The 10 Cheapest Cars With The Best Safety Ratings

Is it possible to snag a car that has both a price of less than $40,000 as well as one of the industry’s top safety ratings? You might be surprised to learn that the answer is yes. In fact, you don’t even have to spend that much: you can get great safety in a car with an MSRP under $30,000, and in one very specific case, less than $25,000.

There are several cars, SUVs, and crossovers out there that won’t ask you to bust your budget just to benefit from class-leading safety. Let’s take a look at the 10 cheapest vehicles with the best Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) ratings.

The prices below don’t include non-negotiable destination fees. According to the IIHS, “good” is the highest rating a vehicle can get, followed by “acceptable,” “marginal,” and “poor.”

10. 2026 Hyundai Sonata - $36,099

The Hyundai Sonata earns the Top Safety Pick+ award from the IIHS. This means that it scores “good” in the organization’s crash testing (including small overlap front, moderate overlap front, and side impact), while also leading the pack with a “good” rating when it comes to the visibility provided by its headlights, and the same score for its technology designed to prevent forward collisions with pedestrians. Finally, it offers an “acceptable” rating for car-to-car forward collision prevention.

All of the above are available with the base model Sonata mid-sized sedan, which includes forward collision avoidance assistance (also known as automatic emergency braking) and LED projector headlights as standard equipment. It also comes with lane-keeping assist, lane-following assist, a driver attention warning system, and blind-spot monitoring.

9. 2026 Toyota Camry - $35,075

The Camry is a direct rival to the Sonata, and it undercuts it on price by about $1,000 while still matching its Top Safety Pick+ status. The details are a little different when looking at the testing, however, as the Toyota sedan posted an “acceptable” rating for its headlights alongside a “good” score for its vehicle-to-vehicle front crash prevention.

The Toyota Camry also comes with a standard blind-spot monitoring system, lane-keeping assistance, lane-departure warning, and the Toyota-specific “proactive driving assist” feature that attempts to keep the vehicle away from traffic, pedestrians, and cyclists by using the brakes and steering.

8. 2026 Honda Civic Hatchback - $32,300

The Honda Civic compact hatchback qualifies for Top Safety Pick rather than Top Safety Pick+ status. The key difference? Although it still posts “good” ratings in all of the same crash protection categories (as well as its headlight test), it steps down to “acceptable” when it comes to front crash prevention for both vehicle-to-vehicle and vehicle-to-pedestrian categories.

It’s a very fine line separating the two ratings, and the Civic Hatchback still boasts plenty of great standard safety features. These include a blind-spot monitoring system, lane departure warning and lane-keeping assistance, automatic braking at both highway and low speeds, and forward collision warning.

7. 2026 Hyundai Kona - $31,249

The Kona is the first crossover on this list of the cheapest cars with the best safety ratings. It’s a Top Safety Pick+ according to the IIHS, and it scores “good” in every key category except for its headlights, which receive an “acceptable” rating.

All versions of the Hyundai Kona come with automatic forward emergency braking and collision warning, lane-keeping and lane-centring assistance, a blind-spot monitor, and a driver attention warning system. That’s a respectable level of safety equipment to stuff into a subcompact people mover like this one.

6. 2026 Honda HR-V - $30,800

Even the entry-level front-wheel-drive version of the Honda HR-V SUV earns Top Safety Pick+ status for 2026. The subcompact hauler scores “good” in each crash test, as well as its pedestrian front crash prevention system. These are combined with “acceptable” ratings for its headlights and its vehicle front crash prevention features.

As with most Hondas, the HR-V is well-prepared to keep its occupants safe on the road thanks to features like a blind spot monitoring system, lane departure warning and lane-keeping assistance, a unique road departure mitigation feature, and, of course, the emergency braking systems referenced in the IIHS’ crash prevention testing.

5. 2026 Mazda CX-30 - $29,300

The Mazda CX-30 shrinks the automaker’s fun-to-drive character into a pint-size, subcompact crossover package, making it a more enthusiast-friendly alternative to the similarly sized HR-V. It matches the Honda as an IIHS Top Safety Pick+. It even surpasses it on the scoreboard with a “good” rating in every important category except for vehicle-to-vehicle crash prevention, where it posts an “acceptable” instead.

In addition to expected items like a rearview camera (and nice-to-haves like adaptive cruise control), the CX-30 features automatic collision warning and emergency braking, lane-keeping assistance, a driver attention monitor, a lane departure warning system, and a blind spot monitor.

4. 2026 Nissan Sentra - $25,268

The 2026 Nissan Sentra is one of the most affordable compact sedans on the market, yet it also aces IIHS crash testing and earns a Top Safety Pick+ rating. In fact, its only below-“good” score comes, as with the Mazda CX-30, in the vehicle front crash protection feature, which is evaluated as “acceptable.”

Riding shotgun with that rating are safety-specific features like forward collision warning and emergency braking, a lane departure warning and intervention system, a blind spot warning system (that will also intervene if it detects the vehicle is in danger), and rear automatic emergency braking.

3. 2026 Mazda3 - $25,250

Both the Mazda3 sedan and hatchback share more than a little design DNA with the CX-30 crossover, which helps explain why they, too, place highly on this list of the 10 cheapest cars with the best safety ratings. The badge earns a Top Safety Pick+ in both body styles, but there’s a wrinkle to keep in mind: while some of its trim levels manage a “good” rating for its headlights, others (like the base model) top out at “acceptable.” Its forward crash protection for vehicles also scores “acceptable,” with every other criterion checked off as “good.”

The safety gear offered with the Mazda3 is quite similar to that of the CX-30. The list includes blind-spot monitoring, front and rear emergency braking, a forward collision warning system, lane-keeping assistance, a lane departure warning system, and a driver attention monitor. You’ll want to snag the sedan if you’re looking for the biggest bargain, as it’s cheaper than the five-door.

2. 2026 Kia K4 - $24,295

As with the Mazda 3, the four-door Kia K4 is more affordable than its hatchback sibling. That being said, both are IIHS Top Safety Pick+ recipients, thanks to “good” scores everywhere except for their headlights and vehicle-to-vehicle front crash prevention, which each rate as “acceptable.”

The first of two sub-$25k MSRP entries on our list, the K4 still has strong safety features. Even on base models, you’ll find a driver attention watch system. It also has forward collision avoidance and warning systems, lane-keeping assistance, and lane-centring capability.

1. 2026 Hyundai Elantra - $23,499

The cheapest four-door sedan available in Canada also happens to be an IIHS Top Safety Pick. The Hyundai Elantra has an MSRP that squeaks in just below $24,500, but it scores “good” in the ever-important crash test and crash avoidance categories. There’s just one thing missing that keeps it from gaining that extra “+,” as the IIHS has yet to test its vehicle-to-vehicle front crash prevention systems.

The Elantra offers standard lane departure warning, lane-keeping assistance, and lane-following assistance, along with blind spot monitoring, forward collision warning with automatic braking, and a driver attention monitor.