If you need an affordable car or SUV with great reliability and plenty of features, chances are you’ve looked at the current Hyundai. With some major awards in recent years, the Korean manufacturer has been going from strength to strength. But what are their cars like to own and run – and what type of gas mileage numbers are you going to see?
With such a large model range, finding the best Hyundai for you isn’t easy. There are almost too many options, so to make things easier we wanted to put together the Hyundai models with the best fuel economy and how they compare.
Below, we’ve broken down the Hyundai range into a few sections depending on their engines and powertrains and listed all the vital info you need to check fuel economy on your next Hyundai.
Let’s get started!
Gasoline / Hybrid Models
The below section covers gasoline and self-charging hybrid models in the Hyundai range. We’ll cover other vehicles later, but for now, if you want a lot of gas mileage for your money, these are the Hyundais to go for.
4. Kona: 28-30 (Urban) / 33-35 (Highway)
The first car on our list is the Kona. This small SUV comes with a couple of engine choices; a 2-Liter naturally aspirated option or a 1.6L turbocharged engine. The Kona also comes with the option of all-wheel drive, which hurts fuel economy figures slightly.
Overall though, with between 147-195 bhp, the Kona can boast decent gas mileage for a car like this. We’ve left out the Kona N on this comparison, though – as the performance model, it’s a very different car, and with 276 bhp the fuel economy takes a big hit.
Hyundai Kona MPG figures:
- SE FWD: 30 / 35
- SEL FWD: 30 / 35
- Limited FWD: 30 / 35
- N-Line FWD: 30 / 35
- SE AWD: 28 / 33
- SEL AWD: 28 / 33
- Limited AWD: 28 / 33
- N-Line AWD: 28 / 33
With a fuel tank size of just over 13 gallons, there are around 400 miles available in a full tank in the Kona. This isn’t exceptional for SUVs like this, but it’s still capable of getting you through longer journeys without too many issues.
With a fuel capacity of 13.2 gallons, you should achieve a journey of:
- Urban driving distance on a single tank of fuel: 370 – 396 miles
- Highway driving distance on a single tank of fuel: 436 – 462 miles
3. Venue: 29 (Urban) / 33 (Highway)
Next on our list is the Hyundai Venue. This is Hyundai’s entry-level SUV and their smallest non-car model. Starting at under $20,000, this is a great SUV if you’re on a budget, but how expensive is it to run?
With a single engine choice, the Venue comes with a 1.6-Liter naturally aspirated engine. This gets you 121 bhp and more importantly, an average of 31 mpg combined. The Venue is only available in front-wheel drive, so gas mileage isn’t impacted here.
Hyundai Venue MPG figures:
- SE: 29 / 33
- SEL: 29 / 33
- Limited: 29 / 33
With a fuel tank size of just under 12 gallons, this isn’t a great car for regular long journeys. As the Venue is the smallest Hyundai SUV, we wouldn’t expect a larger fuel tank here. The Venue is designed as a perfect city crossover, and for that purpose, you won’t need to run hundreds of miles in one go.
With a fuel capacity of 11.9 gallons, you should achieve a journey of:
- Urban driving distance on a single tank of fuel: 345 miles
- Highway driving distance on a single tank of fuel: 393 miles
2. Elantra: 28-30 (Urban) / 36-40 (Highway)
Moving away from Hyundai SUVs, we have the Elantra next. This is their entry-level sedan and comes in seven trim levels. More importantly, the Elantra range includes two self-charging hybrids with the best mpg figures we’ve seen so far.
Engine choice in the Elantra includes a 2.0L option and a 1.6L turbocharged engine from the gasoline-only range. Move up to the hybrid models, and you have a 1.6L turbocharged engine with a small motor. Hybrid models have a combined 139 bhp, which comes in slightly lower than 147 bhp from low-spec gasoline models, and way under the 201 bhp on the higher-spec models.
For this list, we’ve also left out the Elantra N model. Just like the Kona N, the performance version of the Elantra is a very different car from the rest of the Elantra range, so we’ve excluded this from the gas mileage comparison.
Hyundai Elantra MPG figures:
- SE: 33 / 42
- SEL: 30 / 40
- Limited: 30 / 40
- N-Line: 28 / 36
With just over 12 gallons, the Elantra’s standard fuel tank is lower than some rivals, but you should be able to get over 400 miles from a tank on a highway journey. The hybrid version includes a smaller 11-gallon tank, but the additional gas mileage makes up for this.
With a fuel capacity of between 11 and 12.4 gallons, you should achieve a journey of:
- Urban driving distance on a single tank of fuel: 347 – 372 miles
- Highway driving distance on a single tank of fuel: 446 – 496 miles
1. Sonata: 23-50 (Urban) / 33-54 (Highway)
In our top spot, we have the Hyundai Sonata. This mid-tier sedan comes in 8 trim levels; 5 standard and 3 hybrid options.
For the standard gasoline-only engines, you have the choice between a 2.5-Liter or a turbocharged 1.6L. With 191 bhp in the 2.5 option, compared to 180 bhp from the 1.6 Liter turbo, there isn’t a lot of difference in performance. The N-line trim gets a turbocharger added to the 2.5L engine though, creating 290 bhp.
Hybrid models come with a 2.0L engine and electric motor combo, generating a combined 192 bhp. As you’d expect, these are the most fuel-efficient options too.
Hyundai Sonata MPG figures:
- SE: 28 / 38
- SEL: 27 / 37
- SEL Plus: 27 / 37
- N-Line: 23 / 33
- Limited: 27 / 37
- Hybrid Blue:50 / 54
- Hybrid SEL: 45 / 51
- Hybrid Limited: 45 / 51
With a larger fuel tank of just over 13 gallons, combined with great gas mileage figures, you can expect to get up to 600 miles from a full tank. Hybrid models push those numbers even higher, and based on claimed figures, you could hit 700 miles on a highway journey.
With a fuel capacity of 13.2 gallons, you should achieve a journey of:
- Urban driving distance on a single tank of fuel: 594 – 660 miles
- Highway driving distance on a single tank of fuel: 673 – 713 miles
Plug-In Hybrid Models
Next up, we wanted to cover the plug-in hybrid models in the Hyundai range. We’ve covered the self-charging hybrid models in our section above, but we wanted to keep plug-in models separate. In our opinion, the charging requirements and MPG stats make owning a plug-in hybrid a very different experience.
Santa Fe Plug-In Hybrid: 33 (Urban) / 33 (Highway)
First up is the Sante-Fe model. This mid-size SUV is one of Hyundai’s best-selling models, and the plug-in hybrid has been partly responsible for that success. Starting at $42,000, this is an expensive SUV for its class, but the 30 miles of electric range and 33 MPG go a long way to justifying the investment.
With full power, these Santa-Fe models put out 261 bhp, and you’ll find each hybrid trim packed with features. The fuel capacity is a little low, at 12.4 gallons, but this is an excellent SUV for city driving and short-term commuting.
With a fuel capacity of between 12.4 gallons, you should achieve a journey of:
- Urban driving distance on a single tank of fuel: 409 miles
- Highway driving distance on a single tank of fuel: 409 miles
Tucson Plug-In Hybrid: 35 (Urban) / 35 (Highway)
Hyundai also has a plug-in hybrid version of their popular Tucson SUV. Smaller than the Santa-Fe, and missing a few options and features, the Tucson hybrid starts at $37,500. For this, you get the same engine-motor combo that we saw in the Santa Fe, with the same 261 bhp.
Unless you need the space for larger families or you want the extra features, the Tucson would be our choice over the Santa Fe. With a claimed 33 miles of electric-only range, commuting is straightforward here too. The only complaint we have is the small fuel tank, but that’s only an issue for longer journeys.
With a fuel capacity of between 11.1 gallons, you should achieve a journey of:
- Urban driving distance on a single tank of fuel: 507 miles
- Highway driving distance on a single tank of fuel: 507 miles
Fuel Cell Models & Electric Models
Along with the gasoline and hybrid options in the Hyundai range, you also have the choice of a few electric-only cars and, surprisingly, a hydrogen fuel cell model too. We’ll cover the electric options in a separate article, as we’ll need to focus on range and charging times there, but we wanted to cover the Nexo in this article.
With a combined mpg of 61, the Nexo is a rare sight on a vehicle list. There are only a handful of hydrogen cell vehicles on sale, and sales figures are very low. With a lack of infrastructure to support hydrogen cars, it’s impressive to see Hyundai selling a model to a limited customer base, but it’s also great to see what might be the future of the industry.
FAQs
Which Hyundai has the best fuel economy?
The Hyundai Sonata Hybrid has the best fuel economy of any gas-powered Hyundai. Overall, the Hyundai Nexo fuel cell model has the best economy.
Which Hyundai has the best worst economy?
Two models in the Hyundai range share the worst fuel economy figures – the Palisade and the Santa Cruz. Both have an average mpg of 23
Which Hyundai has the largest fuel tank?
The Hyundai Palisade has the largest fuel tank, with 18.8 gallons.
Final Thoughts
Compared to other manufacturers, the Hyundai range offers some great options for getting the best gas mileage figures. You have plenty of strong gasoline-only vehicles alongside a solid range of hybrid and plug-in hybrids. Finally, the growing electric range and the introduction of the Nexo fuel cell model means you have those future-proof options available now.
If you liked this article and want to see more gas mileage figures or find out more about Hyundai models, check out the links below:
Which Hyundai Models Have Ambient Lighting?
Which BMW Has The Best Fuel Economy?
Which Lexus Has The Best Fuel Economy?
Which Hyundai Models Have Ventilated Seats?
The Hyundai Convenience Package Explained
