Hyundai Tucson vs Honda CR-V: MPG, Fuel Cost, Recalls and Safety

On EPA ratings the 2025 Honda CR-V's best version gets 40 mpg combined against 38 mpg for the Hyundai Tucson.

Hyundai Tucson

38mpg

Best 2025 version: 1.6L turbo 4-cyl hybrid · AWD · 6-speed automated manual · Blue

Honda CR-V

40mpg

Best 2025 version: 2.0L 4-cyl hybrid · FWD · CVT

Data: US EPA and NHTSA2025 model yearUpdated Nov 11, 2026

The cheapest Honda CR-V to fuel costs $1,550 a year at EPA's prices, $100 less than the cheapest Tucson. NHTSA lists 7 recalls for the 2025 Tucson and 6 recalls for the CR-V.

Side by side

2025 model year	Tucson	CR-V
Fuel economy (EPA)
Best combined rating	38 mpg 1.6L turbo 4-cyl hybrid · AWD · 6-speed automated manual · Blue	40 mpg (clearly better) 2.0L 4-cyl hybrid · FWD · CVT
Best gas rating Gas engines only; hybrids and diesels excluded	28 mpg	30 mpg (clearly better)
Hybrid or plug-in available	Hybrid and plug-in 38 mpg; plug-in 77 MPGe	Hybrid 40 mpg
AWD or 4WD available	Yes	Yes
Lowest annual fuel cost 15,000 miles at EPA fuel prices	$1,650	$1,550 (clearly better)
5-year fuel cost vs average new vehicle Cheapest-to-fuel version (EPA)	Saves $2,750	Saves $3,250 (clearly better)
Safety (NHTSA)
Safety recalls, 2025 model year Counts depend on sales and time on sale	7	6
Owner complaints, 2025 model year Filed with NHTSA so far	459	300
NHTSA overall crash rating Range across tested versions	5 stars	5 stars
Rollover risk Range across tested versions; lower is better	15.9% to 17.4%	15.5% (clearly better)

Marks the clearly better figure. Small gaps (under 2 mpg or 5%, $100 a year in fuel) and overlapping crash-test ranges are not marked, and recall and complaint counts are not scored because they depend on how many were sold.

Best combined rating by model year

The best-rated version of each, every model year since 2010. The Tucson rated higher in 2 and the CR-V in 14 of the 17 years both were sold; they tied in 1.

Hyundai Tucson
Honda CR-V

2025: Hyundai Tucson 38 mpg · Honda CR-V 40 mpg

Show as a table

Best combined rating by model year, Hyundai Tucson and Honda CR-V
Model year	Hyundai Tucson	Honda CR-V
2010	26	24
2011	25	24
2012	25	26
2013	25	26
2014	25	26
2015	25	29
2016	28	29
2017	28	30
2018	27	30
2019	26	30
2020	25	38
2021	25	38
2022	38	38
2023	38	40
2024	38	40
2025	38	40
2026	38	40

Recalls by model year

Safety recalls NHTSA lists for each model year. Counts depend on how many were sold and how long each model year has been on the road.

Hyundai Tucson (left bar)
Honda CR-V (right bar)

2026: Hyundai Tucson 6 recalls · Honda CR-V 2 recalls

Show as a table

Safety recalls by model year, Hyundai Tucson and Honda CR-V
Model year	Hyundai Tucson	Honda CR-V
2010	4	15
2011	5	13
2012	3	3
2013	3	2
2014	2	1
2015	2	3
2016	5	3
2017	3	7
2018	1	5
2019	1	8
2020	1	9
2021	1	5
2022	3	6
2023	2	8
2024	4	5
2025	7	6
2026	6	2

Questions

Which gets better gas mileage, the Tucson or the CR-V?

For 2025, the CR-V. Its best version is rated 40 mpg combined; the Tucson's best is 38 mpg.

Which is cheaper to fuel, the Tucson or the CR-V?

For 2025, the CR-V. At 15,000 miles a year and EPA's fuel prices, its cheapest version to fuel costs $1,550 a year and the Tucson's costs $1,650, a difference of about $500 over five years.

How do the Tucson and the CR-V compare in NHTSA crash tests?

The 2025 Tucson is rated 5 stars overall and the CR-V is rated 5 stars overall. Rollover risk is 15.9% to 17.4% for the Tucson and 15.5% for the CR-V.

Sources and method

US EPA fuel economy data (fueleconomy.gov), file dated Nov 4, 2026, and EPA fuel prices.
NHTSA recall file dated Nov 12, 2026 and owner complaint file dated Nov 11, 2026; NHTSA 5-Star Safety Ratings.

We compare the best-rated version of each model unless a row says otherwise. How we build these pages. Spotted an error? Tell us.