Hyundai KONA Electric (2018-2023) vs Kia EV2

The Hyundai KONA Electric costs £1,500 more than the Kia EV2. On the headline specs that premium buys little measurable advantage - the two are closely matched on range, charging and space. The Kia EV2 is not just cheaper - it also offers 91 miles more WLTP range and 106 kW faster peak rapid charging. On EVcarsguide's combined category scores, the Kia EV2 comes out ahead overall.

The Kia EV2 is £1,500 cheaper to buy. Running costs are almost identical - about £144 a year either way, at 8,000 miles on an off-peak home tariff. Add 5 years of charging and the Kia EV2 comes out roughly £1,500 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 158 miles for the Hyundai KONA Electric and 234 miles for the Kia EV2 - both below their WLTP figures, because sustained high speed is the hardest case for an EV. The Kia EV2 goes roughly 76 miles further between charging stops.

The two are within 0 mm on width, so neither is meaningfully easier to thread into a tight space. In a standard 2,400 mm bay that leaves about 600 mm of total clearance for the Hyundai KONA Electric and about 600 mm of total clearance for the Kia EV2. The Kia EV2 also turns in a 0.4 m tighter circle, which helps with U-turns and multi-storey ramps.

Over a 8-year ownership window EVcarsguide's degradation model projects roughly 86% battery health for the Hyundai KONA Electric and 84% for the Kia EV2. That gives the Hyundai KONA Electric 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. The Hyundai KONA Electric has the longer battery warranty at 8 years, versus 7 for the Kia EV2.