2022 Toyota Prius Prime Review

Many people enjoy poking fun at the Toyota Prius because it's slow, a little odd-looking and known to be driven by eco-friendly individuals. They don't understand that the Prius has provided safe, reliable, affordable and practical transportation for more than 20 years while delivering exemplary fuel economy. Not many other, if any, vehicles can claim that. With an increasing amount of competition (which includes the Corolla Hybrid), the Prius has lost some relevance in the segment it created, but the little oddball will go down in the history books.

The 2022 Toyota Prius Prime is the plug-in hybrid (PHEV) version of the regular Prius. Toyota adds a charging port and a larger 8.8-kWh battery pack to give the Prime an EPA-estimated all-electric driving range of up to 25 miles. Once the electric juice runs out, it becomes a regular hybrid and gets an EPA-estimated fuel economy rating of 54 mpg combined. Charging the empty battery to full takes about two hours with a 240-volt charger or five and a half hours with a 120-volt charger. Essentially, the more frequently you can plug in and recharge, the less gas you'll use.

As with the regular Prius, the Prime offers a comfortable but otherwise unexciting driving experience. The hatchback body style offers more cargo space than a sedan, but because of the larger battery pack, it has a bit smaller cargo area than the regular Prius. There aren't many plug-in hatchback rivals for the Prius Prime to compete with, but there is the duo from South Korea: the Hyundai Ioniq Plug-in Hybrid and the Kia Niro Plug-in Hybrid. For a thorough review by our test team, check out the Edmunds' Expert Rating below.

Toyota keeps things pretty simple with the Prius Prime. It's offered in three trim levels (LE, XLE and Limited) and there aren't any optional packages or single features to add besides fancier-looking 15-inch wheels or small accessories like all-weather floor mats.