit more fuel, but even the least economical combination – the AWD Platinum, like our test vehicle – gets an excellent 28 mpg city, 34 mpg highway, and 31 mpg combined. As with the Tucson, we matched our tested Rogue's EPA estimate.

The Tucson does have one trick up its sleeve. You can get it with an optional gas-electric hybrid powertrain. Its EPA ratings are 35 mpg to 38 mpg combined, depending on the trim level. It will likely only match the Rogue on the highway, but it will do much better at low speeds. So between the Tucson’s disappointing base engine and its exclusive hybrid, we’ll call this category an overall tie. 

Winner: Tie 

2025 Hyundai Tucson Limited ・ Photo by Brady Holt

Safety

The Rogue and Tucson are very safe SUVs with excellent crash-test scores and tons of standard safety features. Both include blind-spot monitoring, forward automatic emergency braking, and lane-departure warnings. 

But the Tucson does even better. While both crossovers earned five out of five stars overall from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the Rogue managed just four stars for frontal-impact protection. The Tucson earned the highest Top Safety Pick+ designation from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, while the Rogue scored only Acceptable (the second highest of four ratings) in two IIHS tests. Finally, the Tucson comes standard with lane-keeping steering assistance (optional on the Rogue), and it’s the only one with an available blind-spot camera. 

Winner: Hyundai Tucson 

2025 Hyundai Tucson Limited ・ Photo by Brady Holt

Pricing and Features

The 2025 Hyundai Tucson is priced from $28,705, while the 2025 Nissan Rogue starts at $28,550. The similarities continue up and down the model lineup, with the Tucson and Rogue trading advantages. 

On the base models, the Tucson is better equipped for not much more money. The extra $155 buys adaptive cruise control, lane-keeping steering assistance, six stereo speakers instead of four, and a bigger infotainment screen with wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. 

However, the Rogue is the cheaper way to get higher-end amenities like either leatherette or leather upholstery, a heated steering wheel, or a surround-view parking camera. The Rogue is also the only one of the two available with hands-free highway driving. But the Tucson’s exclusive ventilated seats and blind-spot cameras are also tempting. 

Overall, we’d encourage you to shop carefully – zeroing in on the amenities you care about and getting dealer price quotes. Otherwise, these are closely matched SUVs on the value front. 

Winner: Tie 

2025 Hyundai Tucson Limited ・ Photo by Brady Holt

Final Thoughts

The newly updated 2025 Hyundai Tucson removes one of last year’s two chief flaws: a lousy control layout. But the other remains: an engine that’s neither peppy nor economical. And that’s enough for us to pick the 2025 Nissan Rogue instead. 

The Tucson ekes out a series of small wins. It has more standard features and a smoother ride. It has better crash-test scores and more cargo room. But these victories come at a smaller margin than the Rogue’s dominant powertrain. Especially if you’re looking at these two crossovers for their value, the Nissan will save you money on fuel over the long run – along with driving better.

Now, you could buy the Tucson Hybrid to get quicker acceleration and better gas mileage than the gas Tucson we tested. That’s a little more expensive, though. And the Rogue still has the more flexible cargo hold, sharper handling, and richer interior finishes. 

Depending on your tastes, you could pick either the Tucson or the Rogue as your winner. And neither comes across as a sad budget car. But our pick is the Nissan. 

Winner: Nissan Rogue

2024 Nissan Rogue Platinum ・ Photo by Brady Holt