The last couple of years have been years of everything getting more and more expensive. Houses, groceries and, of course, cars. That’s why it’s so rare to see new vehicles at an attainable price point of around $25,000. We have two of those vehicles today, the value-packed and all-new 2025 Kia K4 vs. 2025 Honda Civic. But which one of these affordable compact sedans gives you the best experience for the money? Well, that’s what we are about to find out!
Pricing and Equipment
We’ve got a ton of things to cover in this comparison, including features, specs and performance, but let’s start off by quickly establishing the pricing.
For today’s comparison, we’re sticking with the volume-selling trims that are one rung up from the base models and pack in the most value for the best price. We’ll start with the new Kia K4, which in this case is the EX-trim. That starts at under $24,000 and with destination sits at $25,540.
K4 (EX FWD): $23,990 | Options: +$395 | Destination: $1,155 | Total: $25,540
Keeping things equivalent, we have the volume-selling Civic Sport trim. The Kia undercuts it pricewise, after a few years of increases, so after destination, it rings in at a grand total of $27,800.
Civic (Sport FWD): $26,250 | Options: +$455 | Destination: $1,095 | Total: $27,800
By the way, if you want to get the best price from local dealerships and access to invoice pricing info for these two models or any vehicle, we have a tool on our website to do just that. Click here for more information!
Exterior Design
Starting things out with the exteriors, you’ll see they’ve gone with very different design approaches. The refreshed Civic has seen some minor updates this year to make it a bit more aggressive looking, and overall, it has a more mature and sophisticated design than the K4. It, on the other hand, has gone for a bold look with their latest Kia design language. We won’t be grading style preferences, but even despite the prices, both have full LED lighting. They’re reflector LEDs on both and neither have fog lamps.
Heading to the sides, they once again look quite different and, for lengths, both come in as very large options for the segment. I do want to also mention both the Civic and K4, can or will soon be able to be had in hatchback varieties as well, for those who prefer the look and utility.
Length: 185.4-inches (K4) | 184.0-inches (Civic Sedan)
Let’s move to the wheels. The EX K4 comes with a nice looking 17-inch contrast alloy, while the Civic has new 18-inch contrast alloys this year.
We will discuss ride quality later in the test drive for those concerned, but moving to the rear we have partially LED taillights on both. The Civic is more parts LED though, since it’s just LED accenting on the Kia.
Additional Features
Moving along, both mirrors are heated and have blind spot monitoring built in, a new feature added to Civic Sport this year, plus they also have each brand’s entire safety suite included as standard equipment.
That’s a big advantage these two have over the competition, and for warranties, the Kia takes the lead. It has a longer basic and powertrain warranty, but only the Honda has 1-year of complimentary maintenance.
But are the cabins basic at this price point? I think you’ll be surprised at how much you find on the insides, so let’s get to that.
Interior Design
So, approaching the sedans, you will find smart entry systems for both with remote start built into the fobs. It’s only the Honda that integrates a sensor behind the door handle to unlock.
Now opening up the doors to the interiors, you’ll find nicely appointed cabins for the price. Let’s start by talking about the seats themselves. You’ll find cloth seats on both at this price, but Civic does include some leatherette trimming on the outside edges.
For adjustment, both are sticking with manual setups and do not have heating until you get a higher trim.
But let’s get inside and into the major category of overall material quality. Here, we have some differences. The Kia is using more premium soft-touch plastics for the door trim, but the Civic uses a nice piano black through the dash and feels very solid when you sit inside and shut the doors. Overall, it’s too close to score a point.
After you startup these hybrids, you’ll see the gauges are quite different. The Honda gives you a half digital 7-inch setup for the lower trims. Meanwhile, the Kia goes all-in for technology this year and is including a 12.3-inch full digital gauge cluster plus another 4.2-inch helper display as well. That’s a lot more screen size, not to mention the impressive graphics on board.
Coming back to the steering wheels, both are leather wrapped and manual adjusting.
Storage and Technology
Just because these are compact sedans doesn’t mean you don’t need good storage spots, and that’s what we’re talking about next. Both models give you a ton of storage for compact sedans, but the Civic brings it to a whole new level with a center console capable of handling 13 donuts. This might be the only compact sedan to pass the dozen donut test. The Kia’s multifunction cupholder area gives you some extra options but overall, the Civic gives you the most places to put things.
Kia fights back though because that front bin is equipped with an unexpected wireless phone charger.
Donuts:
- K4: 8 donuts
- Civic: 13 donuts
Moving on to the shifters, you’ll find a traditional setup on both. Operation is easy, and when in reverse, you’ll find standard backup cameras. They have active trajectory as well as electronic parking brakes with brake hold systems at red lights.
Now let’s look at the climate controls where there are actually a lot of differences and things to consider. First, I want to acknowledge that the Kia has a dual-zone automatic setup instead of a single-zone of temperature adjustment on the Honda.
The bigger difference is that the Honda has all conventional controls while the Kia has a new combination setup. The basic controls are on the dashboard but there is also a separate 5-inch touchscreen in between the gauges and infotainment system for the rest of the controls. Its surprising to find 3 screens on a car that costs about $25,000, but overall it works well and is responsive.
Now let’s move on to the audio systems and start off my hearing a sample. The Honda has 2 extra speakers over the Kia, and it does elevate the audio experience. Of course, if you really enjoy premium sound, we recommend getting the top trims of both models which have Bose and Harmon Kardon audio respectively.
Civic: 8-speaker audio
K4: 6-speaker audio
And now we come to the infotainment systems, which is undoubtedly one of the biggest differences and things to consider. While the high-end Civics got new and improved tech for the 2025 refresh, the Sport grade is completely left out. It continues with a tiny 7-inch display that doesn’t even come with the HondaLink software. That’s in comparison to the K4 which includes a huge-for-the-segment 12.3-inch screen as standard even on the most affordable trims. It has much better resolution and graphics as well.
Size-aside, both have Android Auto and Apple CarPlay, but only the Kia’s new ccNC system runs them wirelessly.
Wrapping up the front of cabins, each has manual dimming rearview mirrors and does without a sunroof on these trims.
Rear Seats and Cargo
Now let’s head to the back seats and cargo areas. The new K4 has grown a lot over the previous Forte model which has now made it one of the largest options in the segment, along with the Civic. As you can see, the leg and headroom figures are very similar, and are the kinds of numbers that only mid-size sedans had a few years ago.
Civic: Legroom: 37.4-inches | Headroom: 37.1-inches
K4: Legroom: 38.0-inches | 37.3 inches of headroom
As far as features are concerned, of course, there aren’t going to be many but the Civic does have a center arm rest and the Kia has 2 USB ports.
Neither of them has air vents on these trims.
The nearly midsize space trend continues as we head around to the trunks. Finally, a rival has caught up to and even passed up the Civic for trunk space, although just slightly. These both offer impressive space and keep in mind if you need more space, they do offer those hatchback versions I mentioned earlier. They also have spare tires underneath of the floors and folding seats.
Civic: 14.4 cu.ft.
K4: 14.6 cu.ft.
Alright, we’re done with the interiors now, which means it’s time to test out the performance and specs out on the road!
Powertrains
So, while both models have higher performance options and the Civic offers a new hybrid variant as well, these affordable trims come with the base engine options. They happen to both be 2.0 naturally aspirated 4-cylinder engines making just about identical horsepower and torque figures. Expectedly, neither is going to be too exciting when it comes to overall acceleration with those figures, but they certainly get the job done efficiently.
Civic: 2.0L I-4: 150 hp | 133 lb.ft
K4: 2.0L I-4: 147 hp | 132 lb. ft.
As we accelerated in both, you probably noticed they have continuously variable transmissions, or CVT’s. They are tuned to be responsive and don’t have much of that rubber band feel that old CVT’s used to have years ago. One thing worth noting is that the K4 simulates gear changes even at partial acceleration for a more traditional feel with less drone.
Test Drive and Fuel Economy
Also keep in mind that both of them are FWD exclusive.
Now even though both are affordable sedans, you still don’t want your ride to be super noisy all the time. That’s why here at Car Confections we always take sound level readings of all the new cars we test, and this time we found profound differences. The K4 scored as one of the quietest options in the class, while the Civic scored as one of the loudest options. The top trim of the Civic has more sound deadening than the Sport, but this sound level reading proves that Kia includes the extra as standard, even on the lower trims.
K4 EX: 55.9 dB @ 55 MPH
Civic Sport: 60.4 dB @ 55 MPH
Now as far as ride quality is concerned, the K4 takes the lead a bit here. Its smaller wheels and softer suspension tune mean it takes bumps more comfortably overall than the Civic.
But, the Civic has a firmer suspension because it cares about driving dynamics. It has long been one of the very best handing and that continues for 2025, with a buttoned-down feel and quick and responsive steering.
Lastly, let’s get to fuel economy. While not the 50 MPG’s of Civic Hybrid, both get good fuel economy of 33 and 34 MPG, respectively.
Civic Sport 2.0L: 31/39/34 MPG
K4 EX 2.0L: 29/39/33 MPG
Resale and Reliability
In our reviews and comparisons, we are also adding in reliability and resale information to give you a better picture of the overall value beyond just the original MSRP.
Beginning with reliability, we developed the Combined Reliability Index, which takes into account several studies from trustworthy sources, and combines them in a way that gives a more realistic picture. Honda is one of the highest-rated brands, being the 13 slots above the industry average. Kia is also above average for reliability, but to a much lesser extent of 4 slots above average.
We also put Mason’s economics degree to work to develop a detailed Predicted Resale Value tool. After 5 years and 60,000 miles, Honda has the industry’s highest predicted resale value of 64.79%. This compares favorably to Kia which comes in at 49.02%.
Resale is obviously important because it determines how much money you get back, but we can’t forget about the price difference at the original purchase. The Civic costs $2,260 more than the K4, which is honestly very substantially given the affordable price point.
I want to emphasize that if money, reliability or resale value matter less to you personally, feel free to disregard these points. And if you’d like to check out all our data about reliability and resale values, as well as learn about our methodology, make sure to head to www.carconfections.com/resale and www.carconfections.com/reliability. Buying a car is a big decision, and this is a great place to compare all the makes you might be cross-shopping.
2025 Kia K4 vs. 2025 Honda Civic Winner!
So, there you have it; another challenger took on the almighty Civic and gave customers another good compact sedan to consider!
Civic:
- Fun to drive
- Better resale and reliability ratings
- Max front interior storage
K4:
- More premium features in cabin
- Nice technology even on EX trim
- Significantly lower pricing across trim walk
Now we want to know your opinions, so make sure to head to the comment section and let us know which one you would pick!
Thanks for joining us for another Car Confections Comparison! We’ll catch you next time as we sample the latest automotive delicacies!
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