BATTLE OF THE BEST! -- NEW 2026 Mazda CX-5 vs. 2026 Honda CR-V: Comparison

What's going on YouTube? It's really hard to stand out in the compact crossover segment, where there are over a dozen competitive offerings. One of the most popular and longtime favorites has of course been the Honda CR-V, which was recently refreshed. But another important Japanese rival is stepping up to the plate for this year, and it is all new in the form of the 2026 Mazda CX-5. And let me tell you guys, this model is much different than ever before. So, can this important CX-5 topple the best-selling CR-V with more space and more technology than ever? Well, let's go ahead and find out. There are a ton of options within the compact crossover space, and today we'll be breaking down all that these two competitors offer with their fully loaded trims. If you are looking to buy either one of them, make sure to check out carconfections.com to get the best price and access to invoice pricing information. Let's kick off this comparison with the exterior designs, where the CR-V sees some slight tweaks for 2026, and the CX-5 gets some much bigger changes. While its Mazda heritage is still recognizable, the CX-5 takes on a more mature look for its new generation, with sharper lines borrowed from its bigger siblings like the CX-90 and CX-70. In typical Mazda fashion, the CX-5 comes across as quite sporty, with lots of gloss black elements throughout. The same could be said for the Honda, which also uses lots of gloss black elements for its fascia. We won't score the design, which is a subjective matter, but let us know which one you prefer in the comments. What we do score are all the various features and differences, so let's start with the headlights. Both models have fully LED units, but the Mazda has some extra goodies to add. Its headlamps are projector LEDs instead of reflectors, and they are also adaptive as well. Punctuating the designs are gloss black 19-inch alloys on both. Continuing to the sides, the CX-5 has had a major growth spurt this year, adding four and a half inches and taking it to almost the exact same length as the CR-V. However, that doesn't necessarily mean equivalent space inside, so we'll dive into all those figures later on. Out back, they share exposed exhaust outlets, spoilers, and rear wipers. But only the Mazda has full LED taillamps, since Honda is utilizing incandescent turn signals. As equipped, the CX-5 has a 500-pound towing advantage, maxing out at 1,500 pounds versus 1,000 in the CR-V. Checking out the mirrors, each of them feature heating and blind spot monitoring, but the Mazda once again adds the luxury touch of power folding. And as far as the other important active safety features, all of them are included on both models, even traffic jam assist functions. That concludes the outside, so let's check out the more important interiors. But first, if you're new here, we're brothers and we've been reviewing cars since we were 12 and 16. We started young and since then we have reviewed over 2,000 vehicles at every price point. No matter what you're looking for, from humble to high-end, we'd love for you to subscribe to be a part of our car confections family. Let's learn a lot and have some fun with all the latest cars. Approaching the doors, both crossovers feature smart entry systems, but only the CR-V has remote start on its key fob free for life. After opening up the doors, you'll find cabins that have very few similarities, especially when it comes to design. Let's start with the seats though, as always. One similarity these two have are those seats, which are both finished in real leather. In addition, they also share 10 ways of power adjustment, heating, and memory. But the CX-5 also has seat ventilation, a feature still not available on the Honda. Next up, let's get into the broad category of material quality, which will divide into solidity and material selections. When it comes to build quality, both models impress with a sturdy build without any panel gaps. As far as the materials go, it's now the CR-V that has the edge this year. The new CX-5 has actually swapped out soft materials on many of the commonly touched panels for hard plastic, such as the upper door trims and dash area around the gauges. Once you fire up these two, you'll find fully digital gauge clusters on both models this year, almost the same size. The Mazda also adds in a head-up display to keep your eyes on the road. Moving back to the steering wheels, we have leatherette-wrapped manual adjusting wheels with plenty of easy-to-use buttons. Both steering wheels are heated and the wipers are rain sensing. Next up in our evaluation is storage, where we're going to take a look at the console and multi-use cubbies in the dash. Starting with the consoles, Honda still manages the advantage over the new CX-5 with an absolutely enormous center console. When we leave the console, the CR-V continues its practicality advantages with larger cubbies and better ergonomic placement as well. While the CX-5 has improved in spaciousness and packaging this generation, it still hasn't caught up with the ultra-practical CR-V. These SUVs forgo electronic shifters for physical ones, and in reverse, you'll find a Honda deficiency. It does not have a 360-degree camera, meaning that the CX-5 will certainly be the easier one to park. Moving up the dashboard, we stop at the climate controls and also begin to introduce the new screen on the Mazda. Both have two-zone automatic systems, but the new CX-5 loses the physical control knobs in favor of digitized controls in the touchscreen. This means the CR-V's climate is easier to adjust while driving. The same thing can also be said about the If you prefer a physical one, the Honda will be the better pick here, although they both have steering wheel controls regardless. Both models are rocking 12-speaker Bose sound systems, and let's hear a sample. As expected, the sound quality is very similar, if not identical, between them. Infotainment-wise, let's start to really dig in here, because there are some profound differences. Mazda, famously anti-touchscreen in the past, did a 180-degree turn with the new model, and put the largest touchscreen of any compact SUV into the new CX-5. This 15.6-inch display on the top trim for 2026 absolutely squashes the CR-V's 9-inch display, which is about 54% smaller. As far as functionality, though, they match each other with wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. And Google Apps, including Google Maps, built in natively. Wrapping up the front of the cabins, they both have auto-dimming mirrors, although the CX-5 has HomeLink garage door openers. Additionally, you will find a panoramic moonroof on the Mazda only, since Honda does not offer a panoramic size option in the U.S. Now let's head into the back seats and the cargo areas, where we will discuss any packaging differences. As far as leg and headroom figures, they are all within the 5% margin to score a point, which is a huge step forward for the Mazda, which was previously one of the smallest in the segment. As far as features go, the Mazda again has an advantage. While both back seats offer vents, USBs, and reclining abilities, the CX-5 goes above and beyond with heated seats, too. Now let's pop open the hands-free power tailgates and discuss the space we have inside. While the CX-5 again had a much-needed growth spurt for this newest generation, the Space King CR-V still holds the maximum cargo advantage, with 10 cubic feet of extra space with the seats folded down. However, the space behind the seats is within a cubic foot, so keep that in mind if you often road trip with the seats upright. Only the CX-5 has 40-20-40 split folding seats that can easily be folded down with rear handles. Alright, we're done with the interiors now, but some of the most important things to consider take place on the test drive, so let's take this fight to the streets. These two competitors have long taken different approaches to their powertrain setups, and that trend continues for 2026, but not without some changes. On the fully loaded CR-V, it comes exclusively with Honda's two-motor hybrid system, bumping power from the standard gas engine on the lower trims. On the other hand, the Mazda has just one engine option now, a 2.5-liter four-cylinder, making 187 horsepower compared to the Honda's 204 horsepower. Mazda does plan to launch a hybrid, but it won't be available for likely another year or more. So for now, the CR-V has the power advantage and is significantly faster to 60 miles per hour. Alright, and there we are quickly accelerating up to 60 miles per hour. Now when it comes to the Sport Touring model, this is one of the trims that comes standard with a hybrid system. So just to remind you guys again, you have a 1.5-liter turbocharged gasoline engine that's really reserved for your lower trim levels, and then all your upper trim levels are going to be the hybrid exclusive trims. So this is Honda's two-motor hybrid system. It's unchanged for 2026, so it's a two-liter four-cylinder engine with two electric motors, total power 204 horsepower and 247 pound-feet of torque. Alright, that was our acceleration to 60 miles per hour with the 2026 CX-5. Now, as you can probably tell, it's not overly fast. A lot of the coverage that we have had in the past with the CX-5 has been with the turbo model, and let's just get that out of the way right from the start. They're not going to offer the turbo model for the new generation, unfortunately. So we just have the standard powertrain today. It's a 2.5-liter naturally aspirated four-cylinder engine. It makes 187 horsepower and 186 pound-feet of torque. Transmission-wise, the Honda uses a direct drive system that acts like an eCVT, while the CX-5 keeps its old-school six-speed automatic. Both are smooth and fine for most driving situations, and the same can also be said about their all-wheel drive systems. Now, as far as your are concerned, we have a CVT on the traditional gas end or an eCVT-like transmission here with the hybrid models. Overall response, as you can see from that acceleration there, is very quick. Now, one thing that's definitely different than, I think, everything else in the segment is the transmission situation. So that is also carryover, which is a pretty old-school option. It's a six-speed automatic transmission. I think Mazda is the only one doing that at this point, and, you know, it is lacking a couple gears versus a lot of the competition. Now, let's discuss ride quality and handling for these two crossovers. While handling is less important for this segment, Mazda and Honda have long been segment leaders in this respect. And for these newest models, the CX-5 has been softened in terms of handling, making it closer to the nimble CR-V than ever before. We'll call this category even. And for ride quality, what the CX-5 loses in agility, it has gained in ride quality, making the CX-5 much more comfortable than ever. However, the CR-V is still one of the best riding in the segment, and it will maintain its advantage here. Now, we've been driving around CR-Vs all day long, and that has really just kind of confirmed in my mind that this is a very good riding vehicle. As you hit bumps in the road, it does a great job of soaking it up and really not letting a ton of intrusion inside the cabin. Now, we do have the largest wheels here with the Sport Touring, and I'm happy to tell you, I don't think that negatively impacts your ride that much at all. So, you're not paying a huge penalty for that. Maybe ever so slightly, but not a big penalty. That starts with the suspension. Mazda's definitely tuned the suspension to be softer for this new generation. We've gone over some pretty rough California roads on this drive today, and it seems to soak up all the bumps really well. You have most of those vibrations smoothed out, and it's also complemented by these much more comfortable seats for this new generation. Now, out on the highway, sound insulation is important, which is why we take sound level readings of every vehicle we test here at Car Confections. Scientifically speaking, most people cannot discern a difference of less than one decibel between sound, and as you can see, there's more of a difference than that. But before jumping to conclusions, the CX-5 sample was taken in California on a recent press drive, which means the rating is unofficial for now until we get one back home in Kentucky. 55.8 decibels is where we have settled in at. Very impressive. We've settled in at 53.9 decibels on this all-new CX-5. Lastly, let's get into fuel economy. As you would expect, this falls in favor of the CR-V by 11 mpg combined. We're excited to test and compare Mazda's hybrid system at a later date when it launches. In our reviews and comparisons, we're also adding in reliability and resale information to give you a better picture of the overall value beyond just the original MSRP. Beginning with reliability, we developed the Combined Reliability Index, which takes into account several studies from trustworthy sources and combines them in a way that gives you the most realistic picture. In this respect, both of them rate well. Honda does quite well, ranking 13 slots above industry average, giving it plus 2.6 points. And Mazda is two slots above average, awarding it plus 0.4 points. Related to that, they have the same warranty coverage, but Honda has one year of complementary maintenance. We also put Mason's economics degree to work to develop a detailed predicted resale value tool. After five years and 60,000 miles, Honda actually has the highest value in the entire auto industry at 64.79% of expected retained value. Mazda is a bit further behind at 59.44%, giving the CR-V plus 1 point. Now let's talk about pricing. While the newest generation of CX-5 does see some price increases for its changes this year, the lack of hybrid or turbo engine options makes it a good deal more affordable than the CR-V. Its top trim MSRP is below $40,000, making it one of the few options in the segment that can say so, regardless of powertrain. But how does that value play out score-wise? When you consider the $3,515 price difference, the CX-5 will be awarded plus two points for its added value. So there you have it, the objective winner. Do you agree? Well, let's go over some pros and cons about why you might choose each one so you can find your personal winner, and then we'll also tell you which ones we would put in each of our driveways. I'll start with the CR-V. That should be your choice if you're going for the maximum cargo capacity, also if you're looking for the hybrid system benefits, and also physical climate and audio controls. Now, the CX-5 might be the choice for you if you prefer having more features throughout the cabin, as well as on the exterior with things such as adaptive LED lighting. Additionally, it also has a larger touchscreen that does work a bit quicker. Now, if a certain category matters more to you personally, then you can use our tool at carconfections.com slash vehicle rankings, where you can sort based on the 10 most important categories to compact crossover shoppers. This is a great tool to use while shopping and can help you find the best choice and make an informed buying decision. Now, which models will we put in each of our driveways? I'll start with the CX-5. I prefer that because of the sophisticated design. I also like that it has kind of more features throughout and a little bit more of a high-tech feel. Now, I would choose the Honda CR-V mainly because I value things such as having physical controls for things like my climate as well as my volume knob. Additionally, for now, I prefer having the hybrid system in the CR-V. Well, guys, that's where we'll finish off this comparison for today. If you're looking to buy either one of these vehicles, we would encourage you to go to carconfections.com slash new car quotes. On there, you can get access to things such as invoice pricing, which is a great tool for dealership negotiation. It's also going to get you access to things such as a monthly payment tool, which is a great help as well. If you're interested in checking this out, we do have a pinned comment at the top of this video as well as a link in the video description. Well, guys, we appreciate your support throughout these comparisons, and if you're interested in checking these out or any other automotive content, we have plenty for you to check out on the channel, so we would appreciate it if you would subscribe down below. When you do that, you get access to all of our different content that we do on many different types of vehicles. If you're already a fan and subscriber, thank you so much for your continued support, and we'll catch you next time as we sample more of the latest automotive delicacies.