2021 Kia Telluride vs. 2021 Hyundai Palisade Comparison

The Telluride looks beefy and strong, which bolsters its anti-minivan reputation. Inside, premium materials and super-solid build quality make it hard to tell the Kia from a BMW or Mercedes-Benz that costs twice as much—save for the big silver badge on the grille and steering wheel. A new blacked-out Nightfall appearance package gives brand-conscious buyers the option to be a little more inconspicuous on the road.

Though polarizing to some, the Palisade’s styling delivers a bold, confident presence that helps it stand apart in the sea of midsize luxury crossovers. The new Calligraphy trim, is a welcome add to the lineup, but the over-the-top quilted leather that drape the interior might be reaching.

Kia opted for a naturally aspirated V6 engine in the Telluride, which compromises thrilling driving dynamics for smooth and predictable acceleration. Suspension tuning could be softer as the Telluride can feel unsettled over extended rough roads.

Palisade’s performance doesn’t wow like its unexpected luxury, but its 291 horsepower V6 offers enough power to move the Hyundai briskly down the road. Handling is somewhat compromised by its bulky footprint.

It’s hard to imagine a family crossover with better space and storage than the Telluride, but luxury features like heated and cooled second-row seats cost are far from standard unlike premium rivals it aspires to be. The most high-end, loaded Telluride, however, still comes in under $50,000.

The Hyundai Palisade’s interior experience punches above its weight, especially in higher trim levels that feature high-quality materials and a 12.3-inch digital gauge cluster.

With front-wheel drive, the Telluride is rated at 20 mpg in the city, 26 mpg on the highway and 23 mpg combined. All-wheel drive drops those numbers slightly, to 19 mpg in the city, 24 mpg highway and 21 mpg combined. A smaller turbocharged engine might help push the Kia into a new league with fuel economy, especially where competition from Toyota and others offer fuel-sipping hybrid powertrains.

The Hyundai Palisade’s single drivetrain option achieves 19 mpg city, 26 mpg highway and 22 mpg combined, with slightly lower highway and combined figures for the all-wheel drive model. These numbers are on par with its gas-powered competitors, though they fall short of Toyota’s Highlander Hybrid, which strikes an impressive 35 mpg combined, and the Ford Explorer Hybrid, which achieves 28 mpg combined.

The Telluride earned a Top Safety Pick award from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety and five stars from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Those scores are in addition to a full suite of standard driver aids, which include automatic emergency braking, forward collision warnings, blind spot monitoring, lane-keep assist, lane-departure warnings, lane following assist, rear cross-traffic alerts and a driver attention warning system.

Palisade achieves outstanding safety ratings, receiving a Top Safety Pick distinction from IIHS, and a five-star rating from NHTSA. A healthy amount of safety features come standard on SEL trim levels and above, including blind spot collision avoidance, rear cross-traffic collision avoidance and safe exist assist.