What’s New for the 2025 Kia Sorento?

Kia updated its three-row Sorento SUV for the 2024 model year, while the hybrid and plug-in hybrid versions didn’t receive those same updates until 2025. So, which year of the Sorento — or Sorento Hybrid, or Sorento PHEV — is right for you? We’ll break it down below and help you make a decision.

Related: 2024 Kia Sorento Review: There Isn’t Only 1 Highlander

What’s New for 2025?

For the 2025 Sorento, very little is “new.” A new paint color and some different badging choices are the most significant changes from 2024, which got new exterior styling that looks more like its Telluride sibling, as well as interior tech upgrades including available dual 12.3-inch displays for the instrument panel and touchscreen and standard wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto smartphone connectivity. Those upgrades to the 2024 Sorento are the same ones we’re seeing now on the 2025 Sorento Hybrid and PHEV, the latter of which also gets a more affordable and less well-equipped starting trim, the EX, in addition to the SX-Prestige trim that was the sole choice for 2024.

Trim Levels and Pricing

Pricing for the 2025 models is as follows (includes $1,375 destination fee); pricing is unchanged from 2024 unless noted in parentheses. Front-wheel drive is standard on the Sorento and Sorento Hybrid and all-wheel drive is optional; the Sorento PHEV is AWD-only. Shoppers can choose AWD on the Sorento S for $2,000 or the Sorento Hybrid EX for $1,800.

Sorento

• LX: $33,365
• S: $35,965 ($200 increase)
• EX: $39,465 ($100 increase)
• SX: $43,065
• X-Line EX: $43,165 ($100 increase)
• X-Line SX: $44,865
• X-Line SX-P: $47,765
• X-Pro SX-P: $48,765

Sorento Hybrid

• EX: $40,065 ($1,700 increase)
• SX-P: $48,265 ($4,100 increase)

Sorento PHEV

• EX: $49,365 (new for 2025)
• SX-P: $54,465 ($2,800 increase)

Exterior paint colors for all trims of the gas-only Sorento include Panthera Metal gray, Everlasting Silver, Ebony Black, Glacial White Pearl and Dawning Red; the latter two are $495 options. Wolf Gray and Midnight Lake Blue are $495 options for the S trim and up; all X-Line trims and the X-Pro are available in no-cost Jungle Green or Road Rider Brown. The Sorento Hybrid and PHEV are available in Interstellar Gray, Steel Gray, Silky Silver ($495), Aurora Black Pearl, Mineral Blue, Cityscape Green and Volcanic Sand tan. The SX-Prestige trim of the PHEV is also available in nonpearl Aurora Black.

Powertrain Specs and MPG

The 2025 Sorento’s LX and S trims are powered by a normally aspirated 2.5-liter four-cylinder engine producing 191 horsepower and 195 pounds-feet of torque; it’s paired with an eight-speed automatic transmission. The LX is FWD-only, and the S can be equipped with AWD. All other trims of the gas-powered Sorento get a turbocharged version of that 2.5-liter with 281 hp and 312 pounds-feet of torque and mated to an eight-speed dual-clutch automatic. AWD is still an option on EX and SX trims, but all others come standard with it. Fuel economy varies depending on engine choice and drive configuration; FWD trims with the base engine are EPA-rated at 23/31/26 mpg city/highway/combined, while adding AWD drops some of those ratings to 23/28/25 mpg. The turbocharged engine is thirstier, at 20/29/23 mpg with FWD and 20/27/23 mpg with AWD. Towing capacity is 2,000 pounds with FWD, 3,500 pounds on most AWD trims and 4,500 pounds on the X-Pro.

The hybrid is available with FWD or AWD, but the sole powertrain choice is a 1.6-liter turbocharged four-cylinder mated to two electric motors; it offers 227 hp and 258 pounds-feet combined and is paired to a six-speed automatic transmission. Fuel economy is rated 36/36/36 mpg with FWD and 34/34/34 mpg with AWD.

Meanwhile, the PHEV is AWD-only, and its gas-electric powertrain makes a combined 260 hp and 270 pounds-feet; it pairs the 1.6-liter four with an electric motor and a 14-kilowatt-hour battery pack. Fuel economy drops to a Kia-estimated 74 mpg-equivalent from the EPA’s 79 mpg-e rating for the 2024 model, and Kia estimates all-electric range drops to 30 miles from the 2024’s 32 miles.

Kia lists both the hybrid and PHEV’s towing capacity at just 1,654 pounds regardless of configuration.

Tech Features

The 2025 Sorento’s showpiece tech feature is its standard 12.3-inch touchscreen display with standard wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto smartphone connectivity. A companion 12.3-inch digital instrument panel is also available. Higher trim levels are also available with Kia’s Digital Key 2.0 feature that allows certain smartphones or a digital keycard to function as the key to operate the Sorento.

Safety and Driver-Assistance Features

The Sorento’s standard safety suite includes forward collision warning with pedestrian and cyclist detection, automatic emergency braking and oncoming traffic detection when making a left turn. A digital rearview camera mirror, 360-degree camera system and Kia’s hands-on semi-autonomous Highway Driving Assist 2 feature with automatic lane changes are available on higher trims.

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety named the 2025 Sorento a 2024 Top Safety Pick, its lesser designation, and the 2024 Sorento’s first two rows aced our Car Seat Check; the third row struggled, however.

Should You Buy a 2024 or 2025 Kia Sorento?

The upgrades to the 2025 Sorento Hybrid and PHEV, as well as the availability of a lower trim for the PHEV, make the 2025 models an easier pill to swallow over the outdated 2024s — barring significant deals that may become available. There are no federal tax benefits to pulling the trigger on a 2024 PHEV, however, though local incentives may be available.

As for the gas-powered Sorento, the price changes and differences between the 2024 and 2025 models are so minimal — if they exist at all — that shoppers can’t go wrong with either model year. There are more than 1,600 new 2024 Sorentos and over 10,000 2025 models listed on Cars.com as of this writing, however, so finding a 2025 will be significantly easier. We recently reviewed the updated 2024 gas-powered Sorento and found it to be a budget-friendly alternative to similarly equipped Toyota Highlanders, long the gold standard of family SUVs with third rows most useful only in case of emergency.

More From Cars.com:

• 2025 Kia Sorento Named IIHS Top Safety Pick, Mixed Results in Grab-Bag Test Session
• 2025 Kia Sorento Stays Steady on Base Price, Starts at $33,365
• 2025 Kia Sorento Plug-In Hybrid Face-Lifted, Price Drops to $49,365
• Face-Lifted 2025 Kia Sorento Hybrid Starts at $40,065
• Research the Kia Sorento

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