As we close out the year, and car shoppers consider year-end car purchases, Consumer Reports (CR) is sharing its 2025 Automotive Report Card. It ranks the most reliable brands and overall car brands using data gathered from member surveys.
CR says with the average price of a new car hovering around $48,000, car shoppers can't to rely on guesswork to determine which models are likely to hold up well over time, perform to their expectations, and deliver a safe and satisfying ownership experience.
“Buying a new car is a big expense and one that requires a lot of research to arrive at the best choice,” said Jake Fisher, senior director of Consumer Reports’ Auto Test Center. “Our new experience at CR.org makes that research easier by presenting exclusive unbiased data and insights on everything from reliability to cost of ownership in a streamlined way that’s simple to navigate.”
Key report highlights include:
Hybrid Reliability is Strong, while EVs and PHEVs are Improving
Top 10 Brand Reliability Rankings
Subaru is the number one ranked brand for the first time ever, besting Lexus and Toyota, which have traded the two top spots for many years. CR’s experts attribute Subaru’s improvement to the brand’s conservative approach to vehicle redesigns and the sharing of reliable components across its model lineup. The only Subaru with a below-average score for predicted reliability is the Solterra electric SUV.
Hyundai
Note: CR says it had insufficient data to create reliability brand rankings for Alfa Romeo, Chrysler, Dodge, Fiat, Infiniti, Jaguar, Land Rover, Lincoln, Lucid, Maserati, Mercedes-Benz, Mini, Mitsubishi, Polestar, Porsche and Ram.
The full report and brand reliability rankings can be found here.
Top 10 Overall Brand Rankings
Subaru is also the top brand in CR’s 2025 Auto Brand Report Card Rankings for the first time since 2022, reclaiming the top spot from BMW by a narrow one-point margin. The rankings are based on the average Overall Score, a combination of CR’s road-test scores, predicted reliability and owner satisfaction data, and safety for all of the models from each automaker.
CR’s full report on Which Brands Make the Best Cars can be found here.
Top 10 Brands For Owner Satisfaction
Rivian leads all brands in CR’s owner satisfaction survey, and its average road test score lands it in the middle of the pack. However, well-below average predicted reliability continues to plague the EV maker, landing it in second to last place in the overall brand rankings.
For more about the CR report and how the rankings were calcuated, visit CR here. T