Find the Safest New Car Using Consumer Reports' Safety Verdict

Special To The Auto Channel

Find the Safest New Car Using Consumer Reports' Safety Verdict

Keith Barry; Senior Autos Reporter

“Safety isn’t just about crash testing,” says Emily A. Thomas, PhD, associate director of auto safety at Consumer Reports. “A safe car has predictable handling and braking, controls that don’t distract you, technology that can prevent a crash in the first place, and a design that protects occupants if a crash occurs.”

Until now, car buyers have had to consult multiple sources to find out which cars excel in all these areas. But the experts at Consumer Reports have simplified the search for a safe vehicle.

CR’s new safety verdict condenses this comprehensive view of car safety into a single rating: Basic, Better, Best. The score considers CR’s handling and usability evaluations, safety test results from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, and whether proven safety technologies are available as standard equipment—because we don’t think you should have to pay more for a safer car. Here are the details for each score.

Basic

• The vehicle must meet all of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s federal motor vehicle safety standards. (If a vehicle is on the market and fails to meet one or more of these standards, NHTSA requires that the automaker conduct a recall to address the problem.)

• Automakers must self-certify that their vehicles meet these requirements.

Better

All the requirements of Basic, plus:
• An average or higher score in CR’s independent braking, emergency handling, and routine handling tests, and a passing score on the rollaway prevention test.

• Automatic emergency braking (AEB) that can detect pedestrians, standard across all trim levels.

• A curb weight above 2,500 pounds, because a lightweight car is at a disadvantage in a crash with a heavier car.

• Front-wheel drive or available all-wheel drive (standard or optional) for effective handling in ice, snow, and rain.

• If tested, a Good or Acceptable rating in the IIHS small-overlap front crash test, which simulates hitting a pole or tree, and in the safety organization’s evaluation of front crash prevention technology.

• If tested, at least an Acceptable rating in the IIHS side-crash test.

Best

All the requirements of Better, plus:
• The vehicle can’t have the lowest usability rating in CR’s tests, because confusing controls and finicky infotainment systems can distract drivers.

• All trims must have standard highway-speed AEB, blind spot warning (BSW), and rear cross traffic warning (RCTW), three proven technologies that prevent crashes and injuries.

• A Good rating (the top one) in the IIHS side-crash test.

• At least an Acceptable rating in the IIHS moderate-overlap front crash test, which simulates a partial head-on crash with another vehicle that crosses a center yellow line.

These vehicles are among the new cars that earned a “Best” rating, the top mark for our safety verdict. This means that each vehicle comes standard with proven safety technology—specifically, highway-speed AEB, AEB with pedestrian detection, BSW, and RCTW. These cars are also Consumer Reports recommended, which means they’re highly rated for road-test performance and predicted reliability. To see the safety verdict for any new car, visit their model pages at CR.org/cars and via the A-Z interactive ratings chart.

Surprised that a well-regarded car didn’t earn CR’s highest safety score? Here’s why certain brands, models, and vehicle types aren’t top-rated.

Volvo was the first manufacturer to introduce vital safety innovations, such as the three-point seat belt and side airbags. But most new Volvos lack a Best safety verdict rating. That’s because most of them have controls that are so distracting they’ve earned CR’s lowest usability score. “If controlling the climate or audio distracts you from the task of driving, that’s a strike against safety,” says Jake Fisher, CR’s senior director of auto testing.

Although the Subaru Forester is one of our Top Picks, some trims lack standard blind spot warning and rear cross traffic warning. “We believe that safety shouldn’t be an optional extra,” Fisher says.

You won’t see any full-sized SUVs or pickups on this list, either. “Larger vehicles take longer to stop and don’t handle as nimbly as smaller vehicles,” he says. “A large vehicle might get into a crash that a small vehicle could have avoided.”

Some cars with five-star NHTSA ratings are also absent, largely because its crash tests don’t represent real-world situations as well as IIHS testing. In short, the safest cars excel in crash avoidance and occupant protection. They’re not overly distracting, and they make important safety features standard.

These are proved to reduce crashes and injuries, and are key components of our safety verdict.

Over our 90-year history, Consumer Reports has pushed automakers to adopt new safety features, and we’ve lobbied regulators to enforce compliance. Here are some of the lifesaving advances that CR led.

Editor’s Note: This article also appeared in the March/April 2026 issue of Consumer Reports magazine.

Keith Barry

Keith Barry has been an auto reporter at Consumer Reports since 2018. He focuses on safety, technology, and the environmental impact of cars. Previously, he led home and appliance coverage at Reviewed; reported on cars for USA Today, Wired, and Car & Driver; and wrote for other publications as well. Keith earned a master’s degree in public health from Tufts University. Follow him on BlueSky @itskeithbarry.bsky.social.