Best Hybrid Cars in Australia 2027: One Winner Per Question

Image credit: Toyota Australia

This is the 2027 edition of our 2026 hybrid guide, rebuilt from our directory on 9 October 2026. Each pick below answers one question, and the answer is a query across the whole set, with what we left out said plainly. The set is regular hybrids (no plug), plug-in hybrids and range extenders. Mild hybrids, where a small motor helps the engine but never drives the car alone, are left out: that is 127 more rows.

One rule runs through the prices. Some makers, Chery and GWM among them, sell on drive-away pricing, so we never put their drive-away figure against someone else's before-on-roads RRP. Where the two bases give different winners, you get both.

The 2027 shortlist

1. Cheapest hybrid SUV: MG ZS Hybrid+

The ZS Excite Hybrid+ is $30,990 RRP and the Essence $33,990, both cut by $3,000 on 25 June. 4.7 L/100km, a five-star ANCAP result (2025) and a 10-year, 250,000 km warranty. On drive-away pricing, the Chery Tiggo 4 Hybrid Urban and the GWM Haval Jolion Premium Hybrid tie at $29,990; the Jolion has five stars (2022) on record, the Tiggo 4 Hybrid has no ANCAP result on record. Compare: ZS vs Tiggo 4 Hybrid, ZS vs Jolion, or the ZS review.

2. Lowest fuel figure of any hybrid SUV: Toyota Yaris Cross Hybrid

The two-wheel-drive Yaris Cross Hybrid is rated at 3.8 L/100km combined, a tie with the two-wheel-drive Lexus LBX, and among the lowest of any hybrid SUV on sale. The Yaris Cross GX 2WD is $31,790 RRP against the LBX's $47,550. Five stars (2021) on record for the Yaris Cross, five (2024) for the LBX. The catch is towing: 400 kg braked. Compare: Yaris Cross vs Kona, Yaris Cross vs Jolion, or the Yaris Cross review.

3. Cheapest five-star plug-in hybrid: BYD Seal 6, or Chery Tiggo 7 on drive-away

The Seal 6 Essential Sedan is $34,990 RRP with a five-star result (2025), 55 km of electric range and 3.6 L/100km once the battery is flat, among the lowest battery-flat figures of any plug-in hybrid we hold one for. On drive-away pricing the Chery Tiggo 7 Super Hybrid Urban is $34,990 drive-away with five stars (2025) and 93 km of electric range; our record holds no battery-flat figure for it. Compare: Seal 6 vs Camry, Tiggo 7 vs Sealion 5.

4. Cheapest hybrid of all: MG3 Hybrid+

The MG3 Excite Hybrid+ hatch is $27,990 RRP, the lowest RRP of the 154 regular hybrids on sale. 4.3 L/100km, a four-star ANCAP result (2025) and MG's 10-year, 250,000 km warranty. Compare it with the next pick: MG3 vs Yaris.

5. Lowest fuel figure of any hybrid: Toyota Yaris Hybrid

The Yaris Ascent Sport is $28,990 RRP and every Yaris hybrid grade is rated at 3.5 L/100km, among the lowest combined figures of the 154 regular hybrids. Five stars (2020) on record. Its tow rating in our record is 0 kg.

6. Cheapest plug-in hybrid: BYD Sealion 5, with a caveat

The Sealion 5 Essential is $33,990 before on-roads on BYD's configurator, and $29,990 with BYD's $4,000 cashback until 21 December 2026 (the terms). It has 71 km of electric range and 4.5 L/100km once the battery is flat. The caveat: its ANCAP result is three stars (2026), the lowest of any pick here. If five stars matter, step to pick three. Compare: Sealion 5 vs Yaris Cross, Sealion 5 vs MG HS, or the Sealion 5 review.

7. Longest electric range: GWM Haval H6GT PHEV

The H6GT Ultra PHEV AWD claims 180 km on electricity alone from a 35.4 kWh battery, among the highest of the 135 plug-in and range-extender rows on sale, at $53,990 RRP. 5.3 L/100km with the battery flat, 1,500 kg towing and a 7-year warranty; our record holds no ANCAP result for it. Next longest: 170 km from the Chery Tiggo 9 Super Hybrid Ultimate AWD and the Forthing Taikon 5 range extender. Compare: H6GT vs Sealion 6.

8. Cheapest seven seats: Chery Tiggo 8, or Kia on RRP

On drive-away pricing, the Tiggo 8 Super Hybrid Urban is $45,990 with seven seats, 95 km of electric range and five stars (2025). On an RRP, the Kia Carnival S HEV is the cheapest hybrid with seven or more seats at $56,310 (it seats eight), and the Kia Sorento S HEV FWD the cheapest seven-seat hybrid SUV at $56,380. Both Kias have five stars on record (2021 and 2020) and 7-year warranties. For the full seven-seat list, see the seven-seat hybrid guide. Compare: Tiggo 8 vs Sealion 6.

9. Most towing under $80,000: GWM Tank 300 and Tank 500

Leave out the utes (they have their own guide) and the hybrid SUVs priced under $80,000 that tow the most are GWM's, at 3,000 kg braked: the Tank 300 Lux Hi4-T PHEV ($57,990 drive-away, 115 km of electric range, five stars from 2022) and the seven-seat Tank 500 Lux hybrid ($59,990 RRP, five stars from 2024). Read the Tank 300 and Tank 500 reviews.

10. Longest warranty: MG and Mitsubishi, 10 years

Ten years is the longest warranty on any hybrid on sale. MG's runs to 250,000 km (the MG3, ZS and HS hybrids, including the HS Super Hybrid plug-in at $50,990 with 120 km of range). Mitsubishi's runs to 200,000 km on the Outlander PHEV (from $58,990, 86 km, five stars from 2022) and the Eclipse Cross PHEV. Read the HS review or the Outlander review; compare Outlander PHEV vs Sealion 8.

11. Most towing from a no-plug family SUV under $60,000: Kia Sportage and Hyundai Tucson

Among five-seat regular hybrids under $60,000, the Kia Sportage HEV (from $44,450 RRP, 4.9 L/100km, five stars from 2022, 7 years) and the Hyundai Tucson Hybrid (from $42,850 RRP, 4.9 L/100km, five stars from 2021, 5 years) tow the most, at 1,900 kg braked. Compare: Tucson vs Sportage.

12. The one everyone asks about: Toyota RAV4 Hybrid

The RAV4 GX Hybrid 2WD is $50,872 drive-away in Victoria (our record holds its $45,990 RRP as an estimate), 4.5 L/100km, and tows 800 kg in two-wheel drive or 1,500 kg in AWD. Our record holds no ANCAP result for the current RAV4, so we show none. It does not win a question on this page, but it is the yardstick most buyers bring. Compare: RAV4 vs CX-5, RAV4 vs Sealion 6, or the RAV4 review.

Prices, by powertrain

RRP is before on-road costs; drive-away includes them (Victoria where it varies). “est.” marks an RRP held on a drive-away basis in our record, the way our directory labels it. The last column is the combined fuel figure for regular hybrids and the claimed electric range for plug-ins. Under each row is our weekly cost-to-own estimate for your state.

Regular hybrids (no plug)

Plug-in hybrids and range extenders

BYD's cashback covers several Sealion and Seal 6 grades; we print the configurator price and name the cashback where it applies to the row shown. Plug-in fuel figures are measured from a full battery, so we show electric range instead.

Run the numbers for your own driving

What changed since the 2026 edition

• Mazda cut its plug-in hybrids. CX-60 P50e Pure from $64,490 to $56,640 and GT from $79,490 to $70,640 (23 July). CX-80 P50e Touring from $79,990 to $68,100 (in two steps, the last on 7 October), GT from $86,990 to $75,100 and Azami from $94,990 to $80,300 (6 September).
• Other cuts: MG ZS Hybrid+ by $3,000 to $30,990 and $33,990 (25 June); Hyundai Kona Hybrid from $39,990 to $36,950 and Kona Premium Hybrid from $54,000 to $45,950 (September); Volvo XC60 Plus T8 from $92,900 to $84,200 (25 June); Renault Symbioz from $44,990 to $42,990; Leapmotor C10 Hybrid Design from $47,888 to $45,888.
• Rises: Lexus NX350h Luxury from $67,900 to $71,700 and UX 300h Luxury from $51,900 to $55,370 (June); Subaru Forester Hybrid from $46,490 to $47,990 (7 October); Nissan Qashqai Ti e-POWER from $47,165 to $49,640 (5 October).
• BYD cashback: $4,000 off several Sealion, Seal 6 and Shark 6 grades until 21 December 2026.
• New in our directory since May: the Geely Starray EM-i plug-in (from $37,490), a fuller Hyundai Tucson Hybrid range (from $42,850), the Hyundai i30 Sedan Hybrid ($33,250), the Chery C5 Hybrid ($31,990 drive-away), the Forthing Taikon 5 range extender ($36,990 drive-away), the GWM Tank 300 Hi4-T PHEV, the Volkswagen Tiguan and Tayron eHybrid (from $61,990 drive-away), the Jaecoo J8 ($59,990), the Hyundai Palisade Hybrid (from $76,500) and the BYD M9 plug-in people mover ($72,990).
• The RAV4: the 2026 edition quoted the GX Hybrid 2WD at $45,990 RRP. Our record now holds a $50,872 Victorian drive-away price for it and keeps the RRP as an estimate.

What to wait for in 2027

Coming-soon rows with an Australian maker document behind them. Prices only where the maker has printed one.

The Atto 2 DM-i is the one that could move the bottom of the market: BYD's configurator lists the Active at $24,990 with 39 km of electric range and the Boost at $29,990 with 90 km, though no ANCAP result or on-sale date is on record yet. We also hold coming-soon rows for plug-in Volvos, Jetours, iCaurs and others whose only documents so far are global, not Australian, so they stay off this list. More from our news desk: the Seltos hybrid, the RAV4 GXL PHEV 2WD, the Lexus NX and the Haval H7.

Keep reading

Head-to-heads: RAV4 vs CX-5 | RAV4 vs Sealion 6 | Tucson vs Sportage | Sealion 5 vs Tiggo 7 | Sealion 6 vs Jaecoo J7 | MG3 vs Yaris

The brands: MG | Toyota | BYD | Chery | GWM | Kia | Hyundai | Lexus | Mitsubishi | Forthing | Leapmotor

More guides: Cheapest PHEVs (2026) | Best Plug-in Hybrid SUVs (2026) | Seven-seat hybrids | Best Chinese PHEVs (2026) | Most fuel-efficient cars (2026) | EV vs hybrid

Paying through work: the novated lease guide and the FBT-exempt cars guide. Thinking about a plug: the charging guide.