While many brands have been afraid to take on the American rivals when it comes to pickup trucks, Toyota has been taking them on head-to-head for years. Toyota actually very recently redesigned the Tundra, and an all-new mid-size Tacoma is heading to dealerships very soon. The Tacoma is bigger, more luxurious, and pricier than ever before, so it begs the question, who will win in a 2024 Toyota Tacoma vs. 2024 Tundra Battle? That’s what this comparison is designed to figure out, so let’s go ahead and get to it!
Pricing and Equipment
Now obviously this is a sibling rivalry, so we did pick the same trims to make it very fair with our feature comparison.
Beginning with the all-new Tacoma, we opted for the fully-loaded version, called the Limited. It has every luxury feature included, so we just add the paint and destination charge to get to a total price of $54,020.
MSRP (Limited 4×4): $52,100 | Options: $425 | Destination: $1,495 | Total: $54,020
Moving to its full-size brother, the Tundra Limited, actually gets us a similar starting price tag. The difference though is that Limited is only a mid-level trim for his truck, meaning we needed another $6,500 of options to get feature parity with the Tacoma. All told, we’re sitting at a little over 65 grand.
MSRP (Limited 4×4): $56,905 | Options: $6,498 | Destination: $1,850 | Total: $65,678
Now obviously, that creates a bit of a gap between these two models, but rest assured that we will be circling back to this at the end of this comparison for a value assessment. This comparison will be scored objectively, and we have done our best to weigh the points awarded throughout in major and minor categories.
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 info.
But let’s get started with the exteriors!
Exterior Design
So, jumping in with the outsides of these trucks, obviously they will be similar in many ways. Toyota went with a baby Tundra look for the new Tacoma, and it translates to a handsome and tough look on both of them up front. The Tacoma has more chrome, but as far as the lighting, both trucks have premium full-LED lighting that even has sequential turn signals and fog lamps.
Note: the Tacoma’s air dam is easily removable (although it may impact your fuel economy)
Moving to the side, both trucks have the crew cab configuration, with the Tacoma having a 5-foot bed and the Tundra a 5.5-foot bed. Even though they proportionally look the same, the wheels are 2-inches larger on the Tundra than the 18-inch alloys on the Taco.
Rear design wise, this is where they look the most similar since, they have the same design elements. The LED taillights have the same shape, we have some chrome accents and then exhaust outlets that comes out the left-hand side.
Additional Features
And the back is where we will start to move into all the individual features. Starting with the tailgate itself, both have dampened opening and new side release buttons in the taillight. The interesting thing about going the opposite direction is that it’s the Tacoma that has a fully powered gate that will close itself after you knee it upright.
Now in terms of bed features, both have LED lighting and numerous tiedowns, and they both have power outlets.
Moving past the beds to the mirrors, we have heated mirrors with BSM, and as far as the other 4 main active safety features, Toyota always includes them standard across all trim levels of both trucks.
Toyota: Warranty: Basic Warranty: 3yr/36k mi | Powertrain: 5yr/60k mi | Comp Main: 2 yrs
Finally, as you would expect, if towing is important to you, then choosing the full-size truck will have big advantages. The Tundra Limited can handle about twice the weight of the Tacoma, and payload numbers are also going to be higher as well.
Towing:
- Tundra: 11,120 lbs
- Tacoma: 6,400 lbs
PAYLOAD:
- Tundra: 1,575-1,820 lbs
- Tacoma: 1,380-1,705 lbs
Interior Design
Alrighty, let’s move on to the interiors, but first I do want to mention that both have the expected smart entry systems and subscription-based remote start.
Now once you open up the doors, you will see that the Tacoma’s Mini-Tundra design is certainly present on the inside. But there are plenty of differences as well, one of which you can use immediately: the power running boards. A higher end Tundra would be required for that feature.
As far as the seats are concerned, we have 8 and 10-ways pf power adjustment, since Tundra doesn’t have 4-way lumbar, and both of them cover their seats in SoftTex leatherette.
Until recently, it’s been rare for a mid-size truck to have both heating and ventilation, but both of them do, and only Tundra has memory seats.
Let’s get completely inside and evaluate the major category of overall materials. This next-gen Tacoma took a major step here and now matches its big brother. Both of them have lots of leatherette and soft materials where you usually touch, although only Tundra pads the center console and only Tacoma has the faux wood décor.
Now after startup, you’ll see that the new Tacoma has switched to a digital gauge, measuring in at 12.3-inches. The Tundra would require moving up the trim structure to upgrade the gauges, and the same goes for the head up display.
Checking out the steering wheels, they have the same Toyota truck wheel, which is manually adjusting and heated.
Storage and Technology
Now the next area to evaluate is interior storage where, surprisingly, it goes back and forth. While Tacoma is great for a mid-sizer, the Tundra’s console is a lot wider, front storage and chargers are the same, and only the Tacoma has a passenger storage shelf.
Moving on to the shifters, they are the same traditional ones, and once you go into reverse, you will see high-resolution 360-degree cameras with lots of views. This is quite helpful when lining up trailers, and speaking of trailers, these trucks have trailer backup assist and trailer brake controllers.
Both also have dual zone automatic climate controls and now let’s give the audio systems a sample. Toyota’s up-level audio systems are JBL on all their vehicles, and while Tundra does have more speakers, they sound pretty much equal.
Additionally, Tacoma has a removeable and rechargeable speaker that you can take with you on the go.
Tacoma: 10-speaker JBL Premium audio system
Tundra: 12-speaker Bose Premium sound system
Now for the main infotainment systems, the Tundra was way ahead of Tacoma for the last couple years but no more. Now they both have the huge 14.0-inch screens, with the newest Toyota software. That means dynamic navigation and wireless AA and ACP are included.
Finally, ending the front areas, both have smart camera mirrors, but we otherwise have differences. The Tundra has exclusive power rear glass where the entire panel opens and closes, but it doesn’t have any glass on the roof, unlike the Tacoma.
Rear Seats and Cargo
In the back both are crew cabs but that’s obviously not the whole story. Tundra delivers over 20% more legroom which is certainly better for taller people. Headroom is the almost exactly the same and good for people of all sizes.
Tundra: Legroom: 41.6-inches | Headroom: 38.5 inches
Tacoma: Legroom: 33.7-inches | Headroom: 38.4 inches
For amenities, the Tundra scores credit for having rear vents, and a fold down center arm rest, but both have USB and household power outlets.
The seats can fold out of the way to reveal hidden under seat storage.
But there’s still one critical area to cover, and that’s the drive, so let’s take this fight to the streets!
Powertrains
Now when it comes to these two trucks, Toyota lost 2 of the cylinders when they redesigned both of them, meaning we now have 4 and 6-cylinders in the Tacoma and Tundra respectively. In both cases though, power increased over the old models and feel a lot quicker on the street. Compared to each other, the Tundra has a pretty size horsepower and torque advantage, and even though its bigger, it does translate to faster 0-60 times.
Tundra: 3.5L Twin-Turbo V-6: 389 hp | 479 lb.ft
- 0-60: 6.1s (Car & Driver)
Tacoma: 2.4L Turbo I-4: 278 hp | 317 lb.ft
- 0-60: 7.0s (Car & Driver)
As far as the transmissions are concerned, both have upgraded here as well. The Tacoma now has an 8-speed automatic, while the Tundra has a 10-speed auto. More gears don’t necessarily mean better, and they both seem to do a great job here. One advantage though is that Tacoma still offers a 6-speed manual transmission on most trims for those who are interested.
Test Drive and Fuel Economy
Before we get into on-road performance, I do want to mention that both these two trucks will perform quite well off-road. These aren’t the ideal trim selections for that kind of comparison, but we hope to do this again with TRD Pro’s for those who like to get off the beaten path.
On-road both trucks have good manners, but we must commend the Tacoma in particular for adding new adaptive dampers to the Limited trim. This helps smooth out a lot of those small vibrations and bounces that the Tundra will still have since it can’t get adaptive dampers until the Platinum grade.
Otherwise, both of them handle the big bumps and potholes with ease.
Here at Car Confections, we measure how quiet all the vehicles are that we test. So, at 55 MPH, the Tacoma achieves 57 dB and 54.9 dB for the Tundra. Anything greater than a 1 dB difference is noticeable to most adults, so Tundra wins here.
Tacoma: 57.0 dB @ 55 MPH
Tundra: 54.9 dB @ 55 MPH
Finally, when it comes to fuel economy, the smaller trucks gets better fuel economy by 10%. Both also have hybrid versions that are already available or will be offered soon.
Tundra 4×4: 17/22/19 MPG
Tacoma 4×4: 20/23/21 MPG
Should you pay for the bigger truck?
So that’s the end of this Toyota truck comparison! They both have distinct advantages, and it was a very tight race before correcting for the price difference. With those advantages in mind, let’s talk about who should be “your” winner.
Tundra:
- If you need full-size truck towing capabilities
- Power hungry people (more power, faster)
- Larger interior
Tacoma:
- More luxury features on Limited
- Spend less money
- Adaptive dampers (ride quality)
- Smaller and more maneuverable
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!
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