Toyota’s best-selling model gets a major update and goes all-in on hybrids. Here are the details!
Every year for nearly the past decade, Toyota dealers manage to shift at least 400,000 RAV4s to buyers in the U.S. alone. It’s one of the best-selling vehicles on the roads, bar none, so it’s a massive deal with a new RAV4 comes along. And that’s what we have Tuesday evening: The 2026 Toyota RAV4 has officially landed, and it’s bringing the expected styling changes, powertrain tweaks and technological upgrades the automaker hopes will press its advantage against the horde of small SUV competition like the Honda CR-V, Nissan Rogue, Chevy Equinox and so many more.
On the styling front, the 2026 Toyota RAV4 takes on similar styling across its three “styles” — effectively silos Toyota uses to mark out different trim levels. Be it the “Core” (LE, XLE, Limited), “Rugged” (Woodland) or “Sport” (SE, XSE or GR Sport) models, each RAV4 sports functionally the same aesthetic inside and out. The front adopts Toyota’s latest “hammerhead” styling, with the top end split for the squarer (compared to last-gen) lower fascia. Wide fender arches and black cladding also feature throughout the different style groups, though wheel and grille designs change up depending on which trim you go for. The Woodland, for example, gets a split upper and lower grille with Rigid Industries LED lights and chunkier wheels and the GR Sport getting a mesh lower grille and, as you’d expect, flashier five-spoke wheels. Wheel options, speaking of which, range between 18- and 20-inch units, depending on the trim.
Around the back, the 2026 RAV4 still has a chunky sort of aesthetic with several intersecting lines and angles, but the LED taillights and tailgate design have softened up a bit from the hard edges Toyota brought in with the fifth-gen models. It’s certainly an evolutionary look (whether you prefer that is down to your own tastes), but the new black central trim element and badge design does emphasize the “RAV4” font more than the previous generation, so you don’t mistake what you’re looking at.
2026 Toyota RAV4: By the numbers
The latest sixth-generation RAV4 still rides on Toyota’s TNGA-K platform, with the same 105.9-inch wheelbase. Despite the new exterior design, this SUV is only about an inch wider than the outgoing version, and hasn’t grown substantially (if at all) in length or height. Overall, the 2026 RAV4 measures out to 180.9 inches long (181.8 inches for the Woodland/GR Sport), 74.0 inches in length and 66.4-67.8 tall.
Powertrains are one of the areas Toyota is shaking up the new RAV4, mainly by dropping any gas-only options from the lineup. Much like the Sienna, the Sequoia, the Land Cruiser, the Camry and the Crown/Crown Signia, this generation RAV4 goes all-hybrid, all the time — though it sticks with updated versions of the familiar powertrains from the fifth-gen models.
All models except the GR Sport start out with a 2.5-liter four-cylinder-backed hybrid system, though Toyota will still offer front-wheel drive (just like the Camry). There’s a bit more power on tap this time around, with the FWD RAV4 Hybrids managing 226 horsepower (up from the gas-only models’ 203 and the old hybrid’s 219 horsepower), while the extra rear-mounted motor on the all-wheel drive models bumps the overall output to 236 horsepower (again, up from 219 on the old RAV4 Hybrid).
If you’re looking for more grunt, then you’ll want the plug-in hybrid model instead. Not only does that bring the total power output up to 320 horsepower — beefed up from the old RAV4 PHEV/Prime’s 302 horsepower figure — but Toyota promises an all-electric driving range up to 50 miles (from 42 mi before), thanks to a larger battery. DC fast-charging is also available using a CCS charging port this time around, while you still also get 11-kW AC Level 2 home charging capability. The PHEV powertrain option is available on the SE, XSE and Woodland and also comes standard on the GR Sport.
As far as capability, Toyota claims the 2026 RAV4 Hybrid models with front-wheel drive as well as the LE AWD can tow up to 1,750 pounds. If you opt for any other all-wheel drive HEV or the PHEV trims including the XLE, Woodland, SE, XSE or GR Sport, that capability increases to a maximum of 3,500 pounds, when properly equipped.
Looking inside the new RAV4
Toyota pitches a “tech-forward”, functional look with the new RAV4’s taillight signature and rear-end design, and that sort of ethos continues through to the interior. Now, we are talking about a best-selling SUV here, so you have to temper expectations — Toyota was never going to go berserk with change for its own sake here. To that end, you still get a straightforward instrument panel layout with a gauge cluster in front of the driver, steering wheel buttons where you’d expect them, physical climate and media controls and a center-mounted touchscreen display (either 10.5- or 12.9-inch, depending on the model).
A host of interior seating colors and materials will be available including fabric and the SofTex, with the GR Sport adding in microsuede along with special embroidered headrests. A six-speaker audio system comes standard, while higher-end models get the option of a nine-speaker JBL Premium setup, or come with it as standard equipment. The infotainment setup has standard wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto functionality, while also packing the latest version of Toyota’s “Arene”-enabled operating system.
Toyota never fails to hammer on safety with each subsequent launch, and the 2026 RAV4 is no exception. This model lineup is the first to get the automaker’s latest Toyota Safety Sense 4.0 system, again powered by the Arene software platform, which updates the hardware and detection capabilities for things like automatic emergency braking, pedestrian and cyclist detection and adaptive cruise control beyond TSS 3.5 and previous iterations.
When will the 2026 Toyota RAV4 be available and how much will it cost?
While Toyota finally pulled the wraps off its sixth-generation RAV4, it did not disclose exactly how much any of these new models will cost just yet. The automaker says the new car will hit dealerships later this year, and pricing will be available closer to the launch date.
That said, since we’re talking about a generational update, I’d reasonably expect a price hike from the past models, especially with the loss of the gas-only LE trim. Right now, the 2025 LE Hybrid starts at $33,695 ($3,050 more than the gas model), so that is the absolute baseline for this new generation moving forward. Odds are, we’ll see pricing for the 2026 Toyota RAV4 range from about $35,000 at the low end to the mid-$50,000s for high-spec models like the Woodland PHEV and the GR Sport.
Check out more of the 2026 Toyota RAV4 in person with Tommy and Roman in the debut video below:
