Audi Q6 e-tron vs BMW iX

The BMW iX costs £9,430 more than the Audi Q6 e-tron. For that premium it adds 45 miles more WLTP range, 115 kW more power and a 1.3s quicker 0-62mph time. The Audi Q6 e-tron is not just cheaper - it also offers 75 kW faster peak rapid charging. On EVcarsguide's combined category scores, the BMW iX comes out ahead overall.

The Audi Q6 e-tron is £9,430 cheaper to buy. Running costs are almost identical - about £152 a year either way, at 8,000 miles on an off-peak home tariff. Add 5 years of charging and the Audi Q6 e-tron comes out roughly £9,310 cheaper overall. These figures cover list price and home charging only - insurance, servicing, tyres and depreciation will move the real total.

EVcarsguide estimates a real-world motorway range of about 318 miles for the Audi Q6 e-tron and 355 miles for the BMW iX - both below their WLTP figures, because sustained high speed is the hardest case for an EV. The BMW iX goes roughly 38 miles further between charging stops. A rapid charge to 80% takes around 22 minutes in the Audi Q6 e-tron and 35 in the BMW iX, so the Audi Q6 e-tron loses less time at each stop. So the BMW iX stops less often while the Audi Q6 e-tron stops for less time - pick on which you would rather do.

The Audi Q6 e-tron is the easier car for tight UK car parks: it is 31 mm narrower than the BMW iX. In a standard 2,400 mm bay that leaves about 461 mm of total clearance for the Audi Q6 e-tron and about 430 mm of total clearance for the BMW iX. The Audi Q6 e-tron also turns in a 0.7 m tighter circle, which helps with U-turns and multi-storey ramps.

Over a 8-year ownership window EVcarsguide's degradation model projects roughly 84% battery health for the Audi Q6 e-tron and 84% for the BMW iX. That is close enough that capacity loss should not decide between them. Both use NMC-type cells, so for daily use keep the charge limit near 80% to slow degradation. Both batteries carry a 8-year manufacturer warranty.