Best city cars to buy 2024
There are plenty of appealing city cars to choose from, so here’s our guide to the best urban runabouts
The best city cars have always offered manoeuvrability, value for money and low running costs, but now these compact cars also offer similar levels of tech and refinement to models that are much bigger in both size and price. Our road testing experts have driven every city car that you can buy in the UK, and we’ve rounded up the very best ones to buy right here.
Best city cars to buy
1. Hyundai i10
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- Prices from £16,000
Our two-time City Car of the Year is the perfect example of just how much city cars have evolved over the years. The Hyundai i10 is still a tiny car that’s an absolute doddle to drive and park, but it’s riddled with the sort of appealing qualities that you’d expect to find in a much bigger and pricier model.
Standard kit on the i10 includes alloy wheels, a touchscreen infotainment system with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, air-conditioning and cruise control, but a midlife update saw the introduction of even more goodies including a digital instrument panel, mood lighting for the cabin and some additional active safety and assistance systems.
All good stuff, but none of that is what makes the i10 such a good car for conquering city traffic – its light steering, tiny turning circle and dinky dimensions do that. It’s actually one of the few cars that are fun to drive in tight spots, and yet, leave the skyscrapers in your rear-view mirror and the i10 is grown up and refined enough to take on more open roads.
The i10’s maturity means it doesn’t follow the apparent trend of offering numerous personalisation options. Instead, the i10 is only available in a five-door form that highlights its focus on usability, offering as much space as many cars in the larger supermini class despite being less than 3.7 metres long. Along with impressive practicality, solid build quality and some decent materials help the cabin feel more upmarket.
2. MINI Cooper
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- Prices from £23,000
- Best driving experience
You could say that the original Mini was a city car pioneer, and the latest MINI Cooper continues this legacy of being a small, affordable and appealing car that’s also fun to drive. It feels quite fancy inside, too, thanks to its soft materials and circular OLED screen.
The MINI Cooper is one of the larger models on this list, coming close to cars in the supermini sector above, but it’s still compact enough to easily tuck away into puny parking spaces. Being a bit bigger also means there’s a decent amount of space for four passengers, although the 200-litre boot is a bit stingy.
If your city’s streets are covered by emissions-based charging, you won’t need to worry as the MINI Cooper is available as an electric car. Opt for this variant and you’ll have up to 250 miles of range on tap, depending on your chosen spec.
3. Fiat 500e
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- Prices from £25,000
- Best for efficiency
The Fiat 500e is exclusively available as an electric car, but there are still plenty of nods to this retro model’s heritage, such as the lack of a traditional grille at the front. Step inside the 500e and the interior’s classic overall look remains, but with some larger dimensions and thoroughly modern materials and tech.
Standard kit is generous with a 10.25-inch touchscreen, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, 16-inch alloy wheels, keyless entry, automatic wipers, cruise control and climate control all included. The battery tech is rather impressive for a small EV, too. Opt for the larger 42kWh pack and the 500e can achieve up to 199 miles of range between charges. It can also be rapid-charged from 10 to 80 per cent in around half an hour.
4. Toyota Aygo X
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- Prices from £16,000
After discontinuing the standard Aygo, Toyota revamped its pint-sized city car with a new crossover-style look, along with a number of upgrades both inside and out. The Toyota Aygo X sits higher which allows for a better view of the road – one of the main advantages of a crossover – and it does a good job of soaking up bumps in the road for a slightly more civilised driving experience, too.
The Aygo X is pretty striking to look at but, while it stands out with its bulky bumpers and ride height, its roots in the previous Aygo are still evident. It’s noticeably roomier than the standard Aygo was in the front, though, and the extra length has also allowed Toyota to increase boot size to a total of 231 litres.
The interior of the Aygo X is a vibrant place to be and manages to be fairly attractive, with flashes of colour and plastics that don’t feel overly cheap. All trim levels come with features such as Android Auto and Apple CarPlay, a reversing camera and adaptive cruise control. Opt for the Edge or Exclusive trim and you can even have a folding canvas roof.
5. Kia Picanto
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- Prices from £15,500
- Longest standard warranty
The latest Kia Picanto is good to drive, has a big-car kit list, is spacious and well-made. The list of improvements goes on, too, as the latest Picanto features a higher quality and better equipped interior and more space, plus it offers a surprisingly grown-up driving experience.
The Picanto’s latest looks are inspired by the Kia EV9 electric SUV. The interior is largely the same as the pre-facelift model, though, as is the engine line-up which consists of a 62bhp 1.0-litre three-cylinder or a 1.2 four-cylinder producing 77bhp.
A host of driver assistance tech is offered for the Picanto, too, including forward collision avoidance assist, blind-spot collision avoidance assist, lane-keeping assist, driver attention warning and lane following assist. So, whether you're travelling in town or on the motorway, the Picanto is reassuringly safe to drive.
6. Suzuki Ignis
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- Prices from £18,000
Much like the Toyota Aygo X, the Suzuki Ignis is another SUV-inspired city car. Suzuki has gone one step further than Toyota here, though, as you have the option of four-wheel drive.
The Ignis’s looks may be somewhat divisive but it offers plenty to the discerning city car buyer. The boxy shape makes it very versatile and spacious, and it’s nippy and nimble around town. It’s also packed with kit thanks to Suzuki’s generous specification, with even the most basic model featuring DAB audio and Bluetooth.
The interior ambience is a little less sophisticated than some of its rivals, with some of the plastics feeling brittle and scratchy, and that lack of sophistication is also evident if you take the Ignis on a run out of town. If you want one you’ll need to be quick, though, as the Ingis is being axed to make way for Suzuki’s upcoming electric cars.
Need a bit more space? Check out our list of the best superminis to buy…
