2026 Honda Civic Hatchback

The Honda Civic is one of the automaker's most impressive vehicles, offering a wonderful combination of practicality, performance and value. Honda refreshed the Civic last year, adding an impressive hybrid powertrain and updating its exterior styling. As such, there aren't any major changes for 2026. But as it stands, the Civic is one of the best small sedans (or hatchbacks) on the market today.

The Toyota Corolla is the Civic's top competitor, and Toyota took great strides to make sure this generation of the popular compact was more competitive than its predecessors. But the Corolla feels old (it was last redesigned in 2020), and its hybrid variant doesn't hold a candle to the Civic hybrid. Not only is the Toyota less efficient, it's also significantly less powerful. Other solid picks include the Hyundai Elantra, which comes standard with a ton of advanced driver aids and also offers a hybrid powertrain, and the Mazda 3, which is plenty sporty in its own right.

The Civic's hybrid powertrain churns out 200 horsepower — matching the sporty Civic Si — and bests it when it comes to low-end torque. That means it feels extra-punchy for low-speed driving around town. The hybrid doesn't come with all the performance goodies you'll get on an Si, but it does boast an awesome 49 mpg in combined city/highway driving according to the EPA's estimate. Buy a Civic and you'll love the hybrid power's hard-to-beat blend of performance and efficiency.

The Edmunds test team purchased a 2025 Honda Civic to give you an in-depth look at Civic ownership. Our Civic is part of our Edmunds One-Year Road Test program, in which our editors perform an in-depth evaluation of the vehicle and use it just like a real owner would. We purchased a 2025 Civic Sport Touring hatchback, which means it's a fully loaded Civic with the hybrid powertrain. We've been impressed with its fun-to-drive nature, practicality and style. You can read about this, plus a lot more, in our Honda Civic one-year ownership review.