4 Of The Best Nissan Rogue Years Based On Resale Value, And Which To Avoid

Nissan's compact Rogue SUV has been one of the company's best-selling vehicles for years, leading the company's sales figures even in the new decade with over 270,000 units sold in 2023. It's not hard to see why: with a stylish exterior, comfortable interior, and great fuel economy, the Rogue has it all for the small family — so long as they don't need to tow a ton of gear or trample around in the mud.

Despite the Rogue's popularity, the situation hasn't always been rosy for Nissan's compact offering. A history of CVT problems has meant that the Rogue often features on lists of the most unreliable Nissans, with issues such as jerky movement and missing gears often leading to pricey repairs or replacement CVTs. Unfortunately, there isn't really a Nissan Rogue year that's wholly free of issues, so there's not really a perfect model year to target here. And, unlike recent Nissan Pathfinders, there's no such thing as a CVT-less Rogue: Nissan has stuck with the CVT on the newest 2024 Rogue, so you'll have to live with one and its potential faults if you buy one.

That said, a handful of Nissan Rogue years seem to have done better than the others. The downside is that these are the newer Rogues, so you won't likely get a crazy bargain here. Still, every little bit counts if you're trying to maximize your car-buying budget.

Despite its immense popularity — and status as Nissan North America's best-selling vehicle — the first two generations of Nissan's compact SUV weren't always hits with automotive journalists. While they certainly had their admirers, outlets like Motor Trend weren't hot on the second-gen Rogue, considering it inferior to the Toyota RAV4. That all changed with the third-generation Rogue, which the company introduced in 2020 for the 2021 model year.

The 2021 Rogue was an all-new SUV with many changes and improvements. These included new styling, a refreshed interior, an 181-horsepower 2.5-liter engine, a new CVT, and the Vehicle Motion Control system. The latter monitors the driver's inputs and tries to smooth out the steering, throttle, and braking for the driver. All these improvements resulted in a smooth-driving and comfortable SUV capable of an impressive 30 combined mpg in front-wheel-drive guise with the 2.5-liter engine.

Motor Trend tested the 2021 Rogue for a year and found it enjoyable and practical, if not necessarily amazing. But when you can get a decent example for between $20,000 and $25,000 (per Kelley Blue Book's fair purchase price estimates), that likely won't be too big of an issue.

That said, it's worth being aware of the nine recalls that Nissan has issued for the 2021 Rogue since its launch. These involve issues such as an overheating fuel pump, camera issues, and troublesome brakes. Beyond that, the 2021 Rogue seems broadly trouble-free, with the 121 complaints on the NHTSA website not highlighting any particular major flaw with the car.

Nissan wisely opted not to mess around with the Rogue too much for 2022, retaining all of what made the 2021 Rogue such a hit with consumers and reviewers alike. However, the company did make one major change that addressed the previous year's biggest flaw. The 2022 Rogue saw the debut of an all-new 1.5-liter, three-cylinder VC Turbo engine making a much healthier 201 horsepower and 225 lb-ft of torque compared to the 181 horsepower and 181 lb-ft of torque of the 2021 model.

While the extra power was a definite win on paper, it wasn't quite a slam dunk with critics: Motor Trend appreciated the improved torque output at low revs but felt the 2022 Rogue could have used even more power. Similarly, Autoblog broadly enjoyed the engine, praising its smoother sound profile, responsive turbo, and low-end torque, but acknowledged that it suffered at higher revs. The new engine's improved fuel economy was a much more unequivocal win, though. The smaller engine helped the 2022 Rogue achieve 31 to 33 combined mpg, making it even more economical than its already impressive predecessor.

Kelley Blue Book's fair purchase prices for the 2022 Rogue hover around 70% of MSRP for all trim levels, so it's a solid deal for a reasonably new SUV. Prices start at around $21,000 for the base S Sport trim and climb to just under $28,000 for the highest Platinum trim level. 

Nissan's second-generation Rogue had a rough start, with CVT issues and safety malfunctions plaguing the car for most of its early years. The 2014 Rogue, for example, has 400 complaints on the NHTSA website, with about a quarter involving the car's powertrain — more often than not, the CVT.

These issues persisted for most of the generation, making early second-gen Rogues one of the many used Nissan models to avoid. However, Nissan seemed to have figured things out by the tail-end of the generation. The 2019 and 2020 Rogues, while not quite as well-loved as the third-generation successor, have comparatively few complaints on the NHTSA website, with the 2020 Rogue's 98 complaints a highlight for the generation.

Second-gen Rogues have to make do with a weedy 170-horsepower engine and an older CVT, neither of which owners or reviewers particularly enjoyed. The infotainment also felt dated out of the box, and the years likely won't have helped — even if you get Android Auto and Apple CarPlay as standard. The 2019 Rogue also has many complaints of malfunctioning overzealous forward collision avoidance feature, so you'll want to check that the previous owner had it looked at before buying.

They're neither trouble-free, nor particularly outstanding SUVs, but these are the Rogues to buy if you want to spend less than $20,000. According to Kelley Blue Book, you should be able to find a 2019 Rogue — including the ultra-efficient hybrids — for between $15,000 and $19,000. 2020 Rogues, on the other hand, range between $17,000 and $21,000.

First-generation Nissan Rogues are affordable, with Kelley Blue Book citing used prices of between $3,000 and $6,000 for the various trim levels across the SUV's five-year run. But while these prices may seem like a steal for a fun and generally stylish compact SUV, first-gen Rogues have a major Achilles' heel: the CVT.

Nissan's CVTs are notorious for being problematic, and the Xtronic CVT in the first-generation Rogue is no exception. First-generation Rogues generally have around 300 complaints on the NHTSA website — with the 2013 Rogue having the dubious honor of nearly doubling that amount — and all have one particular point of failure that sticks out: the powertrain.

Owner complaints about the first-generation Rogue's powertrain invariably concern the CVT. The most common issues were sudden stalls and loss of power, often when accelerating uphill. Owners also had to deal with completely wrecked transmissions, and some were unfortunate enough to have multiple CVTs go bad.

That last point is what makes the first-gen Rogue one to avoid. We'd have far fewer reservations about recommending one if there were a guaranteed fix for the transmission woes. As it is, the seemingly fundamental issues with Nissan's Xtronic CVT mean you should avoid these Rogues — even if the $5,000 price seems enticing to you.

Nissan may have introduced an all-new look for the second-generation Rogue, but the nameplate's woes continued unabated. Nissan made several improvements to the new Rogue, including an optional third row that turned it into a seven-seater and improved fuel economy, but the all-new Rogue continued to offer up as many headaches as its predecessor.

Four-to-five hundred complaints on the NHTSA website for each of these years says a lot, with some years — such as 2016 — dominated by CVT-related powertrain issues. However, the CVT wasn't the only pain point for the second generation: the 2017 and 2018 Rogue's safety features also proved troublesome, with owners complaining about a malfunctioning forward collision avoidance feature triggering the brakes suddenly, often with no cars in front.

To Nissan's credit, it attempted to address these issues in 2018 by issuing a service bulletin to help dealers and technicians fix the problem. That might make a fixed 2017 or 2018 Rogue worth considering if you can find one at a great price, but we still think the 2019 Rogue is the better option. For example, Kelley Blue Book estimates around $15,000 for a used 2018 Rogue. While that's not bad, it's also not too much cheaper than the 2019 model, which has significantly fewer recalls and owner complaints. We'd err on the side of caution here and opt for the newer Rogue.