There Are Only 26 New Cars Left Under $25,000

The state of affordable new automobiles right now is bleak, y'all. Back in 2020, I did a rundown of all the cars left in the U.S. market under $20,000, and there were seventeen. I did another one last fall, and there were six. Now, because the Kia Soul has crept above the $20,000 line, and the Rio has been killed off, there are four. This morning I saw a tweet from Twitter dingus @GuyDealership (below) saying there are just 9 cars starting under $25,000, and because it seemed to agree with my already-established biases, I initially thought nothing of it. But then it started to eat at me. There's no way this could possibly be true. Let's look into it a little deeper.

Update: This list previously mistakenly excluded the $20,890 Nissan Sentra. It has been added.

There are 275 vehicle models available for sale in the US.

Only 9 start under $25k.

— Car Dealership Guy (@GuyDealership) March 14, 2024

Sometimes it's good to challenge information you see in a tweet, especially when there's no link to a source or further explanation. Starting with my standing list of four cars under $20,000, I floated through every automaker's website looking at MSRPs of cheap cars, added everything between $20,000 and $25,000, and came up with the following list.

Admittedly, this still isn't a very long list. I am old enough to remember regular everyday cars, like the ones here, selling for less than 10,000 American clams. Damn, shit's expensive!

The Mazda CX-30 is a very good car. Attractive design and competent dynamics make this a solid one in my book. And I don't even particularly like crossovers.

The Legacy mostly nails it. Big car for not big car money.

The Honda HR-V is a tall Civic. If that appeals to you, then you should get one.

According to Seltos owners, it's not a very satisfying car to own.

Man, Hyundai is killing it on design lately. I love how the Kona looks.

The Mazda3 Hatch is more than $25,000, but you can get the sedan for that much. This is such a handsome design, and you'd probably be quite happy daily driving a Mazda3.

Like most everything Volkswagen builds these days, the Taos is okay.

The Civic is an easy go-to when it comes to buying a normal everyday driver, but when it costs $450 more than a hybrid Corolla, it's a hard sell for me. If you could still spec a stick, this would be a no-brainer for enthusiasts, but it's CVT only at this price point, because everything sucks.

If you want to include destination and handling fees, everything you've seen up to and including the Civic is more expensive than our $25,000 cutoff. There are still 18 more cars available under $25,000, even after destination costs are added.

Corolla Cross is never going to be a Jalopnik favorite, but it's perfectly fine.

The only truck on the list, and one of just two hybrids, the Maverick is possibly the best value on the market today. This is is a good car.

Mitsubishi tried, I guess.

The second hybrid on the list. This is a damn bargain, considering you're going to be sipping fuel with the Corolla hybrid. How does 51 MPG city tickle your fancy?

It's better than the old one. I think I'd rather have the Trax.

Maybe you can convince yourself that you're Scott Speed whipping the Airslayer, but your lap times won't corroborate that.

As a former Buick owner, I'm intrigued by this little guy. It's a good design, but I'm not sure I could live with the Ecotec 1.2-liter.

The Corolla used to be the standard of the compact sedan class. Maybe it still is?

The Elantra is a polarizing car. I love how it looks myself, but if you don't like it, there's no point in buying one, no matter how inexpensive it is.

The Jetta is about as boring to look at as it is to drive. There's a reason Consumer Reports said to avoid it.

You know, I rather liked the Kicks when I test drove it. It's cheap and cheerful, and most importantly, it's less than 2,700 pounds.

Look, we already said the Sentra was one of the most forgettable cars on sale in 2024. I didn't forget it on purpose, but that's kind of indicative of what kind of car it is.

I haven't had the pleasure of driving the new Trax yet, but by all accounts it's a very good car.

I have no complaints about the Soul, aside from the fact that it used to be under $20,000, and now it isn't. It's a perfectly serviceable car.

Delivering inexpensive but competent automobiles? That's Kia's forte.

The Venue is the cheapest car in America that isn't a Mirage or Versa. Damning with faint praise? You be the judge.

The Mirage gets a lot of hate that it doesn't deserve. Seventeen grand is a lot of money to pay for this little car, but it's just as plucky and tossable as it is tinny and annoying. Cheap cars used to be a real sacrifice, and there's a lot less sacrifice in a cheap car today than there was twenty years ago.

You can get a fully loaded Versa SR and still come in under the $25,000 mark. The base model is the cheapest car you can buy in the U.S. right now. I'm not sure I would recommend you do that, but there's a butt for every seat, I guess.