Compare the2025 Hyundai Santa Fe HybridVS 2025 Chevrolet Traverse

Both the Santa Fe Hybrid and Traverse have child safety locks to prevent children from opening the rear doors. The Santa Fe Hybrid has power child safety locks, allowing the driver to activate and deactivate them from the driver's seat and to know when they're engaged. The Traverse’s child locks have to be individually engaged at each rear door with a manual switch. The driver can’t know the status of the locks without opening the doors and checking them.

The Hyundai Santa Fe Hybrid has a standard driver’s side knee airbag mounted low on the dashboard. The knee airbag helps prevent the driver from sliding under the seatbelts or the main frontal airbag; this keeps the driver better positioned during a collision for maximum protection. A knee airbag also helps keep the legs from striking the dashboard, preventing knee and leg injuries in the case of a serious frontal collision. The Traverse doesn’t offer knee airbags.

With its standard Forward Collision Avoidance Assist, the Hyundai Santa Fe Hybrid is better at preventing collisions with pedestrians than the Chevrolet Traverse, according to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety:

Both the Santa Fe Hybrid and the Traverse have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front and rear side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, front and rear seatbelt pretensioners, front wheel drive, height adjustable front shoulder belts, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras, rear cross-path warning, available all wheel drive and around view monitors.

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety does 40 MPH moderate front offset crash tests on new cars. In this updated test, results indicate that the Santa Fe Hybrid is safer than the Traverse:

The Hyundai Santa Fe Hybrid (built after November 2024) has achieved the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety’s (IIHS) highest rating of “Top Safety Pick Plus” for the 2025 model year. This distinction is based on its exceptional performance in IIHS’ rigorous battery of safety tests. Specifically, it earned a “Good” rating in the latest, more stringent moderate overlap front crash test, a “Good” result in the updated side impact test, and a “Good” score in the revised pedestrian crash prevention test. The Traverse is only a standard “Top Safety Pick” for 2025.

The Santa Fe Hybrid comes with a full 5-year/60,000-mile basic warranty, which covers the entire truck and includes 24-hour roadside assistance. The Traverse’s 3-year/36,000-mile basic warranty expires 2 years or 24,000 miles sooner.

Hyundai’s powertrain warranty covers the Santa Fe Hybrid 5 years and 40,000 miles longer than Chevrolet covers the Traverse. Any repair needed on the engine, transmission, axles, joints or driveshafts is fully covered for 10 years or 100,000 miles. Coverage on the Traverse ends after only 5 years or 60,000 miles.

The Santa Fe Hybrid’s corrosion warranty is 1 year and unlimited miles longer than the Traverse’s (7/unlimited vs. 6/100,000).

Hyundai pays for scheduled maintenance on the Santa Fe Hybrid for 3 years and 36,000 miles. Hyundai will pay for oil changes, tire rotations, air filter replacements, cabin filter replacement, brake fluid replacement, inspections, and any other required maintenance. Chevrolet only pays for the first scheduled maintenance visit on the Traverse.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ March 2025 Auto Issue reports that Hyundai vehicles are more reliable than Chevrolet vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Hyundai 6 places higher in reliability than Chevrolet.

On the EPA test cycle the Santa Fe Hybrid gets better mileage than the Traverse:

Regenerative brakes improve the Santa Fe Hybrid’s fuel efficiency by converting inertia back into energy instead of wasting it. The Traverse doesn’t offer a regenerative braking system.

The Santa Fe Hybrid has a standard locking fuel door which locks and unlocks with the power locks. The fuel filler door is not lockable on the Traverse. A locking fuel door helps prevent fuel theft and vandalism, such as sugar in the tank.

In its Green Vehicle Guide, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rates the Hyundai Santa Fe Hybrid higher (6 out of 10) than the Chevrolet Traverse (5). This means the Santa Fe Hybrid produces up to 6.9 pounds less smog-producing pollutants than the Traverse every 15,000 miles.

For better stopping power the Santa Fe Hybrid’s brake rotors are larger than those on the Traverse:

The Santa Fe Hybrid stops shorter than the Traverse:

The Santa Fe SEL Hybrid’s standard tires provide better handling because they have a lower 60 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the Traverse LT’s standard 65 series tires.

The Santa Fe Hybrid’s drift compensation steering can automatically compensate for road conditions which would cause the vehicle to drift from side to side, helping the driver to keep the vehicle straight more easily. The Traverse doesn’t offer drift compensation steering.

The Santa Fe Calligraphy Hybrid AWD handles at .82 G’s, while the Traverse RS AWD pulls only .81 G’s of cornering force in a Car and Driver skidpad test.

For better maneuverability, the Santa Fe Hybrid’s turning circle is 1.1 feet tighter than the Traverse’s (37.9 feet vs. 39 feet). The Santa Fe Hybrid’s turning circle is 2.8 feet tighter than the Traverse with 22-inch wheels’ (37.9 feet vs. 40.7 feet).

For greater off-road capability the Santa Fe Hybrid has a greater minimum ground clearance than the Traverse (7 vs. 6.8 inches), allowing the Santa Fe Hybrid to travel over rougher terrain without being stopped or damaged.

The Santa Fe Hybrid is 1 foot, 2.3 inches shorter than the Traverse, making the Santa Fe Hybrid easier to handle, maneuver and park in tight spaces.

The Santa Fe Hybrid has .1 inches more front legroom and .6 inches more rear headroom than the Traverse.

The Santa Fe Hybrid has a standard Sinking Seat third row seat, which folds flat into the floor. This completely clears a very large cargo area quickly. The Traverse doesn’t offer seats that fold into the floor.

The Santa Fe Hybrid’s standard towing capacity is much higher than the Traverse’s (2000 vs. 1500 pounds).

The Santa Fe Hybrid Calligraphy has a standard heads-up display that projects speed, navigation instruction and driver assistance information readouts in front of the driver’s line of sight, allowing drivers to view information without diverting their eyes from the road. The Traverse doesn’t offer a heads-up display.

The Santa Fe Hybrid’s standard front power windows open or close with one touch of the switches, making it more convenient at drive-up windows and toll booths, or when talking with someone outside of the car. The Traverse’s front passenger window doesn’t close automatically. The Santa Fe Hybrid Calligraphy’s front and rear power windows all open or close with one touch of the switches.

Manual rear side window sunshades are available in the Santa Fe Hybrid to help block heat and glare for the rear passengers. The Traverse doesn’t offer rear side window sunshades.

The Hyundai Santa Fe Hybrid stands out above the Chevrolet Traverse by offering not one, but two Qi-compatible phone chargers. This convenience helps travelers with multiple devices to keep powered up on-the-go. Wireless charging eliminates lost or cluttered charging cables and two of them provide more flexibility. Both vehicles also offer Qi charging for the second row passengers.

The Santa Fe Hybrid Limited/Calligraphy’s Smart Parking Assist can parallel park or back into a parking spot by itself, starting, stopping and changing direction automatically. Remote Smart Parking Assist will park and retrieve your car remotely: press a button and watch it park itself. This is ideal for tight locations. The Traverse’s automatic parking system does not offer parking by remote control.

Consumer Reports® recommends both the Hyundai Santa Fe Hybrid and the Chevrolet Traverse, based on reliability, safety and performance.

J.D. Power and Associates rated the Santa Fe Hybrid first among midsize suvs in owner reported satisfaction. This includes how well the vehicle performs and satisfies its owner’s expectations. The Traverse isn’t in the top three.

The Hyundai Santa Fe outsold the Chevrolet Traverse by 17% during 2024.