10 Of The Cheapest New Cars You Can Buy In 2025

These days, it can be difficult to get a car that's both cheap and trustworthy. While there are plenty of reliable used cars you can buy under $15,000, any secondhand shopper knows the risks that come with buying something from a previous owner. If those sellers aren't as trustworthy as they seem, you might have spent thousands of dollars on something that breaks down in a week. Luckily, there are still a handful of vehicles that are welcoming to budget buyers — even with their newest models.

All prices listed in this article are taken from the base MSRP of each model, ignoring more expensive trims or optional features. Additionally, the 2024 and 2025 model years are both considered since the former is still readily available today. You might have some trouble finding older years in any brand-new capacity, and as time goes on, you might not be able to find the 2024 models so easily either. Keep this in mind before targeting a specific car mentioned here as your top budget pick.

The Civic Sedan is Honda's least expensive car at $24,250. Due to destination and handling fees, though, this is closer to a little over $25,000 without any extra accessories or packages. The other trims will knock out a couple thousand more dollars out of your wallet, making them a difficult pick for those with a tight budget. We've noted some of the coolest features of the 2025 Honda Civic Hybrid such as its power and safety capabilities, and you're still able to get one for yourself without hitting the $30,000 mark, but the price of alternatives can still make it a tough sell.

One of the many things you should know before buying a Honda Civic is its steep competition. On top of still being the priciest car in this list despite its relative cheapness, there are some other competitively-priced options from Honda itself. The HR-V SUV is just around $1,000 more while the Accord, although it's more expensive, still manages to come in at under $30,000. The Civic is still a respectable option for most, but it's far from the cheapest car you'll find out there.

While Ford faces a similar dilemma to Honda when it comes to cheaper options, the 2024 Maverick is unique in how it's the only truck on this list. This puts it on a level beyond the other vehicles you'll find here thanks to its towing capabilities and overall performance, utilizing a powerful EcoBoost engine with 100 more horsepower than the Civic's base model. There's an established history of Ford Trucks being dirt cheap to maintain, as well, so you won't have to worry too much about even higher costs as you make the most out of your Maverick.

Unfortunately, while the Maverick will continue to find use in the 2025 model year, it comes with an increased cost. The 2024 Maverick is just around $23,920 without accounting for destination fees, but the 2025 Maverick bumps that price up to $26,395. Strangely enough, this price ends up increasing if you choose the EcoBoost engine instead of the hybrid option, even though the opposite is true for the 2024 Maverick. There is some justification to this price increase thanks to upgraded electronics and design changes, but you're still unlikely to be satisfied if the older Maverick is still a little too expensive for you.

The 2024 Subaru Impreza slips under a $23,000 MSRP by just $5, competing against the Civic with respectable specs — although it does lose out when it comes to MPG ratings. Customization features make up for this shortcoming, as there are quite a few more accessory options to choose from. You can also pick from any available color without needing to pay extra, whereas Ford and Honda's alternatives lock certain looks behind a higher price. The car itself is likely to hold up well down the line, too, with its latest models boasting incredible reliability compared to every other generation of the Subaru Impreza.

Like the Maverick, the 2024 Impreza is notably cheaper than its 2025 model. Unlike the Maverick, though, this price increase is only around $500 more, continuing to keep it within tighter budgets. Additionally, because of how Subaru calculates its destination fees, you'll still be able to purchase a base 2025 model without it reaching a cost higher than $25,000. It's still pretty expensive compared to other brands, but Subaru's Impreza remains as a strong contender in the realm of brand-new cheap cars.

The Toyota Corolla, at $22,325, can very easily rival the previously-mentioned sedans on this list. It features the same MPG ratings as the Honda Civic while also having slightly more horsepower, and it's the first car mentioned here to let you customize the interior color. Its additional fees are also fairly low, once again keeping it under $25,000 and even allowing some more room to purchase additional accessories. Simply put, even at its respectable price, there are very few compromises you'll be forced to make if you want to get your hands on a brand-new Corolla.

If the base model is a bit too bland for you, there are also hybrid and hatchback variants of the Corolla that manage to keep under $25,000 as well. Nothing else from Toyota manages to quite squeeze under that barrier when accounting for fees, but if you're willing to spend a little more, the Corolla Cross is one of the few SUVs you'll find at this price point. Either way, with how well it performs against its more expensive rivals, the Corolla is definitely one car that budget buyers should keep an eye on.

Volkswagen's 2025 Jetta reaches just below $22,000 at its own base MSRP, though it also happens to dip under the Corolla's specs with slightly worse MPG and horsepower. It also doesn't have as many options for accessories or colors, but considering the overall lower price, the trade-offs aren't very unfair. The Jetta itself is also a fine choice of vehicle, with the car historically being one of the most reliable Volkswagen models ever made. In other words, the cheap price doesn't mean you'll suffer through cheap build-quality.

When ignoring extra fees, the Jetta's Sport and SE trims also happen to fall under $25,000 in cost. Volkswagen also offers the Taos SUV for under that price, though this only really applies to the 2024 model year. There aren't many other options from the company that are similarly inexpensive, but the Jetta's low-cost trims allow you a bit more freedom even with the fewer accessory options. It all depends on if you think its lessened capabilities are acceptable downgrades for its cost — and if cheaper models don't manage to outshine it.

The Trax, despite being a compact SUV, is Chevrolet's cheapest vehicle at just $20,400 for its MSRP. Luckily, this price won't mean you lose out on a lot, as the SUV still comes with plenty of fine features. Our 2025 Chevrolet Trax review praised its respectable design and incredible base-model value, even beating out some of the more expensive trims thanks to just how much comes standard. It's a very competitively-priced vehicle even when ignoring those positives, lacking in horsepower and MPG but making up for it with great amounts of cargo space.

Interestingly enough, SUVs are pretty much the only new Chevrolet vehicles you'll find under $25,000. This includes the Trailblazer, which is slightly more expensive at the bonus of having better MPG and more standard tech features. For the most part, sedans and trucks from Chevrolet are all far more expensive, making them difficult to recommend for those on a budget. Regardless, you'll be hard-pressed to find many other SUVs at this price point, especially since there are only a couple of options that manage to be cheaper.

The Kia Forte is the first car on this list to reach a price under $20,000 — even if destination fees might deny that. Even so, it's an incredibly strong contender with power and efficiency able to easily rival previously-mentioned sedans. The greatest downside is that you'll have to bear with limited customization options at this low price point, with very few colors or accessories available at the base trim. Strangely, the base trim does happen to get its own unique coloring in Clear White, offering at least a bit of specialty even at its lowest cost.

One thing to note is that the Kia Forte is only available in its 2024 model. As of 2025, the Kia K4 has completely replaced it, offering a more stylized look and a noticeably higher cost. Its specs even end up falling a bit short compared to the Forte, suffering from a less powerful engine and a worse MPG rating. If you can still find a new Kia Forte for yourself today, it's worth considering over this newer variant.

Unlike the Trax, Hyundai's 2024 Venue SUV manages to take the titles of cheapest new Hyundai vehicle and cheapest SUV you can buy brand new under $25K. At $19,900, there's simply no car below it that isn't also a sedan, a hatchback, or a secondhand model. It even manages to push against its Chevrolet rival with higher MPG, though it loses out a bit on horsepower and cargo space. This doesn't change much with the more expensive trim levels, either, but they do come with some extra benefits like SiriusXM and automatic temperature control.

Hyundai does at least have a few other options below $25,000. The Elantra sedan, for one, manages to compete extremely well with its similarly-priced rivals. If you want to go with the newer 2025 model year, the Venue can still compete well with a cost of $20,100 for its base MSRP. There aren't very many differences between the two years, so it mostly depends on which one is more available to you.

At a base MSRP of just $17,190, the Nissan Versa is the one 2025 model year vehicle that reaches below $20,000 even with additional fees taken into account. As a result, its compromises are also much more impactful, unfortunately lacking many of the standard infotainment features or engine power of its more expensive rivals. You're definitely not going to be wowed by what little it comes with, but at its price point, it's a much more reasonable compromise overall. You simply aren't going to find another 2025 model year car that's able to beat out this one's cost unless it's a secondhand purchase.

Even in Nissan's own lineup, no other vehicle reaches a cost this competitive. The Kicks SUV and Sentra sedan come close, but neither one is particularly impressive even when compared to similar models from other brands. In the end, the Nissan Versa is still a perfectly fine pick, and a brand-new vehicle under $20,000 isn't the most reasonable request in the present day. There are some exceptions, of course, but actually getting your hands on them might be more difficult than you think.

While it's not from the latest model year, the 2024 Mitsubishi Mirage hatchback takes the crown as the cheapest brand-new car you can get today. Its base MSRP reaches as low as $16,695, and even its G4 sedan alternative sits comfortably below $20,000 after additional fees. Notably, the Mirage is also the only hatchback to make it onto this list, and its specs still manage to impress with incredible MPG ratings — even though its less-than-80 horsepower is arguably pathetic. Still, it's an attractive choice for those who want the cheapest vehicle possible without relying on third-party sellers.

Unfortunately, this vehicle doesn't have much time left in the brand-new market. Both versions of the Mirage have been discontinued by Mitsubishi, making Nissan's Versa the only vehicle under $20,000 that's still actively in production. It also received some horrendous ratings throughout its lifespan, souring its appeal even further. Even when considering the benefits of saving every last penny, there is such a thing as "too cheap" after all, and you might not have to be too disappointed if you can't find the Mirage in a brand-new condition.