2025 Hyundai Sonata Hybrid Review: What Great Fuel Economy Will Cost You

The days of weird hybrid styling are behind us. Toyota's Prius finally hatched from its oft-ridiculed egg into something head-turning for all the right reasons; a smidge of helpful electrification can now be found hiding across every vehicle segment, usually only flagged with some subtle badging, if that. Nowhere is that clandestine addition of electrons more surreptitious than in midsize sedans like the 2025 Hyundai Sonata Hybrid.

Hyundai's regular Sonata — now in its eighth generation — is gas-only in its cheapest form. The Sonata Hybrid, though, pairs the 2023 facelift (which gave the exterior a not-unpleasant "Mean Robot" aesthetic, and the interior a gadgety revamp more in keeping with the automaker's pure EVs) with a much more frugal powertrain.

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You pay more, naturally: the most affordable electrified trim, the 2025 Sonata Hybrid SEL, starts at $31,150 (plus $1,150 destination). That's a $3,250 premium over the non-hybrid SEL. The Limited trim you see here, meanwhile, starts at $37,600 (plus destination) and sits at the top of the Sonata tree.

Hyundai's hybrid system combines a 2.0-liter inline-four gas engine with an electric motor and a 6-speed automatic transmission. Altogether, there's 192 horsepower: one hp more than the standard 2.5-liter inline four in the base Sonata, though well short of the 290 hp in the turbocharged version.

Unlike the gas-only Sonata, the hybrid version is only available in front-wheel drive. Those hoping for an all-wheel drive sedan will have to give up on Hyundai's electrification.

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There are three drive modes: Eco, the frugal default; Sport, which coaxes a little more enthusiasm from the Sonata; and My Drive, which allows for some personalization of the overall settings. As in other recent Hyundai models, the Sonata's transmission selector is now a stubby, rectangular knob on the lower right side of the steering wheel. That clears up center console space for an expansive armrest, cupholders, and two storage nooks.

Hyundai doesn't skimp on buttons and controls, either. While both the SEL and Limited trims of the Sonata Hybrid get a 12.3-inch touchscreen — with wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto support, along with Navigation on the Limited trim — there are shortcut keys and knobs for jumping between the various infotainment sections and adjusting volume.

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A second set of controls are dedicated to the dual-zone climate control. Sure, the majority of the those are touch-sensitive, and will probably require at least a quick glance down to operate, but better that than entirely adjusted through the touchscreen.

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Only the Limited trim gets a 12-speaker Bose audio system, and the SEL trim has a small, 4.2-inch digital display for the driver versus the 12.3-inch version on the Limited. Both get wireless phone charging and three USB-C ports; only the Limited has interior ambient lighting, a panoramic glass roof, and manual rear side-window sunshades.

The extras in the Limited are pleasant, but both Sonata Hybrid trims share the same spacious cabin with decent passenger room in both rows. Each trim comes in either black or gray, though the SEL's cloth upholstery is upgraded to leather in the Limited. Both get heated front seats; ventilation, and a heated steering wheel, are reserved for the more expensive trim.

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The Sonata's 15.6 cu-ft of trunk space lands it in the middle, between the Camry's 15.1 cu-ft, and the Accord Hybrid's 16.7 cu-ft. The 60/40 split rear bench folds for more space.

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You can't really fault Hyundai's standard safety package. Blind spot warnings, forward collision-avoidance assist with pedestrian, cyclist, and junction-turning detection, lane-keeping and lane-following assistance, adaptive cruise control, and rear cross-traffic collision-avoidance assist are all present on both SEL and Limited trims.

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The latter also gets Hyundai's capable — though hands-on — Highway Driving Assist (HDA) system, all-around parking sensors and a 360-degree camera, and the gimmicky-but-fun Remote Smart Parking Assist, which allows you to maneuver the Sonata Hybrid in and out of tight parking spaces (in a straight line, at least) using buttons on the key fob, and assuming you're standing right next to it.

Nobody will confuse the Sonata Hybrid for a sports sedan or for that matter, an actual EV. Most of the time — admittedly in the depths of the Midwest winter, often with snow on the ground — the gas engine was active, the electric motor called upon mainly for a touch of propulsion support at lower speeds. Pickup from the lights, darting around parking lots, and generally zipping through urban streets all suited the spritely Sonata well.

Beyond that things get, well, boring. Hyundai's sedan is fine on the highway, neither library-quiet nor uncomfortably loud inside at speed. Switching to Sport mode makes things mildly more eager, but we're talking scant gradations, here. Ride quality is average, escaping the austere firmness of suspension some electrified cars adopt to hide their battery heft, but doing nothing to encourage eager cornering.

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To be fair, Hyundai doesn't bill this as anything close to a keen driver's first choice. For that, you'll want the Sonata N Line, which loses the electrification but swaps the 2.5-liter turbo-four in, instead.

I'm a Sonata N Line fan — I think it straddles an appealing line, both good fun but also easy to live with, and the pricing is solid — but it's tough to argue with its hybrid sibling's fuel economy. Hyundai and the EPA say the 2025 Sonata Hybrid should do 44 mpg in the city, 51 mpg on the highway, and 47 mpg combined. That's a sizable gulf from the 27-mpg combined that the N Line is rated for.

It does put the Sonata Hybrid on a collision course with Toyota's latest Camry, mind. Now hybridized across the board, the 2025 Camry gets can hit as much as 51 mpg on the combined cycle, has more power than the Hyundai, and — even in its highest spec with optional AWD added — lands almost exactly atop the $38,600 of a Sonata Hybrid Limited (including destination).

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I'd probably take the Camry over the Hyundai, or the 2025 Honda Accord Hybrid (44-48 mpg combined, and from $33,655 plus destination) for that matter: I prefer the Hyundai interior, but Toyota's offer of AWD is too tempting to give up. Those who don't have to deal with snow and ice for large chunks of their year, though, will find a capable and stylish sedan in the 2025 Sonata Hybrid, with the smartest money likely on the cheaper SEL trim.