Lexus LX And Toyota Land Cruiser Compared: Is The Extra Money You Pay For The Luxury Brand Worth It?

Lexus was first established as Toyota's luxury brand back in 1989, and in the 35 years since its creation, Lexus has produced some of the most stylish and reliable luxury vehicles on the market, narrowly edging out its parent company as the most reliable car brand out there. The reason these two companies are in such lockstep with one another is that many of the vehicles across both brands are the same, with Lexus selling the more luxurious version. For example, the Lexus ES series is directly drawn from the Toyota Camry, and the Lexus NX is merely a fancy Toyota RAV-4.

Because the reliability and functionality of the standard and luxury versions are essentially the same, the question becomes whether you want to pay more money for all the added features a Lexus gets you. As technology advances and more features that once seemed like pipe dreams become standard issue, it is becoming less and less clear what the distinction between a regular and a luxury vehicle is.

We'll take a look at two cases to see if we can spot a difference: the Toyota Land Cruiser, the full-size SUV that has been part of the company's lineup since the 1950s, and the Lexus LX, its luxury equivalent that first hit the market in the mid-1990s. 

Before we get into any of the specs, equipment, or features, we need to look at the actual prices of these two SUVs. Both vehicles are in the top-tier price range for their respective companies, but one is significantly larger than the other. At $56,540, the 2025 Toyota Land Cruiser is already expensive for a lot of people, but it doesn't come close to what the 2025 Lexus LX goes for. The latest model starts at a whopping $106,850, and that's if you want to have a fully gas-powered vehicle. Spring for the new hybrid powertrain, and the starting price is even higher at $115,350, making it the most expensive vehicle that Lexus offers. 

Of course, the chances of you getting these SUVs for those prices are slim to none once you consider which trim you will be getting, what packages you add on, or mandatory features that aren't included in the sticker price. For the Land Cruiser, you could easily find yourself spending over $60,000, and for the LX, it could be over $120,000. 

Although they look incredibly similar, what's under the hood of these two SUVs is quite different. The Toyota Land Cruiser is only sold as a hybrid model in the United States, so the engine is smaller than you might imagine for a full-size SUV. It has a 2.4L i-FORCE Max I4 engine under the hood; combined with the hybrid electric motor, it is able to generate 326 hp and 465 lb.-ft. of torque. There are no other engine upgrades as options, so if that's the power you want, that's the power you get.

Unlike the Land Cruiser, the LX does not come standard as a hybrid model, but it recently received that option with the introduction of the LX 700h. The standard 2024 LX 600 utilizes a 3.4L twin-turbo V6 engine, which was adopted in 2021 after using previously using V8 engines exclusively. With the V6, the LX has a power output of 409 hp and 479 lb.-ft. of torque. The torque measurements for the two models are fairly close, but when it comes to raw horsepower, there really is no comparison.

Comparing a hybrid to a non-hybrid is a bit apples to oranges, but even with this newly offered hybrid option, it's still using that 3.4L V6 engine. In fact, Lexus has stated that its output will be 457 hp and 583 lb.-ft. of torque. If you are paying more for extra power, you won't be disappointed.

One of the great things about modern automobiles is how much they've improved on safety. Both the Toyota Land Cruiser and Lexus LX have the ability to be exceptionally safe vehicles thanks to features like a backup camera, pedestrian detection, lane change assist, and more. All of these features are available for the Land Cruiser and the LX, but not all of these features come standard for both vehicles.

Some features are standard, such as the backup camera and the blind spot monitor. However, features like front cross-traffic alert, lane change assist, and traffic jam assist are all extra options you need to purchase for the Land Cruiser. For the LX, every one of these options comes standard. 

Even more surprising is how Land Cruiser handles the two available trims, with these options only being available for the standard trim and not even options on the 1958 trim. When you are paying for the LX, you are paying for everything to be available to you.

There are two places where luxury is most evident in a vehicle. The first is the interiors. The materials used and the comfort with which people are able to exist within the cabin are people's first blush with what true luxury can be. Here, we see some significant divergences in what comes standard for an LX and what is either unavailable or requires an additional purchase for the Land Cruiser.

As you would expect, the LX uses leather as the standard material for its seats, which are available in either black or Palomino color schemes. The Land Cruiser comes standard with SofTex, which is essentially just a synthetic leather substitute. You can get leather seats in a Land Cruiser, but that's a premium package that will cost $4,600 extra. The LX uses wood throughout the cabin for its trim, whereas the Land Cruiser uses more synthetic material as well. There is also no option to upgrade to wood trimming for the Toyota.

The LX comes with a heated driver's seat that is adjustable in ten different ways with a memory function. The Land Cruiser doesn't have a heated seat standard, and it is only adjustable eight ways. Plus, if you want a memory function, that will cost you extra. You do need to go to the upper trim levels of the LX to get things like ventilated front seats and heated second-row seats, but the lowest LX level still gets you way more than the Land Cruiser.

Along with the interiors, the other major place where luxury is evident is the modern convenience features. Admittedly, the Toyota Land Cruiser has a lot to offer in this realm. For starters, there are six USB ports available standard. The base level LX also has six USB ports standard, but in an odd move, the LX 700h Ultra Luxury model only has four. That may seem trivial, but if you need a vehicle this large, you may need to accommodate a significant amount of people's devices. However, it does offset that with a rear wireless charger, which is unique to that trim.

Beyond that, the LX far outpaces the Land Cruiser for technology. The LX has a heads-up display that comes standard across all trims, but the Land Cruiser requires an additional package purchase for that. The same goes for wireless charging. Just about everything the Land Cruiser has an option for, the LX does standard. Then there are things that the LX has as options that aren't even available for the Land Cruiser, such as a rear entertainment system or massagers in the front seats. When you start adding all the options and packages to the Land Cruiser to make it on par with the LX, you're getting quite close to the price of the actual LX. 

Very few people ride around in their vehicles completely silently. They listen to music on the radio, or they connect their phone to play audio. While both vehicles are able to easily handle Bluetooth, Apple CarPlay, and Android Auto as standard features, how you hear them is a major difference.

The Toyota Land Cruiser comes standard with an audio system that features 10 speakers — the same number of speakers as the Lexus LX on several of its trims, including the base level 600 Premium and 700h Overtrail. It is in the upgrades where the disparity really comes to light. The best you are going to get in the Land Cruiser is a 14-speaker system designed by JBL. For many people, that is a tremendous upgrade, and JBL does make very high quality speakers. 

However, for the LX, the upgraded speaker system goes from 10 to 25 speakers with a system designed by Mark Levinson (the system can be added as an upgrade for 10 speaker trims) In comparison, there isn't a Land Cruiser trim that has the JBL system standard. 

There are people who will think that 25 speakers are overkill and could be distracting to a driver, but others want nothing but the highest quality possible, and Lexus delivers that.

There is no question that the Lexus LX is a far costlier option than its sister vehicle, the Toyota Land Cruiser. The two have many similarities in design, but when it comes to the amenities, the luxury, and the performance, the Lexus is clearly the superior option. 

However, just because the LX has all of the bells and whistles that you could ask for, that doesn't mean that it is the right vehicle for you or the best way to spend your money. You need to think about what features are important to you and the comfort you want to ride in every day. Most importantly, you need to think about your own financial situation and whether it is feasible for you to even own the Lexus. 

If you have the means and money is not a factor, then there is little reason not to go with the LX. However, if you need to weigh your options, the Land Cruiser still delivers a quality, reliable experience that you would hope to get from a company as highly rated as Toyota. However, if the Land Cruiser is already out of your price range, there are many other alternatives out there for it, too.