The most affordable car from every brand

What’s the most bargain-basement BMW? Do you know the price of the cheapest Vauxhall? We have the answers to these questions and more, as we list the most affordable cars from 40 different brands. The list doesn’t include the likes of Aston Martin, Ferrari and Rolls-Royce, because if you have to ask the price… well, you know the rest:

It’s possible to spend around £30,000 on a new Abarth, but you don’t have to. The entry-level Abarth 595 costs less than £18,000 and can hit 62mph in just 7.8 seconds. Standard equipment includes 16in alloy wheels, twin exhausts, Abarth sports seats, a 7.0in touchscreen, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.

A car to file under: is that still available to buy new? Unveiled at the 2010 Geneva motor show, the Alfa Romeo Giulietta remains on sale, although production stopped in 2020. A direct replacement isn’t planned, although the Tonale SUV is likely to replace it as the most affordable Alfa Romeo when it goes on sale. For now, it’s possible to buy a new Giulietta, but only while stocks last.

At around £19,500, an entry-level Audi A1 cost around £3000 less than the recently cancelled Ford Fiesta Vignale. Choosing the best one of the pair is harder than you might think, because while the Audi has the ‘right’ badge and some impressive equipment as standard, the Ford is nicer to drive and, in Vignale spec, arguably offers a greater feeling of quality.

Predictably, the 1 Series is the most affordable BMW. Spending £26,000 gets you a BMW 118i SE in non-metallic Alpine White or Jet Black. Standard equipment includes 16in alloy wheels, air conditioning, LED headlights, front and rear parking sensors, cruise control and an 8.8in touchscreen media display.

Not only is the C1 the most affordable Citroën, it’s also one of Britain’s cheapest cars. Gone are the days when you could pick and choose from a range of cars costing less than £10,000. The Citroën C1 relies on its keen price and finance offers to remain relevant, although the smart money would go on a Kia Picanto, Hyundai i10 or VW Up.

It will take us a while to get used to calling it a Cupra Leon rather than a Leon Cupra, but this is the entry-level of Seat’s performance division. The £35,000 Cupra Leon VZ2 features a 1.4-litre turbocharged petrol engine mated to an electric motor. Charge it overnight and you can expect anything up to 32 miles of electric range.

Dacia doesn’t want you to buy a £7995 Sandero. Its website and dealers will do everything they can to upsell you to a more expensive model, where you’ll find ‘luxuries’ like air conditioning and a radio. Joking apart, even at £14,000, the most expensive Dacia Sandero feels like exceptional value for money. It also undercuts the vast majority of cars on this list.

The DS 3 Crossback was the second DS Automobiles product to be built from the ground up following the brand’s uncoupling from Citroën. It undercuts the larger DS 7 Crossback by around £9000, but you get the same chic styling and focus on upmarket materials. It’s certainly a different take on the tried and tested small SUV formula.

It’s kept alive by extraordinarily strong sales in its domestic market, but it’s increasingly hard to make a strong case for the Fiat Panda in the UK. A recent revamp has left us with a new trim range and a 1.0-litre mild hybrid powertrain. The Panda 4x4 will take you to places other city cars cannot reach. European hill farmers and residents of Alpine ski resorts swear by it.

The Ford Fiesta is one of the best all-rounders in the fiercely competitive supermini segment. Even in entry-level Trend guise, the Fiesta boasts 16in alloy wheels, LED headlights, heated windscreen, air conditioning, 8.0in touchscreen, Apple CarPlay, Android Auto and two USB ports.

What words spring to mind when you think of the Honda Jazz? Reliability, dependability and practicality? Dare we add ‘elderly’ to that list? The current Jazz takes all of the above and adds a dose of efficiency courtesy of a new hybrid powertrain. It’s not in the least bit exciting, but it remains the default choice if you’re after a supermini with sense and sensibility, and space too.

Readers of a certain age will remember when the Hyundai i10 cost around half the price of the current entry-level model. In fairness, the i10 has come a long way since then, to the point that it’s arguably the best car in its class. It feels like a grown-up city car with a host of big car features, especially if you opt for the Premium trim.

The Isuzu D-Max has quicky established itself as one of Britain’s most popular pick-ups. Appealing to both commercial and lifestyle audiences, it rivals the Toyota Hilux for its toughness, practicality and reliability, so the all-new version has tough shoes to fill. The entry-level price is based on a single cab D-Max Utility, but you’ll pay more for a double cab version.

The Jaguar XE is one of our favourite compact saloons. Aside from the small boot and limited rear leg room, we find it hard to criticise the XE; it’s every bit as good as its German rivals. A comprehensive update in 2019 included a subtle facelift, more standard equipment, greatly improved tech and a redesigned interior.

Compact SUVs aren’t really designed to venture off-road. The Jeep Renegade forges a different path by being genuinely good when the going gets tough, so it’s the small SUV to choose if the school run feels more like a rally stage. It’s far from perfect, but its character and charm just about manage to outweigh its deficiencies.

The more you spend on the Kia Picanto, the less convincing it becomes. At just shy of £11,000, a small car with a seven-year warranty represents exceptional value for money, even if the entry-level 1 trim is a little short on glamour. The 1.0-litre three-cylinder petrol engine, turbocharged on GT-Line and GT-Line S models, feels perfectly at home in the Picanto.

The basic Land Rover Discovery Sport undercuts the entry-level Range Rover Evoque by around £300, so you could argue that it represents better value for money. Just remember though that you need to progress beyond the first rung of the spec ladder to benefit from the third row of seats, which is a key plus for the model, though legroom in that row is tight.

Lexus has ceased imports of CT, IS and RC models, but it’s still possible to order these cars from stock. The hybrid-only Lexus CT has been on sale with only minor alterations since 2011, with sales propped up by fleet buyers. Its departure is no great loss, but it means that the cheapest Lexus will be the £30,000 UX compact SUV.

The days of the entry-level Lotus Elise are behind us. Indeed, the days of the Elise will soon be behind us; the blue car pictured is a run-out special called the Sport 240 Final Edition. It costs a cool £45,500, although you could spend closer to £51,000 on the track-oriented Cup 250 Final Edition. The end of an era? Yep, and a sad farewell at that.

The Ghibli range is bookended by a pair of very diverse models. On the one hand, you have the Ghibli Hybrid, a £58,000 nod to efficiency and green motoring. On the other hand, there’s the Ghibli Trofeo, with its Ferrari-derived 5.8-litre V8 offering a decidedly Italian shrug to matters of the environment.

Back in the real word, the 2 is only car in the Mazda range to sit below the £20,000 mark. For less than £16,500, the entry-level SE-L Nav draws power from a 1.5-litre Skyactiv-G petrol engine mated to a six-speed manual gearbox. Standard kit includes 15in alloy wheels, a 7.0in infotainment system, Apple CarPlay, Android Auto and climate control.

Buying the entry-level Mercedes-Benz A-Class is like booking the most affordable room at a five-star hotel. When you consider that the Mercedes-Maybach GLS and Mercedes-AMG GT 4-Door Coupé will set you back at least £165,000 and £142,000 respectively, the £24k A-Class feels like a proper bargain.

While we mourn the loss of the four-figure MG 3, a little over £12,000 still represents great value for money, especially when you consider the seven-year warranty. The increase in price is, in part, explained by the axing of the old entry-level model, so you get more kit for your money. It’s dated and the engine is outmoded, but we rather like the MG 3.

There should be a prize for managing to drive out of a Mini showroom in a car without a single optional extra or accessory. Personalisation is part of the Mini experience, so it requires tremendous willpower to order a ‘naked’ car. Or, to put it another way, the Mini salesperson should be sent for some extra training.

For your £10,575, you get a five-year/62,500 miles warranty. But in entry-level Verve guise, the Mirage is deeply average. Spending an extra £2000 on the Design Pro model won't necessarily fix matters.

The mainstay of pensioners, students and driving schools across the land, the Nissan Micra range starts from just under £14,000. It’s more striking than the Micra you passed your test in and you get a decent level of equipment as standard. The N-Sport warm hatchback is the raciest Micra we’ve seen in a while.

When viewed alongside stylish cars like the 208, 3008 and 508, the Peugeot 108 is beginning to look a little dated. Replacing it will be tricky, especially in the age of electrification. Peugeot boss Jean-Philippe Imparato told us: “The A-segment will exist, but we will try our best to make EVs more affordable.” Is an electric 108 on the cards? We live in hope.

Originally designed as a concept car to test the market for a Volvo compact saloon, the Polestar 2 is the first proper Polestar. Sized and priced to take on the Tesla Model 3, it’s one of the coolest and most sophisticated cars in the ever-growing EV segment. It’s the automotive equivalent of a black polo-neck sweater and a Moleskine notebook.

The most affordable Porsche – we won’t say ‘cheapest’ – is arguably one of the most convincing cars in the range. The use of a four-cylinder engine remains a contentious issue, but six-cylinder versions are available. In £55,000 718 Cayman S guise, this is the most complete sports car on sale today. But for £10k less, the entry-level 718 Cayman runs it close.

Yes, it’s a quadricycle, but it’s got four wheels, a steering wheel and a pair of doors (of sorts) - but you’ll need to find another £4000 for the entry-level Renault Clio. In the Twizy however you face being terrorised by lorry drivers and the occasional drenching from the British weather. 

With the Seat Mii venturing down electric avenue – other clichés are available – the Ibiza has cemented its most position as the most affordable car in the range. The VW Polo in a Spanish suit costs £15,445 in its most basic form – that’s around £5000 less than the Mii Electric.

Is £19,200 a lot to ask for a small electric car with two seats, a 17.6kWh battery and up to 80 miles of range? Probably, but the EQ Fortwo feels at home in the city and the tight turning circle remains comically good. Unlike the Twizy, it’s also a proper car.

The most basic Skoda Fabia isn’t the cheapest model. That’s because the £14,605 Fabia S is powered by a 1.0 TSI petrol engine, rather than the lethargic 1.0 MPI unit in the cheapest Fabia SE. Given the choice, we’d up the budget to £16,000 for a Fabia SE with the 1.0 TSI engine. Simple.

The SsangYong Tivoli is a compact SUV for the price of a basic supermini, so what’s the catch? Well, if you’re after a spacious small car, with a decent level of equipment and a seven-year warranty, there isn’t one. You even get the new 1.2-litre turbocharged petrol engine in the cheapest Tivoli, which is superior to the ageing 1.5-litre petrol and 1.6-litre diesel engines found in the more expensive versions.

Subaru sold just 951 cars last year, with the UK boss labelling 2020 “a horrible year”. It means that anyone buying a Subaru XV will be joining an exclusive club – you’ll almost certainly be the only XV owner in the village. The thing is, the all-wheel drive XV will keep going long after rival SUVs have ground to a halt, while the new 2.0-litre e-Boxer hybrid powertrain gives it almost respectable fuel economy.

The Ignis undercuts the Swift by £500, making it the most affordable Suzuki you can buy. Suzuki doesn’t really do expensive cars, although the Across – essentially a Toyota RAV4 with a different badge – costs £45,500. Fun fact: Suzuki’s passenger car range is now exclusively electrified. Okay, it’s not particularly fun, but it’s a fact.

Tesla’s cheapest car is arguably the most convincing. In entry-level Standard Range Plus guise, the Model 3 boasts a WLTP range of 278 miles and a guarantee that you’ll turn heads in the office car park. That’s if you ever return to the office car park. The £50,000 Model 3 Long Range offers up to 360 miles from a full charge.

A new as-yet-unnamed Toyota city car is on the way, with the new model using a variation of the Yaris’s GA-B platform. In the meantime, it’s possible to buy the current Aygo for as little as £12,690, but the smart money goes on one of the mid-range versions.

It’s been a while since the Vauxhall Corsa looked this appealing. Smart styling, excellent fuel economy, improved tech and keen pricing edges the Corsa closer to the top of the supermini class. Even the SE model features 16in alloy wheels, cruise control, lane departure warning, a 7.0in touchscreen infotainment system, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.

It’s beginning to show its age now, but the VW Up is still the best city car you can buy in 2021. The basic three-door model costs £12,705, but adding a couple of rear doors ups the price to £13,105. Fancy a different flavour? The Up GTI costs just shy of £16,000, while the e-Up costs £20,500, after the government grant has been deducted.

Is this the best premium compact SUV you can buy? Only the Range Rover Evoque can rival it for all-round excellence, but the availability of an all-electric version gives the Volvo a slight edge, but that version will cost you at least £53,155.