BMW i5 vs Hyundai IONIQ 6 N

The BMW i5 costs £1,995 more than the Hyundai IONIQ 6 N. For that premium it adds 54 miles more WLTP range and 119 litres more boot space. The Hyundai IONIQ 6 N is not just cheaper - it also offers 145 kW faster peak rapid charging, 228 kW more power and a 2.8s quicker 0-62mph time. On EVcarsguide's combined category scores, the BMW i5 comes out ahead overall.

The Hyundai IONIQ 6 N is £1,995 cheaper to buy. The BMW i5 is cheaper to charge, roughly £160 a year versus £192 for the Hyundai IONIQ 6 N, at 8,000 miles on an off-peak home tariff. Add 5 years of charging and the Hyundai IONIQ 6 N comes out roughly £1,835 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 297 miles for the BMW i5 and 252 miles for the Hyundai IONIQ 6 N - both below their WLTP figures, because sustained high speed is the hardest case for an EV. The BMW i5 goes roughly 45 miles further between charging stops. A rapid charge to 80% takes around 30 minutes in the BMW i5 and 18 in the Hyundai IONIQ 6 N, so the Hyundai IONIQ 6 N loses less time at each stop. So the BMW i5 stops less often while the Hyundai IONIQ 6 N stops for less time - pick on which you would rather do.

The BMW i5 is the easier car for tight UK car parks: it is 40 mm narrower than the Hyundai IONIQ 6 N. In a standard 2,400 mm bay that leaves about 500 mm of total clearance for the BMW i5 and about 460 mm of total clearance for the Hyundai IONIQ 6 N. The Hyundai IONIQ 6 N also turns in a 0.3 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 BMW i5 and 89% for the Hyundai IONIQ 6 N. That gives the Hyundai IONIQ 6 N a modest edge in retained real-world range. Both use NMC-type cells, so for daily use keep the charge limit near 80% to slow degradation.