Which are the best hybrid cars for families?

If you’re after a more economical and greener car that will still fulfil its role as a practical family chariot, here’s our top picks among mild hybrids, regular hybrids and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles

We love hybrid technology and the difference it can make to the fuel consumption and performance of family cars.

We all want to use less fuel, especially families when life gets a lot more expensive and we want to help protect the world our children are going to inherit from us.

Although the improvement in performance, drive and the feel of full-electric cars can benefit family life, some of us are not quite ready to take the leap to an EV for various reasons, so hybrids can be a great first step.

There are a few different types of hybrid cars – mild hybrid (MHEV), parallel hybrid (HEV) and plug-in hybrid (PHEV).

As a mum of two, family car journalist and founder of BabyDrive.com.au, I have tested a lot of hybrid cars of all varieties over the last few years with my family.

Here’s my pick of the best hybrid family cars across the main types of hybrid systems.

A mild-hybrid car can’t be powered by the battery alone like a regular hybrid or PHEV can. The battery is purely to improve the performance and efficiency of the vehicle. This can be for either petrol or diesel cars with an electric motor that gives a small amount of assistance, usually in the starting of the engine or cutting it off when coming to a stop instead of idling.

A mild-hybrid car can be a good first step for families wanting better fuel economy and lower emissions from their vehicle, but the effect is so subtle you’d hardly notice when driving.

These are my pick of some great MHEVs for families:

The new Suzuki Fronx is an appealing option for families wanting a small mild-hybrid family car. This character-filled little SUV surprised me with heaps of room in the back, where three child seats fit across really nicely. I tried both three forward-facing child seats or a rear-facing child seat with two forward-facing harnessed seats. Legroom is also surprisingly good for a small SUV, providing space for a 180cm driver in front of the rear-facing child seat, or even taller drivers in front of forward-facing child seats.

Boot space is good too, with a drop-down boot floor that gives you extra storage depth and fits a single pram easily.

Out of town, I preferred the more dynamic drive when using Sport mode, although the Fronx is also comfortable without it, in suburbia.

The Volvo XC60 is a great five-seat SUV for tall families, leaving room for a 186cm driver in front of a rear-facing infant capsule. Even taller drivers can fit in front of forward-facing child seats. The XC60 also has built-in booster seats in the two outer rear seats. These are at two different heights, so they will be fine for ?children of different heights.

If installing your own harnessed child seats, you’ll be pleased to know that three will fit across the rear seat.

The XC60 is neat and modern inside, with good storage throughout and excellent boot space. So whether you have kids with sports gear or musical instruments, you’ll have room to get them to school or, for those with younger twins or small age-gap siblings, a Thule Urban Glide 3 double pram fits easily in the boot with spare room for shopping.

The Mazda CX-80 mild hybrid is the most affordable seven-seat family SUV in Mazda’s range.

It is a great product for blended or large families, with top-tether anchorages for all five seats in the back and ISOFIX in the two outer second-row seats. You can fit five child seats in the back! For smaller families, this allows the flexibility of where to position your child seats. For example, it’s perfect for those IKEA trips so you can move both child seats to one side of the car and fold flat the other side’s seats to stow your flat-pack furniture.

Boot space is practical too when you are using all three rows of seats, as you can still fit a big-wheeled Thule Urban Glide 3 single running pram in the boot. Or if you plan on only using two rows of seats the majority of the time, then you have a very large boot for the family dog or bigger twin/tandem prams, the kids’ scooters, or other sports equipment.

The Mazda is also a comfortable ride with good storage throughout.

Conventional hybrid powertrains, often referred to as series or parallel hybrids, have petrol or diesel engines plus a battery and electric motor. You do not have to plug the car in to charge the battery, it is charged by the car whilst driving and electricity works with the engine to power the car along.

Hybrids are a greater step towards electrification for those worried about charging, or live in areas or apartments where accessing a charging socket isn’t viable. Some hybrid cars can do a fair bit of low-speed driving and manoeuvring without the engine, which is great for families.

There are so many great hybrid family cars, and these are my pick of the best:

The Hyundai Tucson Hybrid is a great mid-size family SUV. It even has “Baby Drive” mode! This slows down the fast initial acceleration you typically get with hybrids, cushioning the immediate EV feeling to make it more comfortable for little passengers on board.

The rear seats have two sets of ISOFIX mounts and three top tether anchorages, and you can fit three child seats side-by-side in the back.

If you have forward-facing child seats installed, then a 186cm+ driver can sit in front, or a 170cm driver can sit ahead of a rear-facing child seat.

The boot space is good for family life too, fitting the Thule Sleek tandem sibling pram nicely, and there is room for the bassinet for your infant too.

The Tucson hybrid is an enjoyable and sporty car to drive, and the hybrid makes it a little more economical too.

The new 2025 Subaru Forester Hybrid makes a great car for families. Known for decades as a great all-rounder, the Forester is now available as a proper hybrid, which is great news for those many families who wished the Forester was more economical.

Subaru has added hybrid technology to the same all-wheel drive system as before, maintaining the Forester’s good off-road and snow driving abilities, which will suit more adventurous families. It drives really comfortably for all passengers onboard, and has up-to-date safety tech, cameras and a five-star ANCAP safety rating.

The interior is practical for everyday family life, with room in the back for three child seats side by side. It’s a great choice for tall families too, as it delivers very good legroom for tall front passengers, even with rear-facing child seats installed in the back.

Also, the boot space is generous if you have a family dog or young siblings, because there is plenty of space for the large-wheeled Thule Urban Glide 3 side-by-side twin pram to fit nicely in the boot.

The GWM Haval H6 Ultra Hybrid is another fantastic choice for families that need more legroom, as it has a very spacious interior.

Three child seats fit easily across the wide, flat rear seat base with enough legroom for a 184cm driver in front of a rear-facing child seat. Or even taller front passengers when the child seats are forward-facing.

Boot space is generous for families with multiple young siblings, as I found a tandem pram fits easily in the boot (or, of course, a nice big weekly family shop).

Storage is good throughout the H6 Hybrid interior, with a bridge-type centre console in the front and generous door bins in the back.

Plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) are the nearest thing to buying a full EV for families. They still have a conventional engine (usually petrol) but the electric motor is powered by a much bigger battery that can run the vehicle on electricity alone for, say, 40-100km (depending on the model) before the engine is required, which is enough for most daily usage.

You plug in the car externally to charge it, which can get you used to charging a car if you plan to buy an EV next time.

Buying a PHEV alleviates that fear of running out of battery on a long journey or arriving at a charger that is ‘out of order’. If you can’t charge your PHEV then it will run as a regular motor vehicle. Of course, that defeats the purpose a bit, because they are usually heavier and might also come with cargo space limitations due to the bigger battery.

One of the best benefits of PHEVs for families with young children is you can sit with the air-conditioning running when the kids fall asleep using the battery power alone, just like an EV.

I enjoy the knowledge of having the fuel for longer trips and holidays and using electricity alone for everyday family life.

There are so many great PHEVs, but here’s my pick of the best for families:

The Jaecoo J7 SHS has an upmarket feel, an attractively designed exterior, and the nicely finished interior features good storage in both the front and rear.

It has an electric-only driving range of around 90km before the petrol engine is needed; that was enough for a few days of petrol-free commuting and school runs, although I’d top it up on my home charger between trips to eliminate fuel use almost completely.

Although the rear seats are spacious, only two child seats will fit across in the Jaecoo J7, so it’s suitable for those with two or fewer children, or with three children, one of whom is old enough to no longer require a child seat. The rear footwell is flat, so there is plenty of kick-room for adult passengers, and it’s easy for kids to walk through from the kerb side and take their seats. Legroom is very good; a 180cm driver can sit in front of rear-facing child seats, or an even taller driver can sit comfortably with forward-facing child seats installed behind them.

The media screen is enormous in the J7 and dominates the dashboard, but most vehicle controls are within the media system, which can be distracting. The J7’s boot is a good size for family life and will fit the Thule Urban Glide 3 twin pram comfortably.

The GWM Cannon Alpha Ultra is a great choice for families looking for a hybrid dual-cab ute, and not just because its electric driving range of 115km frees you from around-town gas guzzling. My favourite feature of the Cannon Alpha Ultra is the electronic rear seat adjustment to recline the backrests individually, which is fantastic for child seats. In most utes, the rear seats are bolt upright, which can lead to the dreaded head flop when kids fall asleep in the car, but the ability to adjust this angle helps prevent that problem from occurring. The seats are really nice and comfortable for grown-ups too.

There are ISOFIX in the two outer rear seats and top-tether anchorage metal bars behind the rear seat backs, which also fold forward individually to make child seat installation and adjustment so much easier.

Being bigger than most dual-cab utes, the GWM Cannon Alpha interior is very spacious, and legroom is very good in the back for a 180cm driver to sit comfortably in front of a rear-facing child seat.

The tray is practical for active families and has plenty of space for bikes, prams and camping gear, with a handy split tailgate that can fold down conventionally or open outward like a pair of doors.

The cabin is pleasant, with lots of storage throughout. The media system is modern and easy to use, and the drive is comfortable.

Compared to the others, the Audi Q5 PHEV has a modest battery range of around 53km, which is still enough for a couple of days of commuting and school runs before plugging it in to charge again. It’s also more than enough for running the aircon without the petrol engine on if you get stuck in the car with a sleeping baby (or even a guilt-free driving your baby to sleep routine).

A luxury five-seat SUV, the Audi Q5 makes a great family car. Three child seats fit across the back with room for a 180cm driver in front of a rear-facing infant capsule or a forward-facing child seat behind a taller driver.

The boot space is really generous, and the Thule Urban Glide 3 side-by-side twin pram easily fits in the boot for families with young siblings.

There is ample storage throughout the interior, and the drive is very solid. Being a luxury model, the Audi really cocoons the driver and passengers from all that extra noise from outside, making journeys far more enjoyable.

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